“This was entirely unintentional”: T.O.P addresses BIGBANG’s ‘BANG BANG BANG’ choreography reference in Squid Game 2 Mingle round

T.O.P, the former member of the veteran K-pop group BIGBANG, widely known to fans as "Thanos" from Squid Game, shared insights about the viral BANG BANG BANG hook step he performed in the series. On January 24, 2025, during an interview with the Chinese Zhongshi News Network Entertainment, he discussed the Mingle game scene where his dance moment gained significant attention.

Fans had drawn comparisons to BIGBANG’s signature choreography, speculating it was a tribute. However, the actor clarified that it wasn’t premeditated. He explained that the move came to him naturally, influenced by the rhythm of the moment. Unintentionally, he recreated the iconic step, winning the hearts of both the K-pop community especially BIGBANG fans. Speaking about the moment, he shared:

"On the set, I thought to myself, what kind of dance would Thanos perform? It was just as I got into the character, I heard the lyrics repeatedly saying “spin around,” so I naturally did a cowboy-style dance. But honestly, I don’t even remember performing that dance. It was only after watching the final work that I realised it. This was entirely unintentional.”

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T.O.P answers 3 burning "Thanos" questions

In the YouTube video titled, "Couldn't resist dancing to Bang Bang Bang' in Squid Game 2? T.O.P reveals the true story," by the Zhongshi Network channel of China, T.O.P, also known as Choi Seung-hyun, addressed fan questions that have been trending and causing curiosity over the past few months. During the interview, he discussed three specific topics that had gone viral.

The first question revolved around whether he performed the BANG BANG BANG hook step during the "Mingle" game in Squid Game.

Responding to this, he explained,

"Actually, that dance segment, I wasn’t thinking of a previous dance when performing it. At that time, I was completely immersed in the role."

He further explained that he asked himself what kind of dance Thanos would perform, and when he got into the character, he heard the lyrics repeatedly saying "spin around." This prompted him to do the "cowboy-style" dance.

He shared that his intention was to perform a cowboy-inspired dance for his character, but he later discovered through fans that he had unintentionally recreated the iconic BIGBANG step. He said, during the interview,

"It was only after watching the final work that I realized it."

This accidental homage delighted fans and reignited nostalgia.

T.O.P was also asked whether he had incorporated lyrics from BIGBANG’s song Last Dance into his rap in the series. He clarified that the lyrics were not from the group’s song. He revealed that originally, the director has written more extensive rap lyrics for Thanos, but T.O.P felt that since Thanos is more of a "failed hip hop loser," the lyrics must be more "naive and straightforward." Thus, T.O.P wrote the lyrics himself and kept them simple.

The third question took an amusing turn when he was asked which other Squid Game character he would like to play. To everyone’s surprise, he chose the "Red light, Green Light" game doll, Young-hee. While he didn’t elaborate on the reasoning, his unexpected answer left the interviewers flustered and amused as well.

Towards the end of the interview, T.O.P expressed gratitude to fans for their love and creativity surrounding his character, Thanos. He mentioned how he had seen various reels and memes inspired by the role and found them highly creative.

"I will work hard to become an artist worth looking forward to," he stated.

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The short but revealing interview offered fans a deeper insight into T.O.P's thoughts and his approach to portraying the character Thanos in Squid Game.