Squid Game season 2: Release date, cast and latest news
Nothing says Christmas like Red Light, Green Light – how festive!
It's been a long wait, but Netflix's South Korean phenomenon Squid Game is almost ready for its grand return.
The series catapulted stars Lee Jung-jae (The Acolyte) and Wi Ha-joon (Gyeongseong Creature) to international stardom, telling the unpredictable story of desperate contestants trapped in a game of life or death.
Last month, the two actors appeared at Italy's Lucca Comics and Games convention alongside Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, who teased what the next chapter of his hit series holds in store.
"Season 2 is going to be about Gi-hun [being] faced with his memories of the first game — the experiences of going through a new realisation and awakening and returning once again in order to stop this unjust game," he said.
A trailer released shortly after the event saw the return of the iconic Red Light, Green Light game, in which contestants must make a perilous dash to the finish line, but stay completely still when a sharpshooting robot casts its eyes upon them.
But don't worry: the show won't just be recycling its old tricks, with plenty of all-new horrors alluded to in the chilling teaser. Here's everything we know about Squid Game season 2 so far.
Squid Game season 2 release date: When is it coming out on Netflix?
Squid Game season 2 will debut on Thursday 26th December 2024, so you might want to keep your Boxing Day plans to a minimum if you're a particularly big fan!
The release date news was announced over the summer with a brief Olympics-themed teaser (see below), which also announced a third and final season to be released in 2025.
The show was officially renewed for a second season back in June 2022, when creator Hwang Dong-hyuk remarked on how long the show had been developed for and how quickly it had become a global phenomenon.
"It took 12 years to bring the first season of Squid Game to life last year, but it took 12 days for Squid Game to become the most popular series ever," he said in a statement shared on X.
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How many episodes will Squid Game season 2 have?
It's currently unknown how many episodes Squid Game season 2 will consist of.
It's possible that the show will retain the same count as the first chapter, which ran for nine episodes in total, but it could also be granted an expanded runtime given the enormous popularity of the previous instalment.
We'll update this page when Netflix confirms how many season 2 episodes we can expect.
Squid Game season 2 cast: Who's returning?
Expect lots of new faces in season 2, given that the majority of the Squid Game characters were killed in season 1 – although some could potentially cameo in flashbacks or via archive footage.
What we do know is that Lee Jung-jae is definitely returning as traumatised Squid Game winner Seong Gi-hun, while Wi Ha-joon will also be back as police officer Hwang Jun-ho.
The fan-favourite character was shot by the Front Man (aka his missing brother) and fell off a cliff towards the end of season 1, leaving fans unsure whether he would survive, but we now know that he somehow manages to pull through.
On the game side of the equation, we know that Gong Yoo will be reprising his memorable guest role as the recruiter who lures people into the deadly scheme, while Lee Byung-hun will be back as the aforementioned Front Man.
A number of new cast members have also been announced for Squid Game season 2, including Sweet Home's Park Gyu-young and Lee Jin-uk, and The Glory star Park Sung-hoon.
Here's a list of the Squid Game season 2 cast (so far) and where you might have seen them before.
- Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun
- Wi Ha-joon as Hwang Jun-ho
- Gong Yoo as The Salesman
- Lee Byung-hun as The Front Man
- Yim Si-wan (Unlocked) as TBC
- Kang Ha-neul (The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure) as TBC
- Park Gyu-young (Sweet Home, Celebrity) as TBC
- Park Sung-hoon (The Glory) as TBC
- Jo Yu-ri as TBC
- Yang Dong-geun (Yaksha: Ruthless Operations) as TBC
- Kang Ae-sim (Be Melodramatic, Move to Heaven) as TBC
- Lee David (The Fortress) as TBC
- Lee Jin-uk (Sweet Home) as TBC
- Choi Seung-hyun (Tazza: The Hidden) as TBC
- Roh Jae-won (Missing Yoon) as TBC
- Won Ji-an (DP) as TBC
Squid Game season 2 plot
The season's official description reads: "Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 remains determined to find the people behind the game and put an end to their vicious sport.
"Using his fortune to fund his search, Gi-hun starts with the most obvious of places: look for the man in a sharp suit playing ddakji in the subway.
"But when his efforts finally yield results, the path toward taking down the organisation proves to be deadlier than he imagined: to end the game, he needs to re-enter it."
Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk previously told The Times that he would like a second season to look at the Korean police after focusing mainly on the contestants in the first season.
"While I was writing season 1, I thought about the stories that could be in season 2 if I get to do one — one would be the story of the Front Man. I think the issue with police officers is not just an issue in Korea.
"I see it on the global news that the police force can be very late on acting on things — there are more victims or a situation gets worse because of them not acting fast enough. This was an issue that I wanted to raise."
This plot line is likely to be explored through the character of Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), who will still be working with the police when we get reacquainted with him at the start of season 2.
While we did get a glimpse into what life for the Game employees was like when Jun-ho snuck into the facility, we don't know a lot about how the workers were recruited and why they chose to work there.
We find out that Jun-ho's brother is the Front Man, having taken on a senior role at the Game after winning as a contestant in 2015, but we don't know why he decided to join the upper ranks of the deadly competition.
The second season is likely to delve deeper into this, with the surviving Jun-ho determined to find his brother and understand what happened to him – but some mysteries might be saved for the confirmed third chapter.
Another character confirmed to be returning by the synopsis and early images is the menacing recruiter, played by Gong Yoo, who finds contestants for the Squid Game by playing ddakji with them on the metro system.
Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk previously teased (via The Hollywood Reporter) he would "go into the story" of that mysterious figure in season 2, so expect some greater insight into how he became involved in the sinister enterprise.
Hwang previously mentioned that he would also be interested in expanding the back story of the old man, Oh Il-nam, a contestant who is shockingly revealed to be a wealthy investor behind the games.
"The way how he yearns for the happy moments of his past shows that he has lost many things including his family and his humanity at the cost of success. If there will be a season 2, we might reveal a little more about his past story," he teased.
Alas, there's no word yet on whether this idea made it into the upcoming episodes, but Oh Il-nam made a big impression in the first season – and his mention of having a wife and son could very well lay the groundwork for flashbacks or new characters.
How many seasons of Squid Game are there?
The show will end with its third and final season at some point in 2025.
Speaking about this decision, series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk explained in a letter posted on Netflix's US Instagram account alongside the renewal news.
"It’s been almost three years since season 1 was met with incredible response around the world and many unimaginable events took place," Hwang Dong-hyuk wrote.
"On the first day we began shooting season 2, I remember thinking, 'Wow, I can’t believe I’m back in the world of Squid Game.' It almost felt surreal. I wonder how it will feel for you to be back in Squid Game after three years as well."
He continued: "Seong Gi-hun, who vowed revenge at the end of season 1, returns and joins the game again. Will he succeed in getting his revenge? Front Man doesn’t seem to be an easy opponent this time either.
"The fierce clash between their two worlds will continue into the series finale with season 3, which will be brought to you next year. I am thrilled to see the seed that was planted in creating a new Squid Game grow and bear fruit through the end of this story.
"We’ll do our best to make sure we bring you yet another thrill ride."
While the original South Korean series will end with its third season, the franchise could continue on further, with superstar director David Fincher currently attached to a rumoured US "offshoot" of the show.
Is there a Squid Game season 2 trailer?
Yes, there are several! Our most in-depth look at the upcoming episodes came, fittingly, on Halloween, when Netflix dropped a two-minute teaser that set up the storyline to come. Watch now:
Previously, the streamer had dropped a shorter so-called 'Special Teaser' that gave us our first glimpse at the next season. You can watch that one below:
Another promo clip shifted focus to the sinister Salesman played by Gong Yoo, with the tag line 'You're Invited' – we hope not! Check it out here:
Another short teaser gave fans a look at several of the new players, including numbers 222, 007, 044 and 380, before also showing a glimpse at 456, which of course belongs to champion Gi-hun.
Squid Game season 2 will be released on Thursday 26th December. Sign up for Netflix from £6.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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