Squid Game is developing into a worldwide hit! Who is the black mask man? +++ This is what the symbols mean +++ Why everyone is so fascinated by the series
It’s about long-forgotten children’s games. And life and death.
The South Korean Netflix series “Squid Game” is THE surprise hit of the year. The nine episodes available to date on a brutal game show are still the unbeaten number one in the top 10 Netflix fans three weeks after their premiere.
We know the exciting details and secrets of the mega series!
- Warning, the following text contains spoilers!
- This is what it’s all about
- THEY are the main characters
- More stars from “Squid Game”
- Why is everyone so fascinated by the squid game?
- Who is behind the black masked “front man”? (ATTENTION SPOILERS!)
- What is behind the different shapes (circle, triangle, square)?
- Where does the series title “Squid Game” come from?
- The idea behind the green and red jogging suits
- Celebrity Fan: Jeff Bezos
- The most beautiful behind-the-scenes shots from the shoot
Warning, the following text contains spoilers!
In the first game called “Red Light, Green Light”, the players are still clueless what to expect – and that the losers will be shot by the larger-than-life doll
This is what it’s all about
456 indebted men and women marked by life accept the shady invitation to take part in a mysterious game. Their identity is replaced there by numbers on their overalls. The participants can look forward to prize money of 45.6 billion won (currently equivalent to around 33 million euros).
That they will pay with their lives in the six games becomes clear to the candidates after the first children’s game “Red light, green light”. The spectacle is observed by a man in a black mask.
THEY are the main characters
Seong Gi-hun
Seong Gi-hun, number 456 (played by Lee Jung-jae, 48), still lives with his mother, whom he steals because he has high gambling debts. Gambling, horse betting – Seong Gi-hun chases after the great luck. A tragedy, especially for his little daughter who lives with her mother and her new husband.
Lee Jung-jae celebrated his breakthrough in 1998 with his role in “An Affair”, one of the most successful Korean films of the year, which also made it to international film festivals. The South Korean actor received the Blue Dragon Award for his role as Prince Suyang in “The Face Reader” (2013).
Cho Sang-woo
Cho Sang-woo, number 218 (Park Hae-soo, 39), was actually the beacon of hope for the entire neighborhood. He went to university and got a good job. His mother has a framed picture of him in her market square. The truth is, Sang-woo went into hiding after abusing his position as head of the investment department of a security company to steal from customers. The police are after him.
Park Hae-soo made his musical theater debut in 2007. In 2017 he impressed with his leading role in the drama series “Prison Playbook”, for which he was awarded the Seoul Awards.
Jung Ho-yeon
Jung Ho-yeon (27) is Kang Sae-byeok, number 067. Jung Ho-yeon started her modeling career at the age of 16 and took part in “Korea’s Next Top Model”. Her career took a steep upswing, she already graced the covers of glossy magazines such as “Vogue” and “Elle”.
Today she is the face of Louis Vuitton, has already run for labels such as Fendi, D&G, Marc Jacobs and many others.
She makes her acting debut in “Squid Game”. If you look at her number of followers, she is already the most successful actress in South Korea. On Instagram, their community grew to 17 million in a very short time.
More stars from “Squid Game”
Wi Ha-joon
Wi Ha-joon (30) plays the young police officer Hwan Jun-ho who sneaks in as a guard in the “Squid Game” in search of his missing brother
Young-soo
His portrayal goes to the heart: Oh Young-soo (76) plays the old man Oh Il-nam, number 001
Heo Sung-tae
Cruel villain who literally walks over corpses: Heo Sung-tae (43) plays Jang Deok-su, number 101
Jang Deok-su
Cunning gangster bride who falls in love with Jang Deok-su, number 101: Kim Joo-ryung (45) plays Han Mi-nyeo, number 212
Anupam Tripathi
Anupam Tripathi (32) plays the Pakistani worker Ali Abdul, number 199. He accepts the invitation to play in order to support his young family.
Why is everyone so fascinated by the squid game?
The South Korean series is already an absolute cult among viewers. “Squid Games” beats all records on Netflix, and fans post countless memes, photos and drawings of their heroes on social media.
But what makes the story of the participants in a gruesome round of games so popular? On the one hand, it should be the mix of a gloomy atmosphere and a brightly colored, surreal setting. In addition, the content is similar to end-of-time epics such as the “Hunger Games” series with Jennifer Lawrence (31) and the Korean thriller “Battle Royale”, in which a group of schoolchildren are abandoned on an island in order to kill each other.
“Squid Game” addresses the economic exploitation of workers in today’s Korea in tough images. Accordingly, the situation of the players and their personal, often heartbreaking stories are touching. The actors enjoy their roles and play with a joy that inspires. In fact, despite the many horrific scenes, the series is often wonderfully funny.
Particularly tragic: In contrast to the “Hunger Games”, the candidates for the “Squid Games” have the choice of whether they want to end the game or continue playing: If the majority decides to abandon the game, the indebted men and women are allowed to leave. In fact, at the request of most of the candidates, the game ends at an early point – but the protagonists return voluntarily. You have no choice – and nothing to lose.
Photo: HEO RAN / REUTERS
“Squid Game” is not necessarily the fight between good and evil. Here despair meets the tiny spark of hope to emerge victorious from an inhuman competition. The price for this, however, is the loss of one’s innocence. And so in the end the winner with a fortune in the millions becomes a tragic figure who can no longer find his way in real life.
Who is behind the black masked “front man”? (ATTENTION SPOILERS!)
The creepy front man In-ho is the missing older brother of the police officer Hwang Jun-ho, played by Wi Ha-joon. The South Korean actor and singer Lee Byung-hun (51) embodies the masked In-Ho.
This won the last games and has since been considered lost. His brother goes in search of him and finds out about the “Squid Games” during his research.
In the end, the brothers face each other again in a dramatic moment.
What is behind the different shapes (circle, triangle, square)?
The guardians of the game wear different symbols on their masks. This makes it clear where they are in the hierarchy of the system. The circle symbolizes the lowest level: the workers accompany the players to the venues, shoot the losers and then collect the corpses.
Guards wearing a triangle keep things tidy. Those who are marked with a square belong to the top tier of overseers who report to the front man.
The characters are not chosen arbitrarily, but represent Korean letters: The circle is the letter “o”, the triangle is part of the letter “j”, and the square is the “m”. So next to each other is “OJM” – the initials of the squid game in Korean, which is read as “Ojingeo Geim” (오징어 게임).
Where does the series title “Squid Game” come from?
The squid game was a widespread children’s game in South Korea in the 1970s and 1980s. The game is about two parties: attacker and defender. The playing field is shaped like an octopus, the lines are drawn in the ground with sticks.
The goal of the attackers is to put one foot in the area of the “squid head” at the top of the playing field. At first they are only allowed to hop on one leg. The defense must remain within the boundaries of the field of play. Your goal is to prevent the opponents from advancing. If an attacker makes it through the middle, he can walk on both legs. If he is pushed out of the mark by a defender, he dies. In children’s games, of course, only symbolically. In the series, death is real.
The idea behind the green and red jogging suits
The tracksuits are reminiscent of the green leotard that Squid Game director Hwang Dong-hyuk wore in elementary school, as he told the South Korean newspaper Joongang Ilbo.
The contrast between the uniforms of the players and the staff is comparable to that “between school children participating in various activities on sports day in an amusement park and the park guides,” said Hwang. The employees’ “soft, playful, and innocent looking” pink shade was chosen deliberately to contrast with the dark, ruthless nature of their work, which is to kill.
Celebrity Fan: Jeff Bezos
Even before the series even started, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos (57) congratulated Netflix on its “impressive and inspiring international strategy” with which the streaming giant catapulted the South Korean production out of nowhere into the consciousness of viewers.
“I can’t wait to see the series,” said Bezos in the post. The billionaire has not yet revealed whether he has watched “Squid Game” in the meantime and how he actually found the program.
The most beautiful behind-the-scenes shots from the shoot
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