10 Things You Didn't Know About Squid Game

WatchMojo

Dive into the hidden details and behind-the-scenes secrets of the global phenomenon! From artistic inspirations to character origins, we're uncovering fascinating facts about the hit series that took the world by storm. Prepare to see the games in a whole new light!

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at 10 Missable Details in Squid Game,

00:11and fun behind-the-scenes tidbits about the making of the show.

00:14We will be discussing major plot points, so a spoiler warning is in effect.

00:24The doll was inspired by a Korean school character.

00:30Like most things in Squid Game, the doll seen in red light green light was inspired by a

00:40childhood artifact. The reference was likely lost on international viewers, but the doll

00:45strongly resembles Young-hee, a girl who appeared on Korean school textbooks in the 1970s and 80s.

01:00In fact, Netflix officially confirmed in a Twitter post that the doll's name is Young-hee,

01:06further establishing the connection. Series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk was born in 1971,

01:11so he would have certainly seen little Young-hee on the covers of his 80s textbooks.

01:15What a wonderful piece of nostalgia that's been warped into depravity.

01:25Lee Jung-jae was cast against type.

01:30This actor received international renown after starring as Sung Ki-hyun,

01:39but he was an established star in Korea well before Squid Game. Lee has been nominated for

01:44six Paeksang Arts Awards, the Korean equivalent of the Oscars, and has starred in a wide variety

01:50of genres. His charming screen presence is exactly why Hwang cast him in the lead role,

01:55but not for the reasons you may think.

02:00Hwang wished to cast Lee against type, saying he wanted to, quote,

02:09destroy his charismatic image portrayed in his previous roles. It worked. Lee won a slew of

02:15awards for his performance, including the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama.

02:30The visuals were inspired by art.

02:48The story and themes of Squid Game received most of the attention,

02:51but it is also a terrifically shot piece of television,

02:55even winning the Emmy for Outstanding Production Design.

02:59Jae Kyung Sung was greatly influenced by art,

03:01and used existing material to help shape the fictional world of Squid Game.

03:15The confusing staircase was inspired by the works of M.C. Escher,

03:18most specifically his 1953 print Relativity.

03:22The climactic dinner scene in the eighth episode is almost a verbatim copy of Judy

03:26Chicago's installation The Dinner Party. And finally, the recurring sky visuals

03:31were inspired by the design seen in Rene Magritte's The Empire of Light paintings.

03:42The Most Watched Show for a Day

03:48While writing the show, Hwang Dong Hyuk had one goal,

03:52for Squid Game to be the most watched show on Netflix for one day.

03:56He had a point to make about capitalism and inequality,

03:59and he wanted that point to reach as many people as possible.

04:02However, he had no delusions about his success.

04:05He knew that a Korean show probably wouldn't reach a large international audience,

04:09especially one as dark and weird as this.

04:12So he aimed for the humble goal,

04:14number one show on the U.S. charts for one day.

04:18Well, he certainly got that, and then some.

04:20Squid Game became Netflix's most watched series ever,

04:24breaking the record set by Bridgerton,

04:26and even beating season four of Stranger Things.

04:32It was originally designed as a movie.

04:48Despite its unbelievable success,

04:54Squid Game was never meant to be a show.

04:56In 2008, Hwang was a struggling artist battling debt and poverty,

05:00and he spent a lot of his time in cafes reading survival manga.

05:04He was inspired by these stories and wrote his own movie, Squid Game.

05:18However, no one was interested in the script,

05:21and he struggled to find backing.

05:23So he shelved the idea and moved on.

05:26It wasn't until 2018 that he pitched Squid Game to Netflix,

05:30who was looking for more international productions.

05:32They loved the idea but wanted a show rather than a film.

05:36So Hwang spent the next several months revising the script

05:39and expanding it into a nine-episode series.

05:42The detective's subplot was not part of the original script.

05:58Hwang originally had one clear and targeted story,

06:01the Squid Games themselves and the personal journey of Sung Ki-hyun.

06:04But when the idea was picked up by Netflix and expanded into a series,

06:08he needed some new material.

06:10He needed some new material to help fill the time.

06:13That's when he invented the character of Hwang Joon-ho,

06:15the police detective who infiltrates the games in search of his missing brother.

06:34This not only added an element of mystery to the series,

06:37it also greatly helped with the world building,

06:40allowing us access into the production and inner workings of the games.

06:44Now that it's here,

06:45we couldn't imagine the story without the Joon-ho subplot.

06:55It was almost called Round 6.

06:57Did you know what the Squid Game was before this show?

07:01Exactly.

07:02Squid is a popular children's game in South Korea,

07:05but it's virtually unknown outside of the country.

07:08As such, Netflix didn't like the name Squid Game,

07:11believing that it wouldn't translate to international audiences.

07:27They liked the title Round 6,

07:40as Squid is the sixth game in the series.

07:43However, Hwang was insistent that it be called Squid Game,

07:47arguing that even if audiences didn't know what it meant,

07:50they would still be drawn to the mystery.

07:52Netflix eventually capitulated,

07:54and good thing.

07:55Who knows how many people were lured in by the cryptic title.

08:09The main characters are based on Hwang Dong-hyuk.

08:22Like many writers,

08:23Hwang wrote from experience

08:25and crafted the main characters from his own personality traits.

08:28He wrote the characters of Gi-hun and Sang-woo

08:30to represent his two conflicting histories,

08:32calling them his quote,

08:34inner clones.

08:35Hwang told CNN that Gi-hun is modeled after his childhood,

08:38being quote,

08:39raised by a single mother in a financially troubled environment.

08:51Sang-woo is what he grew into as an adult,

08:53attending university and facing equal amounts of pressure

08:56and praise from his poverty stricken neighborhood.

08:59Luckily, Hwang didn't become an investment banker

09:02who stole money from his clients.

09:03So, you know, that's one big difference.

09:13The games are painted on the walls.

09:15Pyeong-gi secretly works for the corrupt guards

09:17harvesting human organs

09:18in exchange for information about the upcoming games.

09:21It ends up costing him his life.

09:23And to think,

09:24all he had to do was look at the walls.

09:34Yep, all of the games are painted on the walls.

09:45This becomes quite obvious once the beds are removed,

09:48but the detail is never directly addressed.

09:50And they were there from the very beginning.

09:52We can only speculate why.

09:54Maybe it's just decoration,

09:55or maybe it's a hidden detail for observant players to spot,

09:59like a sick taskmaster clue.

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10:38Perhaps the most genius detail of the show

10:40is that all of the major deaths are foreshadowed.

10:43Most of them come in episode two,

10:45after the players have returned to the mainland.

10:48Ali steals money from his boss,

10:49mirroring his marbles being stolen by Sang-woo.

10:52Se-byeok threatens to slash a man's throat,

10:55and her throat is later slashed by Sang-woo.

10:57As for Sang-woo,

10:59he tries taking his own life,

11:00which he successfully does at the end of Squid.

11:07Deok-su jumps off a bridge,

11:09foreshadowing his fatal fall during the stepping stones.

11:12And his killer, Min-yo,

11:14even makes reference to feeling powerful

11:16when she laid back in tug of war,

11:18symbolizing how she drags Deok-su to his death.

11:21Now that's just good writing right there.

11:30Were you aware of this information?

11:32Let us know in the comments below.

11:37Did you enjoy this video?

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