The producer of the hit Korean show Squid Game has expressed reservations about the show’s spin-off on Netflix. Directing this new reality show, Hwang Dong-hyuk pleaded with viewers not to take it “too seriously” during the Emmys. According to a story in Entertainment Weekly, Hwang told interviewers that he was aware of and okay with the idea of making a reality show based on the drama series. “Yes, I am aware of the reality programme being made,” he remarked at a press conference after receiving his Emmy for Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series on Monday night. I had a meeting with the author yesterday, and they peppered me with questions.
My expectation is that they will be faithful to my ideas and intentions for the show. The “heavy message” of the Squid Game was a harsh lesson on the damaging influence of greed and commerce on lives, and fans have voiced concern over the reality series being replicated as a competition. Hwang admitted these worries but said, “I feel like whenever you take things too seriously, that’s really not the ideal way to go for the entertainment sector. Not a very good example to set.” Hwang is so confident in the potential of Squid Game: The Challenge that he even says it would “provide new meaning to the business.”
In June of 2022, it was revealed that Netflix had given its approval for the next reality show.
The ten-part television series, based on Hwang’s drama, will feature 450 English speakers from all over the world competing in a variety of dangerous tasks. Participants will battle it out for $4.56 million, described as “the greatest ever cash award at the finish” (as announced by Brandon Riegg, Netflix VP of Unscripted and Documentary Series, when the series was first revealed). Unlike the drama series, the real-life repercussions of failing to complete a task will not involve death. Interested parties can apply to the “Front Man” over the Internet in the hopes of being cast in the “tension and twists” filled series. No release date has been set, but production will begin in the UK with help from co-producers Studio Lambert and The Garden (part of ITV Studios).
With Hwang’s help, “we’re turning the fictitious world into reality in this tremendous competition and social experiment,” Riegg added. In light of Squid Game’s 2022 Emmy win, Hwang gave his thoughts on the reality show. Recently, Squid Game made history by receiving fourteen Emmy nominations, including Best Drama, making it the first foreign-language series to do so. On Monday night, Squid Game won six Emmys: Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program, Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Single Episode, and for Outstanding Stunt Performance.
These honours come on the heels of the show’s status as Netflix’s most-watched series ever, with 1.54 billion hours of viewing time in just 28 days after its first release in September 2021. There will soon be a second season of the show, which follows a group of financially constrained individuals as they participate in a series of children’s activities for the opportunity to win a large reward (the date of which is yet to be announced). Some of the original cast from Squid Game will return for the follow-up. This includes Gi-Hun and The Front Man (Lee Byung-hun). Hwang will be resuming his roles as showrunner, show creator, and show director. The release of Squid Game: The Challenge has not been announced. Netflix subscribers may watch Squid Game right now.