Lee Jung-Jae has a message for his ‘Squid Game’ season 2 character

It’s the worldwide phenomenon that has captured the attention of audiences from all walks of life – and now it’s time to return to the not-so-friendly Play octopus competition for its long-awaited second season on Netflix.

Starring Lee Jung-jae, Play octopus continues to follow its protagonist Seong Gi-hun, a once poor Korean man who is given the opportunity to change his luck by participating in a series of seemingly simple games against other competitors to win an obscene amount of money. But he and his fellow players quickly learn that their performance in these games ultimately means life or death for them.

In season two, which premieres December 26 on Netflix, Seong Gi-hun returns to the deadly games – but this time with a dedicated plan to stop the leaders (including an enigmatic figure known as Front Man), once and for all everyone, and to protect the new players with potentially life-saving advice that he never received during his first time in the games.

I talked to Play octopus series creator and director Hwang Dong-hyuk, who told the audience at the US season two premiere in Hollywood on December 12 that he believes this new season is even better than the first season. The next day, I asked Hwang what it is about the Season 2 story and the development of characters, old and new, that makes him feel that this new season is actually superior to its previous one.

Hwang said, “I think the main thing is that Season 1 was more of a linear telling of a story because it’s the story of this character Gi-hun — why he joins the Squid Game, what happens to him, what he does to become the winner and what happens to him after he wins the game.When it comes to season two, it’s about this character Gi-hun whose goal is to put an end to the game and the showdown between him and the frontman whose goal is to stop Gi-she in ending the game.”

He added: “The story unfolds with this conflict at the heart of it all, and when you compare the linear storytelling to this type of storytelling in season two, where you have the character who wants to stop the game and the other character who wants to prevent him from stopping the game, I feel it’s a much more interesting story-telling structure, I think from the conflict structure and also the different drama that each of the different characters carry, you get a much more colorful plot this once.”

As for actor Lee Jung-jae (nicknamed “JJ”), I wondered what he enjoys most about his character Seong Gi-hun’s ongoing journey and growth in this second season. JJ said: “I found a lot of joy in working with a new group of characters, especially with (Lee) Seo-hwan. He was also in season 1 – and now he’s in the fights, so I think he is the only one who gave me moments of relief.”

I also spoke with actor Lee Seo-hwan, who continues to play Seong’s longtime friend Park Jung-bae on Play octopuscurious about what he enjoys most about his character’s continuing story in this popular Netflix series. He said: “Well, I had the most fun swearing at this world star, JJ. So I’m going to have to swear at him.”

Actor Lee Byung-hun (nickname “BH”) continues to play the main antagonist known as Front Man/Hwang In-ho on Play octopus. I wondered what BH enjoys most about his character’s development and seeing more sides of him (literally and figuratively) in season two.

BH said, “In season one, I play this role that was a very mysterious character with this mask on, but in season two, I get to take off the mask and get to tell a story as the person, In-ho – talk about the past, his life story to (character Hwang) Jun-ho, and there’s the element of that added layer.”

He added: “Having to portray such a layered and complex character rather than being scary or challenging – as an actor it was really exciting for me to portray and also something I had a lot of fun with. I was very happy to get such a challenge.”

Expect more fresh faces in Play octopus season two – full-dimensional characters that bring an added sense of human compassion and relatability to the series. Some of these new actors include Jo Yu-ri as Kim Jun-hee, Yim Si-wan as Lee Myung-gi, Kang Ae-sim as Jang Geum-ja, and Yang Dong-geun as Park Yong-sik. So what has it meant for them as actors to join this international television sensation in season two?

With Yu-ri sitting next to him, Si-wan said, “I can actually speak for both of us when I say that we were such big fans of the first season, so it was an honor for me that not just as a fan, but also as an actor, it’s a wonderful gift for me to be a part of this show.”

Ae-sim said, “I might be a little bit older than you, so I’ve spent many years building up my acting career, but getting this role in Play octopus has really made me feel – Oh, my end-of-life luck isn’t too bad – not too shabby.”

Dong-geun added: “For me, it became another reason for me to stay really humble because of this opportunity.”

So what do these actors think that their new Play octopus characters bring to the series that it might not have before?

Jo Yu-ri said, “My character Jun-hee comes into the game with a pregnancy – so that in itself is quite unique, and this character can be provocative or very shocking to many audiences.”

Si-wan added: “I think my character Myung-gi is one of the faces that could be said on the younger side of the cast compared to Season 1. So we might be able to represent the young generation in a way in the series. I will define Myung-gi as someone who is not completely evil or completely good—so he falls somewhere in between. I think that’s the definition I have for my character.”

Ae-sim said, “I think the relationship between Geum-ja and Yong-sik brings a family element to the story. Of course we see a family story in season one with Gi-hun and his mother – but you never really imagine that a family could go into these death games together. I really have to applaud director Hwang and his mind for bringing this premise to season two.”

Dong-geun added, “Even more than my character, I think there’s a lot of anticipation in that Gi-hun’s character, you’re going to see a whole different side of him this season.”

As I concluded my conversations with these many “players” who do Play octopus season two possible, I asked the show’s beloved star JJ, if he could talk to his character Seong Gi-hun and give him a helpful message, what would he tell him?

JJ said: “Oh! Wow, that’s very hard. I’m a player who goes into the game in season one and again in season two. So I’d love to tell him not to go there, but I’ve already been there. I know hideous things happen in the games, so I can’t just tell him not to go because of my conscience. I’m going to say, ‘I’m sorry, Gi-hun, you’re going to have to go. I wish you luck and happiness.’”