Netflix's Squid Game Season 2: Release Date, Cast, Trailer, and Everything You Need to Know

Spoilers for Squid Game season 1 ahead.

Are you ready for the second season of Netflix's hit South Korean drama? Squid Game season 2 is finally on the horizon, and we have gotten our first look at the new season. In 2023, new cast members for the series were announced, and Netflix started off 2024 by releasing the first images from the upcoming sophomore season.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you’ve probably already heard of Squid Game (or 오징어 게임), which took over the world after its global premiere on September 17, 2021. In literal days, Squid Game became one of the streamer's biggest hits, racking up an unprecedented number of views and dominating everything from Twitter discourse (and memes) to TikTok's FYPs.

Squid Game is not Netflix's first dark K-drama, as zombie period drama Kingdom, Extracurricular, Sweet Home, and D.P. also fall in line with the noir elements Squid Game has to offer. However, there's something about the Squid Game phenomenon that just can't be matched — the show even spawned its own, albeit controversial, reality competition series, Squid Game: The Challenge.

According to The Guardian, Squid Game is the first Korean production to top the streaming giant's popular list in the U.S. But that’s not even the most impressive part. According to Deadline, Netflix's co-chief executive officer and chief content officer Ted Sarandos revealed the K-drama could be Netflix's biggest show ever should its viewership continue its early pattern — and it did just so.

Related: 32 Best K-Dramas of All Time

Shortly after season one ended, series writer and director Hwang Donghyuk teased that season two of Squid Game would be coming sooner than we expected. In June 2022, a very brief teaser trailer from Netflix confirmed the news. Generally speaking, K-dramas don’t tend to have more than one season. Most K-dramas complete the story nicely after an average of 16 episodes. However, Netflix productions are different, and Squid Game left its season one ending pretty open.

If you have been dying (no pun intended) to know more about Squid Game season 2, here’s what you need to know about the series. You can jump to the section or keep reading below.

→ Cast
→ Release date
→ Filming
→ Season 3
→ First-look pictures and clips
→ Synopsis
→ Trailer

Who is in the cast of Squid Game season 2?

Netflix unveiled the full cast for the sophomore season of the hit show on June 29, 2023, and K-entertainment aficionados would be pleased to know the cast of Squid Game 2 features a handful of familiar faces.

Within the Netflix family, new additions to the cast include: Sweet Home's Park Gyuyoung and Lee Jinuk, Move to Heaven's Kang Aesim, as well as D.P.'s Won Jian. Other actors, such as Lee David, whom you might recognize from a small role on Itaewon Class, and Ditto's Roh Jaewon, who debuted in 2021, will also join the Squid Game 2 cast. Stepping into K-pop territory, the show will also feature former IZ*ONE member Jo Yuri as well as Big Bang's T.O.P under his real name, Choi Seunghyun.

At Netflix's Tudum event in June 2023, the platform announced the first batch of the cast: Run-On's Yim Siwan, Kang Haneul, The Glory's Park Sunghoon, as well as Yang Donggeun (also known by the stage moniker YDG).

Though details about the new cast members' roles are yet to be disclosed, if the Tudum teaser and a Netflix Korea tweet are to be believed, it's fair to assume that at least most of them will be participants (or players) in the Squid Game. “The game starts again with new faces,” the South Korean branch of the streamer teased.

Of course, since Squid Game centers mainly on the story of Seong Gihun (a.k.a. player no. 456), played by actor Lee Jungjae, you can expect the series' leading man — likely with the fiery red 'do he debuted on the season finale — to also make his awaited return. Netflix confirmed that Lee Jungjae would reprise his role as Gihun in 2022. (Additionally, an accompanying note confirmed viewers will get to meet Cheolsu, the diabolical doll Younghee's boyfriend.) Other characters from season one making their return are Lee Byunghun as the Front Man as well as Wi Hajun as Hwang Junho.

Given that most of the rest of the main characters from season one, well… died in season one, it's likely that we won't see them on screen — though flashbacks are never truly off the table and we might get to at least hear of them.

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

Has Squid Game season 2 wrapped filming?

Yes! On June 14, 2024, South Korean publication OSEN published an exclusive report confirming season 2 of Squid Game had wrapped filming after 11 months. Filming for season 2 started on July 2023 and ended on June 2024, OSEN reported. Why did it take so long? Well, hold your horses because, according to the publication, it's because season 2 and season 3 were filmed back to back.

Wait, does that mean Squid Game season 3 is confirmed?

Essentially yes. Per OSEN, Netflix had previously denied that season 2 and season 3 of Squid Game were being filmed simultaneously, but representatives from Netflix have since confirmed it. According to OSEN's report, season 2 and season 3 of Squid Game will be released like The Glory or Bridgerton season 3, meaning a continuous story will be broken into two parts with a shorter gap between releases. It's still not clear if they will officially be referred to as Season 2 and Season 3 or Season 2 Part 1 and Season 2 Part 3, but OSEN did confirm the total of episodes is expected to be between 12 and 13. (Season 1 of Squid Game featured 9 episodes.)

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

When is Squid Game season 2 coming out?

Netflix has yet to set a specific date for the premiere of Squid Game season 2, but the streamer has announced the long-anticipated series will come out sometime in 2024 — only on Netflix, of course.

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

Are there any first-look pictures from Squid Game season 2?

Yes! Netflix unveiled the very first round of pictures from Squid Game season 2 on February 1, 2024. In the pictures, we get to see Lee Jungjae as Gihun again (notedly with no red hair in sight) talking with the Recruiter, played by Gong Yoo; a distraught Gihun next to one of the game guards; a new still-unnamed character played by Park Gyuyoung receiving her invitation to the games; and finally, Lee Byunghun as the Front Man. You can see the photos below:

Related: What Squid Game Taught Me About My Own Political Art

Aside from giving us the first few photos from Squid Game season 2, Netflix also gave us the very first clip from the season hidden in its “Next on Netflix” trailer, which shows red-haired Gihun at the airport. “You are going to regret the choice you made,” a voice tells him over the phone. (If you need a refresher, we last saw Gihun ditching a flight to seemingly return to the games.) You can watch the snippet below:

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

What will Squid Game season 2 be about?

In case you haven't tuned in, Squid Game follows a group of people, most of whom are dealing with financial troubles, who are given the chance to compete in a series of games to win money that would allow them to pay off their debts and live freely. The winner can walk away with a cash prize of ₩45.6 billion (or around $38 million). But there's a catch: once-innocent childhood games are turned lethal in the remote, private island enclave the players are transported to.

Related: Inside the Korean History That Makes Squid Game a Vital Allegory

In other words, Squid Game is a battle royale-style survival series that focuses on traditional Korean children's games instead of overly complicated mazes or courses, with social commentary sprinkled in. Season one ended with Lee Jungjae's Gihun, the winner of the Squid Game, seemingly plotting to infiltrate the games and join the bloodbath once again.

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

Is there a Squid Game season 2 trailer?

There is currently no Squid Game season 2 trailer available. However, we do have the small teaser featuring Younghee that confirmed the season.

^{↑BACK TO TOP LIST↑BACK TO TOP LIST}

This post will be updated as news about Squid Game season 2 breaks.

Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue

Want more great Culture stories from Teen Vogue? Check these out:

• A New Generation of Pretty Little Liars Takes on the Horrors of Being a Teenage Girl

• Who Is Rihanna, Really?

• Jennette McCurdy Is Finally Able to Grieve

• Underneath Chappell Roan’s Hannah Montana Wig? A Pop Star for the Ages

• Donald Glover’s Swarm Is Another Piece of Fandom Media That Dehumanizes Black Women

• On Velma, Mindy Kaling, and Whether Brown Girls Can Ever Like Ourselves on TV

• The Next Generation of Female Rap Lives on TikTok

• Gaten Matarazzo Talks Spoilers, Dustin Henderson, and Growing Up on Stranger Things

• How K-pop Stars Are Leading Mental Health Conversations for AAPI People and Beyond

• Meet the Collective of Philly TikTokers Making You Shake Your Hips

• The Midnight Club Star Ruth Codd Isn’t Defined By Her Disability