Hwang Dong-Hyuk, the visionary director behind the phenomenon "Squid Game," revealed in a BBC interview posted on Monday that the pressure of crafting the inaugural season of the Emmy-winning series was so overwhelming that he lost a staggering "eight or nine" teeth. Reflecting on his decision to embark on a second season, Hwang admitted that initially, the stress it entailed left him uninterested. When prompted about what swayed his stance, his candid response was, "Money."
"Despite the colossal global success of the first installment, I honestly didn't reap much financially," he explained in Korean. "Hence, I had to proceed with the second season to somewhat rectify the financial disparity from the first."
The South Korean thriller, which revolves around a grim competition where financially strapped contestants engage in life-or-death games for a $32.4 million prize, concluded its first season with most of the cast meeting their untimely demise. Lee Jung-Hae's character, Seong Gi-Hun, emerged as the sole victor, clutching the lucrative prize.
According to Netflix, the highly anticipated second season of "Squid Game" will premiere on December 26, with the third season lined up for release next year.
Hwang conceived the idea for "Squid Game" in 2008 but shelved it for a decade due to widespread perceptions of it being "too intricate and uncommercial," he disclosed to Netflix in 2021. During a challenging period, he was compelled to halt his writing endeavors and sell his laptop to make ends meet.
Upon its debut in September 2021, "Squid Game" swiftly became a global phenomenon. Bloomberg reported that the first season raked in nearly $900 million for Netflix, despite its $21 million production budget. That year, it also secured the title of the most-watched show, with a staggering 1.65 billion hours streamed within the first four weeks. In 2023, Netflix capitalized on its success by launching a reality show inspired by the drama.
Despite the show's immense popularity, Hwang maintains that he didn't experience any financial windfall. In 2021, he told The Guardian that he wasn't "that rich," adding, "But I have enough to sustain myself. And contrary to popular belief, Netflix doesn't reward me with bonuses. They compensate me as stipulated in the original contract."
In response to a query from Business Insider, a Netflix representative emphasized that their compensation for partners is "competitively priced" and includes flexible arrangements, such as remuneration for subsequent seasons and the development of new shows with successful partners.
During the same BBC interview, Hwang confessed that the stress of creating the second season of "Squid Game" was "much more intense" due to the sky-high expectations from the audience. "I haven't visited my dentist yet, but I fear I might have to extract a few more teeth soon," he lamented.
A representative for Hwang did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, which was sent outside regular business hours.
