Despite having not yet been released on Netflix, Squid Game season two has already earned a nomination at the 2025 Golden Globes. But how?
The second season of the hit Korean-language dystopian drama was among the forthcoming ceremony’s list of Best TV Series — Drama nominees announced on December 9.
While it doesn’t premiere until December 26, it remains within the eligibility window for the 82nd ceremony, which requires a TV show to have aired sometime during the 2024 calendar year.
It is up against FX’s historical drama Shōgun, Amazon Prime Video’s spy action Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Apple TV+’s Slow Horses, Netflix’s The Diplomat and Peacock thriller The Day of the Jackal.
The winners will be announced during the live ceremony, held at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Los Angeles on Sunday, January 5, beginning at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET.
Though the acclaimed show’s nod may come as a surprise, given it hasn’t been released, it’s certainly promising for a series that some have worried doesn’t stand a chance of living up to its record-breaking first season.
Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk previously spoke about his hesitation to continue the story, admitting to the BBC that “the stress I feel now is much greater.”
Revealing that money was the reason he changed his mind, he said: “Even though the first series was such a huge global success, honestly I didn’t make much. So doing the second series will help compensate me for the success of the first one too.”
Season two of Squid Game — which sees hundreds of money-strapped individuals compete in a deadly game to win a life-changing sum of money — will follow Lee Jung-jae’s Player 456 as he attempts to end the sadistic games once and for all by re-entering the competition.
Besides Lee Jung-jae (Seong Gi-hun), the forthcoming edition will see a few more returning faces: Lee Byung-hun (Front Man), Wi Ha-jun (Detective Hwang Jun-ho) and Gong Yoo (Recruiter).
It will also introduce a majority of new characters, including Park Sung-hoo, who will star as Hyun-Ju, a transgender woman.
Park, 39, is a cisgender male actor known for his roles in various K-Dramas, including The Glory and The Queen of Tears.
His casting was met with scrutiny by viewers who felt a transgender actor should have landed the role.
Speaking about his character in a new season two “Meet the Cast” featurette, Park explained that Hyun-Ju is a former special forces soldier who joins the life-or-death games to fund her gender-affirming surgery.
“Even though she faces prejudices and tough situations, she shows incredible strength, decisiveness, and natural leadership. Through her resilience, she breaks down stereotypes and shines as an inspiring character,” he said.
