'Squid Games Season 3 doesn't have a happy ending': Netflix show creator says the finale may leave viewers devastated

Time of India

4 hours ago

Squid Game
is back for one last blood-soaked act. The third and final season of
Netflix
's Korean megahit landed on 27 June, bringing new characters, twisted games, and an even bleaker worldview. For anyone hoping the series might soften with age — it doesn't.
'The tone is going to be more dark and bleak,' said creator
Hwang Dong-hyuk
in an interview with The
Guardian
, speaking through an interpreter. 'The world, as I observe it, has less hope. I wanted to explore questions like, 'What is the very last resort of humankind? And do we have the will to give future generations something better?' After watching all three seasons, I hope we can each ask ourselves, 'How much humanity do I have left in me?''
Squid Games was meant to end after one season
Few remember now, but Squid Game wasn't built to last beyond one season. It was meant to be a single, contained story. That changed after the show shattered records for a non-English series and became a global obsession.
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Undo
'He told us Squid Game was a limited series,' said lead actor
Lee Jung-jae
, also speaking to The Guardian. 'But because it was met with so much love from across the world, he had to do subsequent seasons.'
Season two leaned further into the chaos, introducing eccentric characters like Thanos — a purple-haired addict played by rapper TOP — and Park Gyu-young's
Kang No-eul
, a North Korean defector who becomes one of the guards. Fans were split. Some were gripped. Others found it too much.
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A mirror, not a comfort blanket
For its creator, Squid Game was always about holding up a mirror — not telling people what they wanted to hear.
'People like a happy ending,' said Hwang. 'I'm like that too. But some stories, by nature, can't have one. If you try to force one, the essence is compromised. If a story is holding up a mirror to something, then it's not always a happy ending. Squid Game is no exception.'
Lee agrees that entertainment was never the sole point. 'The messages of Squid Game are very important,' he said. 'Instead of 'fixing' the narrative, we just wanted to make sure the message was conveyed. And of course it's a TV show – you have to provide entertainment. In season three, we have new games, new characters, twists and turns. It's going to be very entertaining – but with a message.'
That message? A grim exploration of capitalism, retribution, and the fragility of morality under pressure.
'I was on a diet. There was no way to release the stress.'
Lee, a veteran of Korean cinema, immersed himself fully in the role of Gi-hun, who transforms from a desperate everyman into something far more dangerous.
'Gi-hun is constantly pressed,' he said. 'He's very frustrated, because whatever he tries to do is just not working. If someone is pushed to that extent, even a good guy can change. It was intriguing to play a character who goes through so much change.'
But filming wasn't easy. 'It was non-stop filming for about a year and two months,' Lee said. 'So it was draining, physically. But I could really immerse myself in Gi-hun. When I'm stressed out or physically drained, I usually have really good food and that cheers me up. But I was on a diet. There was no way to release the stress!'
Violence that should still shock
The new season continues the tradition of elaborate, violent deaths — glass-floor games, ledge drops, and executions remain part of the series DNA. But Lee hopes viewers don't just look away.
'I really hope that people don't become desensitised,' he said. 'All these characters have very tragic backstories. I hope people will focus on that and mourn their deaths.'
Capitalism, critiqued and cashed in
The irony hasn't been lost on fans. Squid Game, a show built on the horrors of late-stage capitalism, now has tie-ins with brands like Uber and McDonald's. Some have accused the series of betraying its own values.
Hwang acknowledged the contradiction. 'For me and Netflix, we started out wanting to create a commercial product. It would be too far a stretch to criticise wanting to profit from something that criticises the capitalist system,' he said.
'No studio is going to want to create a story that's too critical of society. Having said that, if I felt [the partnerships] were too excessive, to the point where I felt it was damaging the spirit of the show, I might feel differently. But it wouldn't be right for me to tell Netflix not to do something. I don't have the legal grounds for that. I have had certain feelings about certain things, but I do not think it would be right for me to say exactly what, or to express my negative feelings.'
The future: Not a dead end just yet
While this is the final season of Squid Game, Hwang isn't closing the door completely.
'There's no saying we'll never do something again,' he said. 'I don't want to close the door – there are some threads left untied. If I were to come back to the Squid Game universe, I think I would come back with a spin-off.'
He hinted at untapped storylines. 'There's a three-year gap between seasons one and two. While Gi-hun was on the search for the Front Man and the Recruiter, what were those villains up to? What do the pink guards do outside Squid Game? Those would be fun ideas to explore.'
Hollywood eyes the franchise
Reports suggest that a US remake is being explored by director David Fincher, known for Gone Girl and The
Social Network
. Hwang hasn't received formal word but is excited.
'I am a big fan – I watched a lot of his works when I was studying film. So if it's true, I welcome it with all my heart,' he said.
Squid Game remains unrelenting. The third season refuses to give easy answers or cheap thrills. Instead, it offers a final look at how fragile morality becomes when survival is all that's left.
Lee has one request: patience. 'People have been so curious. A lot of them come to me asking for spoilers. I keep telling them that if you want to have fun watching season three, you just have to hold still. It's coming.'