How a baby became the most pivotal character in 'Squid Game' season 3
The final episodes of Netflix's 'Squid Game' Season 3 push the dystopian series into darker moral territory, with one of its most emotional arcs centered on Player 222, a pregnant woman forced to fight for her life and that of her unborn child.
Player 222, Kim Jun-hee (played by Jo Yu-ri), is introduced as a quiet but resilient contestant.
Viewers soon learn she was lured into the game after being conned by her ex-boyfriend, Player 333, Lee Myung-gi (Im Si-wan), who tricked her into investing in a cryptocurrency scam that leaves her in debt.
Here's what to know about her fate, and her child's.
What happens to Player 222 in the games?
In a pivotal hide-and-seek challenge, Jun-hee breaks her ankle and goes into labor.
With help from Player 149, Jang Geum-ja (Kang Ae-shim), a former nurse, and Player 120, Cho Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon), the show's first transgender character, she gives birth while hiding from guards and other competitors.
Injured and exhausted, Jun-hee fights to continue but ultimately realizes she cannot survive the next round.
In a heartbreaking moment, she says goodbye to her friend Seong Gi-hun (Player 456, played by Lee Jung-jae) and willingly falls to her death, entrusting her newborn to him.
In a grim twist, the game's creators assign the baby her mother's number, officially making the infant the new Player 222.
What happens to Player 222, the baby?
By the final game, only three players remain: Gi-hun, Myung-gi and the baby, who is Myung-gi's child.
During the 'Sky Squid' challenge, Myung-gi attempts to take the child, but falls to his death after Gi-hun's coat tears under his weight.
But there's a catch: Myung-gi's death occurred before the round officially began. The game cannot end until one more player dies. Gi-hun faces an impossible choice — kill himself, or kill the baby.
Honoring his promise to Jun-hee, Gi-hun chooses to leap to his death, saving the child. Hwang In-ho (Lee Byung-hun), better known as Front Man, takes the baby.
Where does the baby end up?
The show picks up six months later. Detective Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon) receives a package: the infant, along with a debit card and a note that reads, 'The winner.' The final image shows the newborn cradled in Jun-ho's arms.
'Squid Game' creator Hwang Dong-hyuk told Netflix's press site Tudum, 'Ultimately, the baby represents the future generation.'
'I believe we also have the responsibility and duty to try everything that we can in our power to leave a better world for the future generation.' he continued. 'The baby coming out the winner was in line with the meaning of 'Squid Game'.'
So, is the baby real or CGI?
Lee Jung-Jae clarified to Variety that a robotic doll was used.
'The robot had actual facial expressions. It would wiggle like a newborn baby, and the weight was quite realistic. So that helped me a lot with my performance,' Lee said.
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