Why Gi-hun Justifies Sacrificing Fellow Players Addressed By Star

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Squid Game season 2.

Squid Game
season 2 star Lee Jung-jae explains Gi-hun’s justification for sacrificing other players as the season progresses. Created by Hwang Dong-hyuk, the Netflix thriller show became a sensation in 2021, chronicling Gi-hun’s journey through a series of deadly games to win a massive sum of prize money. Squid Game season 2 brought the show back in December with Gi-hun now working to take down the games, and the finale sees a number of his fellow players get gunned down as they make a violent push toward the control room.

During a recent Squid Game season 2 featurette shared by Netflix K-Content, Lee breaks down Gi-hun’s state of mind heading into the games and how things shift over time. According to the star, the lack of progress the character is making in terms of saving lives and stopping the games leads to him becoming more ruthless and determined as the show goes on, and this includes accepting a certain amount of death. Check out Lee’s full comment or watch the featurette below:

Gi-hun is not a trained soldier. He didn’t seem to be the type of character who thinks that sacrificing a few for the greater good is justifiable. But as the game progresses in season 2, he couldn’t convince others to leave the game together, which built up conflicts. So he starts feeling that he has to take down those who think and behave in such inhumane ways, no matter what it takes, to make sure no one else becomes a victim. Such determination he has developed is now what drives him forward, almost blindly.

What Gi-hun’s Change Means For Squid Game Season 3

Gi-hun’s Next Outing Might Not Be Far Off

Season 2 was only just released, but Squid Game season 3 is already on the horizon. Season 3 confirmed to bring the hit Netflix show to an end, and the new episodes could be dropping as early as June 2025. With Gi-hun having become more desperate as season 2 progressed and his plan to take the control room having failed, audiences could be seeing a very different version of the character heading into season 3.

The Squid Game season 2 finale sees Gi-hun not only fail in his plan, but his close friend, Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan), is gunned down right in front of him. This could mean that Gi-hun begins to revert to his earlier self, where he’s less willing to put others’ lives at risk to take down the games. No trailer has been released for season 3 just yet, so much of what’s to come remains shrouded in mystery, but a post-credits scene in the season 2 finale suggests an even deadlier version of Red Light, Green Light is coming.

The season 2 post-credits scene features three players walking toward the Red Light, Green Light robot, Young-hee, before a second giant robot doll is revealed, this one a young boy.

Our Take On Gi-hun’s Shift In Squid Game Season 2

Dark Days Could Be Ahead For Lee Jung-jae’s Character

Gi-hun begins season 2 as a man obsessed, but he’s still motivated by his desire to save his fellow players from death. As the season goes on, saving others begins to take second place to stopping the games and The Front Man no matter what, and this is ultimately an effective arc for a character who experienced a great many horrors in season 1.

The events of season 2 suggest that audiences could be seeing a very downtrodden version of Gi-hun in the episodes to come, and it will be interesting to see how this determined character changes when faced with defeat and despair. This could ultimately provide an opportunity for other Squid Game cast members to step up, shouldering more of the burden as the conflict intensifies.

Source: Netflix K-Content