Who were the players in ‘Squid Game’ season three?
When a show’s charm withstands rewatches, you know it’s aged like fine wine. They stay fresh even on the tenth watch, and that’s when you know it’s grown on you. Luckily, the Netflix library has plenty of such titles that get better with time. And one of those that pulled the curtain down once and for all with three incredible seasons is Hwang Dong-hyuk’s survival drama, Squid Game.
Since its debut on Netflix, the show has shattered records one after another. As fans feel sad and visibly frustrated that the game has ended, how about a trip back to season three? By now, fans already know who wins the race and who fails to survive. Throughout season three, the focus was mainly on Seong Gi-hun and Jun-hee’s baby.
But in case you need a quick recap of who the other players were, we’ve got the answers. Squid Game was made up of 456 contestants. However, let’s begin with the most obvious, former Squid Game champion.
Meet the Squid Game players
Seong Gi-hun: Player 456 (Lee Jung-jae)
Seong Gi-hun is the Squid Game protagonist who enters the deadly competition as a gambler drowning in debt. But it’s not just his financial hardships that push him. As a divorcee, Gi-hun is estranged from his young daughter. And in attempts to secure enough money to maintain his sinking bond, he makes the difficult choice.
Although he wins the competition the very first time, the survivor’s guilt makes him desperate to take down the game anyhow.
The Front Man (Lee Byung-hun)
The Front Man is a mysterious figure in Squid Game who basically pulls all the strings from behind the scenes. However, another essential designation he has is that he is a former champion, like Gi-hun. But then again, they are worlds apart. He enters the game in incognito mode in season two as Young-il. It isn’t until the finale that the warfare of ideologies between him and Gi-hun reaches a climax.
Myung-gi: Player 333 (Yim Si-wan)
Myungi-gi enters the Squid Game as a cryptocurrency advocate whose unwise decisions spell disaster not just for himself but his followers. Winning the twisted competition seems to be his only way out of the debt trap. But does Squid Game draw a finish line to his short-sighted decisions? Not really.
“Myung-gi doesn’t strike me as inherently evil. But as you can see, chasing money led to many irrevocable consequences,” Yim Si-wan said to Tudum.
Dae-ho: Player 388 (Kang Ha-neul)
Squid Game barely has any simple characters. But Dae-ho is complicated on another level. Despite deeming him an ally in season two, Dae-ho’s gutting weakness and spinelessness altered the outcome of Gi-hun’s uprising. Even then, Kang Ha-neul hopes fans see more to his character, calling him rather “realistic.”
“Yes, he’s sly in certain situations. But if Squid Game happened in real life, I think most people would be like him,” Ha-neul said.
Hyun-ju: Player 120 (Park Sung-hoon)
Selflessness is not a trait viewers usually find within the Squid Game players. But that’s what differentiates Hyun-ju from the flock. She would go to any length in order to provide for medical treatment. And surprisingly, she finds allies faster than one would expect.
However, it makes sense because, in turn, she shields them like a first family.
Yong-sik: Player 007 (Yang Dong-geun)
Yong-sik, like several Squid Game players, is drowning in a dangerous financial hole when he enters Squid Game. But to his surprise, he confronts an unexpected player in the playfield, someone he holds dear to his heart.
Jun-hee: Player 222 (Jo Yuri)
Nobody entered the Squid Game on a sunny day when their life was at its peak. Neither did Jun-hee. However, what sets her apart from the mob competing is that she isn’t exactly responsible for her setbacks. Having trusted the wrong person, she ended up pregnant, playing the dirtiest and deadliest of games.
But the spotlight is on her throughout season three as she has to make amends with the toughest decisions yet. Moreover, someone else also wears the Player 222 jersey. To know who, tune into Squid Game season three.
Geum-ja: Player 149 (Kang Ae-sim)
Geum-ja is Yong-sik’s mother, who signs up for Squid Game in a desperate attempt to save her son. But her presence becomes much more profound as she ends up forming more connections with fellow players. “I did feel a sense of responsibility being the ‘mother’ of Hyun-ju and Jun-hee,” she said.
Seon-nyeo: Player 044 (Chae Kuk-hee)
Seon-nyeo is one of the most gripping and distinct characters of Squid Game. Having been a spiritual and once-revered healer past her prime, she conveys uncanny prophecies about her fellow participants.
Min-su: Player 125 (Lee David)
If you cannot assert yourself in Squid Game, the chances are you’ll get stampeded by those who can. Min-su is a player who struggles to find his voice. His motivations for joining the competition are a housing scam that rendered him a financial victim. While he may have entered to earn enough money, Lee David teased that as the show progressed, so did his driving force. It was no longer the money, but his intent to seek vengeance.
Nam-gyu: Player 124 (Roh Jae-won)
Some players made it their mission to win Squid Game anyhow. Then there were players who preyed on the weak. Nam-gyu belong to the second category. The former club promoter uses one ammunition throughout the game to bully the powerless and people-please the stronger candidates.
Speaking of Nam-gyu’s Squid Game ways, Roh Jae-won said, “I think Nam-gyu was often bullied and looked down on. Even in the game, he was under the thumb of Thanos, who didn’t even know his name.”
Gyeong-seok: Player 246 (Lee Jin-uk)
Squid Game season three highlighted that sometimes even blood has no hold over the power of greed. But not for Gyeong-seok. He enters the Squid Game with a clear mindset: to shield his family in any way possible.
