What is Squid Game: The Challenge? Is Squid Game a reality TV show?

Squid Game is a South Korean survival drama television series created by Hwang Dong-hyuk for Netflix. Its cast includes Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Wi Ha-joon, HoYeon Jung, O Yeong-su, Heo Sung-tae, Anupam Tripathi, and Kim Joo-ryoung.

What is Squid Game: The Challenge?

After greenlighting the second season of their mega hit South Korean drama “Squid Game“, Netflix is now expanding the story’s universe by adapting it into a reality competition series called “Squid Game: The Challenge“.

In ‘Squid Game’, written and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, 456 players play a series of Korean’s children games with a deadly twist. The last surviving contestant is promised the reward of 45.6 billion won as cash prize. The reality show will see 456 real players enter the game in pursuit of a life-changing reward of USD 4.56 million.

As they compete through a series of games inspired by the original show – plus surprising new additions – their strategies, alliances, and character will be put to the test while competitors are eliminated around them. The stakes are high, but in this game the worst fate is going home empty-handed, the streamer said in a release.

Those interested in applying can go to SquidGameCasting.com as the reality show is searching for English-language speakers from any part of the world.

“’Squid Game‘ took the world by storm with Director Hwang’s captivating story and iconic imagery. We’re grateful for his support as we turn the fictional world into reality in this massive competition and social experiment,” said Brandon Riegg, Netflix VP of Unscripted and Documentary Series.

“Fans of the drama series are in for a fascinating and unpredictable journey as our 456 real world contestants navigate the biggest competition series ever, full of tension and twists, with the biggest ever cash prize at the end.” The 10-episode competition series is a co-production between Studio Lambert (The Circle) and The Garden (24 Hours in A&E), part of ITV Studios, and it will be filmed in the UK.

What is the original ‘Squid Game’?

“Challenge” will take its inspiration from a rather more twisted competition from Netflix’s blockbuster South Korean drama, which was recently officially renewed for a second season.

In the horror series, impoverished and indebted people were maliciously recruited for a series of children’s games where the stakes were life and death. The sole survivor and winner of the games would receive 45.6 billion Won (roughly $35 million). The series featured children’s games from South Korean culture, including a version of red light, green light, a game in which contestants tried to scrape shapes out of dalgona candy with a needle, tug of war and the squid game.

Some on social media were instantly critical of Netflix’s announcement, noting that the original drama series, from director Hwang Dong-hyuk, is a sharp critique of capitalism and voyeurism.

But the news release announcing the reality show was quick to point out that “Squid” director Hwang is onboard with the new series.

“’Squid Game‘ took the world by storm with Director Hwang’s captivating story and iconic imagery. We’re grateful for his support as we turn the fictional world into reality in this massive competition and social experiment,” Brandon Riegg, Netflix vice president of unscripted and documentary series says in the release.

What are the Squid Game challenges in order?

Round 1: Red Light, Green Light

Once Gi-hun and the other Squid Game contestants make it to the island, they start the games off with perhaps the most brutal one of all: Red Light, Green Light. This Squid Game’s origins come from a beloved playground game.

Round 2: Dalgona/Ppopgi

The second of Squid Game’s games see the contestants play in a competition involving ppopgi, also called dalgona, Squid Game’s sugary, honeycomb toffee candy that was once a popular Korean street food. The Squid Game’s origins come from a deal involving the ppopgi.

Round 3: Tug Of War

In Squid Game round 3, the competition becomes team-based in a deadly game of tug of war. This Squid Game’s origins hold deep cultural significance in Korea, where variations of tug of war have been played in festivals and community celebrations for many years, especially in agricultural areas.

Round 4: Marbles

Round 4 is marbles, which different players choose to play in different ways. Contestants match up in pairs, like Gi-hun and the old man Oh Il-nam, and one must win all of the other player’s marbles before the time given expires.

Round 5: The Glass Tile Game

The only game of Squid Game season 1 that doesn’t explicitly have real-world origins is round 5, which sees the contestants making their way across a treacherous path of glass platforms – some of which will hold their weight and some of which will shatter.

Final Round: Squid Game

The series gets its title from the final Squid Game game, in which Gi-hun and Sang-woo battle for the ultimate prize. The Squid Game’s origins are similar to tag, but with more complicated rules.

Is Squid Game a reality TV show?

It is a reality TV show inspired by its most popular series of all time, Squid Game. However, it will not be life or death that is at stake, as depicted in the South Korean dystopian drama.

Instead, 456 recruits from around the world will play games where “the worst fate is going home empty-handed” – missing out on a $4.56m (£3.8m) prize. Netflix also confirmed that the popular series would be renewed for a second season earlier this week.

On Wednesday, the platform announced that its new 10-episode series – Squid Game: The Challenge – would offer the “largest cast and lump cash prize in reality TV history”.

“As [players] compete through a series of games inspired by the original show – plus surprising new additions – their strategies, alliances, and character will be put to the test while competitors are eliminated around them,” it added.

Participants need to be at least 21 years old. They must speak English, and be available for up to 4 weeks in early 2023 for filming.

The 456 participants of Squid Game are a nod to the fictional series, which features the same number of players, with its main protagonist Seong Gi-hun also referred to as Player 456.