“Squid Game” Director Expresses Pride In Being A Competitor For The West
Squid Game is currently one of the most popular shows on Netflix, with both the story and the casting gaining significant attention from viewers all over the world!
The premise of the show centers around a group of 456 cash-strapped, heavily debt-ridden people who all compete in a dangerous survival game for a cash prize of 45.6 billion won (or US$3.8 million). Following its release in September 2021, the show has achieved an insane amount of popularity, and the director of the show, Hwang Dong Hyuk, recently talked about its unprecedented success!
Regarding the success of Squid Game, Hwang Dong Hyuk, was incredibly surprised about it, and never imagined it could gain so much attention worldwide.
It’s just a surprise. It’s incredible that all this craze happened within a week. As a creator, I’m so thrilled that my work has caught the hearts of people all around the world. It might be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
—Hwang Dong Hyuk
He further talked about how he believed that the series would be a “hit or a miss”, and decided to challenge himself by partnering with Netflix to release the show.
I thought the series was either a hit or a complete failure. But I believed in the potential of my work and hoped the viewers would enjoy the episodes by feeling nostalgia. This was the reason why I decided to work with Netflix and put myself in a small extra challenge to knock on the door of the global market.
—Hwang Dong Hyuk
As Squid Game broke several records and is fast becoming one of the biggest non-English language shows on Netflix, Hwang Dong Hyuk fondly spoke of PSY and BTS, two acts that propelled the Korean wave in the west, and also mentioned the Bong Joon Ho‘s 2019 award-winning film Parasite while expressing his determination for his show to “lead to another development for the Korean content business”!
After “Gangnam Style”, K-Pop sensation BTS and Oscar-winning film Parasite, Squid Game is trying to become Netflix’s most popular show ever. I heard that Bloomberg reported that Korean content is becoming a severe threat to Hollywood.
I wanted to work hard and grow as an actual competitor of the American entertainment business. I am certain that these efforts will lead to another development for the Korean content business.
—Hwang Dong Hyuk
