Warning: Mild spoilers for “Squid Game” Season 2 ahead.
Last season of “Squid Game,” one of the biggest twists revolved around Player 001. There may be new games and players this time around, but that basic rule remains the same: Never trust Player 001. The only difference is that in Season 2 the audience knows Player 001’s real identity before Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae).
In the game, Player 001 introduces himself as Hwang In-ho (Lee Byung-hun). But unbeknownst to Gi-hun and his friends, In-ho is actually the Front Man, one of the leaders of the Squid Game. He’s also the brother of officer Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), the very same brother Jun-ho was convinced died in the game.
A previous winner, In-ho was added into the game to keep an eye on Gi-hun and prevent him from completely overthrowing the competition. He tells Gi-hun that he entered the game to pay back the medical debt he and his late wife accrued.
“The story he tells the other participants is completely true, and it is actually the story of In-ho or the Front Man,” Lee told TheWrap. “[In-ho] definitely feels that he can’t really go out into the outside world because he fears that world now. He feels that disconnect, so that’s part of the reason why he is in the games again.”
Lee noted that playing such a “dark and pessimistic” character impacted him. “I think the character of In-ho was subconsciously embedded in me, and I had to carry that dark energy for quite a long time,” he said.
What else has Lee Byung-hun been in?
Lee is a highly accomplished actor in the world of South Korean film. Seven of his films — “Joint Security Area,” “The Good, the Bad, the Weird,” “Masquerade,” “Inside Men,” “Master,” “Ashfall” and “The Man Standing Next” — rank on the list of the highest-grossing films in South Korea. Additionally, his role as Ahn Sang-goo in 2015’s “Inside Men” earned him the Best Actor prize during the 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards, the 37th Blue Dragon Film Awards and the 53rd Grand Bell Awards, three prestigious South Korean awards ceremonies.
Who was Player 001 in Season 1?
That was Oh Il-nam, who was portrayed by O Yeong-su. The elderly Il-nam quickly became friends with Gi-hun in Season 1, who consistently stood by his side until the marble game. That’s when Gi-hun repeatedly tricked Il-nam so that he could survive the challenge, which Il-nam pointed out before his supposed death.
After Gi-hun won the game, he met Il-nam one last time on the older man’s death bed. That’s when he learned the truth: Il-nam was the creator of the game. Seeing an unconscious man freezing on the street, the two of them made a bet about whether whether the man will be saved before midnight. Gi-hun wins the wager shortly after Il-nam dies.
Both seasons of “Squid Game” are now available to stream on Netflix.
