Squid Game Star Says The Show's Success Was Hard To Follow
Squid Game star Jung Ho-yeon says the show’s success was hard to follow. Created, written, and directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, Squid Game has become a global phenomenon and one of Netflix’s most popular series of all time. The survival thriller focuses on a deadly contest that involves 456 people from all walks of life who become players in a series of children’s games to win the ultimate cash prize.
Starring Jung, Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Gong Yoo, and Lee Byung-hun, Squid Game has solidified its place as a pop culture phenomenon. Since the show’s debut in September, Netflix launched an official Squid Game merchandise line, Squid Game cryptocurrency made headlines, and popular YouTuber MrBeast built a real-life Squid Game set. Despite the series recently losing its number one spot on Netflix’s charts, it has maintained its popularity, and looks to be opening doors for Western K-drama adaptations.
Speaking with THR, Jung, who played Player 067 (a.k.a. Kang Sae-byeok), reveals the massive success of the show in a short amount of time took a toll on her physical health. Claiming that she wrote a diary about Sae-byeok’s daily life to mentally prepare for the role, Jung says the physical experiences her character endured in Squid Game continue to linger in her body and mind. Speaking on the show’s success shortly after its release, she admits it was hard to follow and she began to lose herself. Read what she said about dealing with the success below:
I think [I knew] a week after it opened. I couldn’t follow the speed of the growth of the Squid Game success because since COVID, I think everything is faster and even online, it happens just so quick. It was hard to follow. I lost 6 pounds in a week when it became successful. I couldn’t eat — it wasn’t stress, I just didn’t know this feeling. “What’s going on out there, who am I?” I was kind of losing myself. Now, I feel very comfortable with the Squid Game team, so I can slowly get used to this success with people. But when I was at home by myself watching this growth, I was like, “What?”
Shortly after the debut of Squid Game, Jung gained over 800,000 followers on Instagram in one day. Of course, the actress continues to climb the charts as a sought-after artist after delivering a riveting performance as protagonist Kang Sae-Byeok. The success of Squid Game has permanently altered the career of Jung and the rest of the cast, and the show continues to receive positive feedback for their involvement in the dystopian thriller.
Indeed, Squid Game continues to resonate with viewers for being so much more than a series about survival games, as the show explores how desperation can corrode humanity and whether human beings are decent as the core. For now, Squid Game shows no sign of slowing down. Recently, Netflix revealed that Squid Game season 2 was being discussed, which could continue to follow Seong Gi-hun or take another direction entirely. For now, it can be expected that Squid Game season 2 will also be a massive success for Netflix.
Source: THR