When Squid Game first showed up on Netflix, no one saw the madness coming. One day, it was just another Korean show, and the next, that creepy “Red Light, Green Light” chant was stuck in everyone’s head. What started off as childhood games turned deadly, and had the whole world glued to the screen. Season 1 was a rollercoaster—dark, gripping, and emotionally brutal. And when Season 2 hit in 2024, it didn’t just continue the chaos. It grew darker, became more emotional, and raised even bigger questions about the people behind the masks.
All eyes are now on Season 3, and fans are more than ready to dive back into that wild world of pink jumpsuits, creepy masked guards, and deadly playground games. But there’s one player everyone’s watching like a hawk: Player 456, aka Seong Gi-hun. And if you’re wondering why he’s such a big deal this time around, hold on tight. Because his story isn’t just heartbreaking — it might just be the thing that decides the fate of the whole twisted game.
Player 456 became the winner in Squid Game Season 1
Seong Gi-hun wasn’t always someone you’d bet on. At the start, he was just another man at his lowest, drowning in debt, barely scraping by. But desperation will do strange things to people. So when he signed up for this mysterious competition with 455 other desperate souls, he didn’t fully realize the cost. Quite literally, the cost was lives. Every time someone was killed, the prize money pot fattened up. By the end, it grew to a massive 45.6 billion won. But no one walked away smiling.
Gi-hun somehow made it through all five horrific rounds, standing beside two other finalists: Sae-byeok and Sang-woo — childhood friends, broken people, all clawing for survival. Sae-byeok didn’t make it past the penultimate stage, and that left just the two boys for the final showdown: the actual Squid Game. It was brutal, personal, and raw. Gi-hun had the upper hand over Sang-woo, but his heart wouldn’t let him take that final step. That was his friend, after all. So he tried to call it off, offered to quit, even if it meant no prize.
But Sang-woo, by then too far gone, took his own life in Squid Game— a final act that pushed the burden of victory onto Gi-hun’s shoulders. Suddenly, he was the last man standing. The winner. But the victory felt rotten. Gi-hun left with the money, but nothing else. His soul felt hollow, and every breath he took outside that facility carried the weight of all the people who didn’t make it out.
To make things worse, the Front Man — the eerie, composed overseer of the games — coldly explained that the whole thing was entertainment. A high-stakes thrill for the rich. Gi-hun wasn’t a winner in the way society paints winners. He was a surviving pawn in a bigger, crueler game.
Player 456 returned to the games in Squid Game Season 2
Even after all that trauma, Gi-hun didn’t let go of the games. Season 1 might’ve ended with him hesitating to board that plane, but by Season 2, it was clear — he wasn’t done. He couldn’t turn his back on the horror show he’d survived. So, even though it made no sense and every instinct told him to run, he turned back.
Season 2 flipped the script. Gi-hun wasn’t just trying to survive anymore — he was on a mission. A man who had walked through hell and come out alive wasn’t going to let the horror go on unchecked. So, this time around, he entered with purpose. His goal? To shake the system from within.
That made his role in Season 2 completely different. The deadly childhood games were still happening, but this time, Gi-hun wasn’t just a victim. He was fighting back. At one point, it even looked like the rebellion he started was going to work. Gi-hun and a group of other competitors pushed their way dangerously close to the control center of the entire operation. For a hot second, it really felt like the games were about to collapse for good.
But the game had other plans. The Front Man wasn’t just hiding behind the scenes — he was part of the game all along. And in a sick twist, he had been hiding as Player 001 the whole time. Gi-hun didn’t see it coming. Just when victory seemed close, the rug was yanked out from under him. His uprising failed, his best friend Jung-bae was killed right in front of him, and the system bounced back stronger than ever.
The second season ended with a cruel mid-credits scene teasing a massive, even more nightmarish doll. The message? Loud and clear: the game doesn’t stop for anyone. And Gi-hun? He was once again stuck in the game, traumatized, guilt-ridden, and forced to play a second time — now burdened with even more loss than ever.
What might happen to Player 456 in the upcoming season?
Gi-hun’s future? Totally up in the air — and fans are split right down the middle. Some are crossing their hearts and hoping he’ll burn the whole twisted game to the ground. Others think he’s headed for a gut-punch of an ending, which will be too heartbreaking to handle. Honestly, it could go either way. Honestly, it could go either way. After everything he’s been through, from watching friends die to leading a failed rebellion, Gi-hun isn’t the same man anymore. He’s not that soft-hearted guy anymore. He’s not the gentle soul we met in Season 1 anymore.
In Season 3, the possibilities feel both thrilling and terrifying. Gi-hun might not make it out this time. Maybe, he’ll go out in a final, gut-wrenching act of sacrifice — to save someone innocent, like Jun-hee and her baby. That could be the full-circle moment the show’s been hinting at: a man who once gambled with his daughter’s future now risking his life to save someone else’s child. It’d be a heartbreaker, but it would complete his arc in a poetic, bittersweet kind of way.
But there’s another path he can take, one much darker. What if Gi-hun slowly becomes what he hates? What if all the death, betrayal, and failure have chipped away at his soul so much that he crosses a line? He might take over as the new Front Man, replacing Hwang In-ho. That would be a crushing twist — the rebel turned ruler, the freedom fighter becoming the enforcer. After all, he’s already started making morally blurry choices. Remember when he sacrificed others to trick the guards in Season 2? That wasn’t the Gi-hun we knew from Season 1. That was a man willing to play dirty if it meant getting closer to the truth.
Still, there’s one theory that keeps popping up. It is the idea that Gi-hun might start another rebellion. But this time it will be much smarter, stronger, and more strategic. Instead of failing, maybe he will be able to flip the game entirely, turning the VIPs into the next round’s contestants. Imagine the rich elites being forced to play the same deadly games they used to watch just for fun. That kind of twist would be explosive — and deeply satisfying for fans.
What’s clear is that Gi-hun’s no longer a bystander in Squid Game. Whether he rises or falls, he’s now a central force in the narrative. He started as someone clawing his way through desperation. But Season 3 could see him become either a martyr or a menace. Either way, he’s carrying the emotional weight of the series, and whatever happens next, it’s going to hurt.
And honestly? Fans are ready to cry, scream, and cheer all over again. Because when Player 456 is on screen, the stakes feel real.
You can catch all the twists and turns of Squid Game Seasons 1 and 2 right now on Netflix — and get ready, because Squid Game Season 3 is dropping on June 27, 2025, only on Netflix!
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
