‘Squid Game’ season 2 new characters guide

When “Squid Game” season 2 drops on Netflix on Thursday, Dec. 26, fans of the South Korean dystopian drama will not doubt be pleased to see several returning faces from the show’s stratospherically successful first season.

There’s, of course, main character Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), who is returning to the games after winning as Player 456 to take down the corrupt and horrifying competition from within.

Also back for season 2 is Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), the leader of the masked staff behind the game; Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-jun), a detective who sneaks into the game in search of his brother; and the Recruiter (Gong Yoo), the mysterious man in the suit who initially invited Gi-hun to participate in the competition in the first place.

And behind the scenes, Emmy-winning director Hwang Dong-hyuk is also back this time around to direct and executive produce all of the show’s second season.

However, there are plenty of fresh faces entering the deadly games for season 2. Im Si-wan, a member of the South Korean boy band ZE:A, joins the cast as Lee Myung-gi (a.k.a. Player 333), a formerly a rich and successful YouTube star who lost his fortune in a cryptocurrency scam, which has also negatively affected his girlfriend Kim Jun-hee (Player 222), played by Jo Yu-ri. Kang Ha-neul appears as Dae-ho (Player 388), an ex-marine whose macho man persona hides a deep vulnerability; while Park Sung-hoon plays Cho Hyun-ju (Player 120), a transgender woman with hopes of using the Squid Game cash prize to fund her gender-affirming surgery.

Elsewhere, Lee Jin-wook will portray Gyeong-seok (Player 246), a desperate father who enters the games to win money for his young daughter, who is suffering from blood cancer and needs life-saving medical care. Yang Dong-geun appears as Park Yong-sik (Player 007), a gambling addict looking to clear his debts; Kang Ae-shim joins as his mother Jang Geum-ja (Player 149), who also joins the games to help her son. And Park Gyu-young rounds things out as No-eul, a former soldier from North Korea haunted by the fact that she had to leave her baby across the border.

Per Netflix, the official synopsis for the second season reads: “Three years after winning Squid Game, Player 456 remains determined to find the people behind the game and put an end to their vicious sport. Using this fortune to fund his search, Seong Gi-hun starts with the most obvious of places: look for the man in a sharp suit playing ddakji in the subway. But when his efforts finally yield results, the path toward taking down the organization proves to be deadlier than he imagined: to end the game, he needs to re-enter it.”

Tom’s Guide will keep you posted on all new information surrounding “Squid Game” season 2, including fresh plot points, new character details, behind-the-scenes info, and any insights and intel from creator Hwang Dong-hyuk. In the meantime, check out this “Meet the Cast” featurette from Netflix introducing you to some of those characters mentioned above: