Netflix's Squid Game has an unusual release date for its second series

Netflix’s most popular non-English TV series, Squid Game (which as of 28 July has been viewed more than 265 million times on the streaming site) has confirmed the rather odd release date of its second season, as well as announcing that a third season in 2025 will be its last.

The South Korean thriller, about people who are broke or in debt competing in a series of games to win money for the entertainment of rich people (with the pretty big caveat that failure equals certain death) became an international smash hit when it was released in September 2021 – and even sparked a real-life version from Mr Beast and a reality show from Netflix itself.

The drama’s first season concluded with Seong Gi-hun (played by The Acolyte star Lee Jung-jae) being the victor and sole survivor of the games, about to board a plane to Los Angeles, before turning back after vowing to know the identity of those behind the games.

On Thursday, Netflix released another teaser for the new season – showing contestants sprinting down a track while some collapse to the floor dead – and confirmed it would land on its site on 26 December this year, also known as Boxing Day.

And the festive release date didn’t go unnoticed by fans:

Meanwhile one Twitter/X user was given a rather to-the-point answer when they asked if the second season of the show – which, in its first series, featured contestants getting shot for failing a game of ‘Red Light, Green Light’ and falling to their deaths if they stepped on the wrong glass pane – is “family friendly”.

Over on Squid Games’ official Twitter/X account, the show’s writer, director and executive producer, Hwang Dong-hyuk, said he was “beyond excited” to share news surrounding the show’s second and third seasons.

“Seong Gi-hun who vowed revenge at the end of Season 1 returns and joins the game again. Will he succeed in getting his revenge? Front Man doesn’t seem to be an easy opponent this time either. The fierce clash between their two worlds will continue into the series finale with Season 3, which will be brought to you next year.

“I am thrilled to see the seed that was planted in creating a new Squid Game grow and bear fruit through the end of this story,” he said.

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