Netflix’s global phenomenon, Squid Game, has returned with its third and final season, premiering on June 27, 2025. Since its explosive debut in 2021, fans worldwide have followed the harrowing journey of Seong Gi-hun (Player 456), and the latest season delivers some of the most brutal, heartbreaking, and psychologically intense moments in the series’ history.
Season 3 picks up immediately after the devastating events of Season 2, plunging viewers back into the deadly competition with higher stakes and darker themes. The series creator and director, Hwang Dong-hyuk, initially envisioned a different ending for this arc but ultimately chose a conclusion he felt was more fitting for Gi-hun’s character development. As Hwang explained, “In the finale, Gi-hun makes a choice, and originally, when I was just thinking about where the story was going to take me, it was actually the exact opposite choice.”
One of the most anticipated revelations in Season 3 was the true identity of the enigmatic Front Man, portrayed by Lee Byung-hun. In a tense moment during Episode 4, the Front Man removes his mask, revealing himself as Hwang In-ho, the winner of the 2015 Squid Game and the successor chosen by the game’s creator, Oh Il-Nam. His backstory is tragic: once a stellar police officer, In-ho was forced into the games after borrowing money for his pregnant wife’s liver transplant, only to lose both his wife and child by the time he emerged victorious.
However, flashbacks in Episode 5 unveil a darker truth — In-ho did not win the games fairly. He was offered the same cold choice that Gi-hun faces: kill the other players in their sleep to win outright. Unlike Gi-hun, In-ho accepted and murdered the remaining contestants, an act that marked the start of his transformation into the ruthless Front Man. This revelation shatters the moral high ground In-ho seemed to hold and complicates the philosophical clash between him and Gi-hun. As Hwang Dong-hyuk described, “The showdown between the Front Man and Gi-hun began in Season 2, and it is about whose beliefs and whose values are right. It is really about a clash of their philosophies.”
Gi-hun’s journey in Season 3 is one of profound internal conflict. After the Front Man offers him a knife to kill the other players in their sleep — a move that would allow Gi-hun and Jun-hee’s newborn daughter (Player 222) to survive and win — Gi-hun struggles with the temptation. A vision of Sae-byeok (from Season 1) appears, reminding him, “You’re not that kind of person,” a line Hwang calls “one of the most important scenes in Season 1” and a pivotal moment that reconnects Gi-hun with his humanity.
Rejecting the Front Man’s offer, Gi-hun chooses to face the final game alongside the baby, determined to protect her. The final competition, known as the Sky Squid Game, is a brutal contest where players stand on three towering platforms shaped like a square, triangle, and circle. In each round, one person must be pushed off alive for the rest to advance, with a strict time limit adding to the tension.
Out of the nine remaining players, at least three must be eliminated. The first to fall is Min-su, who is pushed off by Myung-gi (Player 333), revealed to be the baby’s father. Myung-gi initially sides with Gi-hun, helping eliminate other players, but later attempts to kill the baby to claim the prize money. Gi-hun fights him off, and only he and the baby survive before the final stage. In a heartbreaking climax, Gi-hun sacrifices himself so the baby can live, uttering the unfinished words, “We are not horses. We are humans. And humans are…” leaving the meaning open to interpretation but underscoring his enduring faith in humanity.
In a surprising turn, the Front Man seems moved by Gi-hun’s selflessness. In-ho declares Jun-hee’s baby the winner and personally escorts her to safety. Later, In-ho travels to Los Angeles to deliver the devastating news of Gi-hun’s death to his estranged daughter, leaving her Gi-hun’s Player 456 jacket and a golden credit card loaded with the winnings. Meanwhile, Jun-ho, Gi-hun’s brother and a detective who spent much of the season searching for the island to shut down the games, finds the baby in his apartment wrapped in the 222 jacket, implying he may raise her himself.
Season 3 also explores other poignant storylines. No-eul, a former North Korean soldier turned pink guard, defies orders to help Gyeong-seok (Player 246), a player with a daughter suffering from blood cancer. After orchestrating his escape disguised as a guard, No-eul reunites with Gyeong-seok and his daughter and receives hopeful news that her own missing daughter may be in China, setting the stage for a possible reunion.
The season’s finale features a shocking cameo by Academy Award-winning actress Cate Blanchett as the Recruiter, seen playing ddakji in a Los Angeles alleyway and recruiting new participants for an American version of the Squid Game. This scene, filmed separately from the main cast’s scenes, strongly hints at potential spinoffs expanding the franchise beyond Korea. Director Hwang praised Blanchett’s charisma, saying, “She was amazing at playing ddakji... I believe she successfully flipped the ddakji with her first try.”
Despite this open-ended teaser, Netflix has no immediate plans to announce a Squid Game spinoff but is reportedly considering future steps for the intellectual property. Rumors of a U.S.-based series have circulated, with potential involvement from notable creators, though no official confirmation has been made.
“Squid Game” Season 3 has been met with mixed reactions. While it quickly claimed the top spot on Netflix, following Season 1’s record-breaking 1.65 billion hours viewed in 28 days, the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes stands at 50%, lower than previous seasons. Critics and fans alike praise the season’s emotional depth and intense storytelling but some feel the finale was rushed or less satisfying.
Throughout the season, the games themselves push players to their limits, introducing new deadly challenges such as Hide and Seek — where seekers wield knives and hiders hold keys to escape doors — and Jump Rope, a perilous balance test on a narrow bridge swept by a fast-spinning rope. These games, designed to expose the darkest facets of human nature, underscore the series’ ongoing exploration of survival, morality, and desperation.
As the final chapter closes on Gi-hun’s story, creator Hwang Dong-hyuk reflects on the series’ core message: “No matter how hopeless and dark the world may seem, perhaps we still have a chance if we can find even a glimpse of hope within ourselves.” The choice to crown a baby as the winner symbolizes that glimmer of hope and humanity amidst the chaos.
“Squid Game” Season 3 is now available to stream on Netflix, offering a haunting, emotionally charged conclusion to one of the most compelling survival dramas of this generation. While the Korean saga ends here, the door remains open for new stories in this brutal universe — and with Cate Blanchett’s chilling recruiter cameo, fans can’t help but wonder what’s next in store.
