The owner of a phone number accidentally shown on Netflix’s Squid Game has been inundated with of calls from fans curious to join the horror competition.
The number, which Netflix says will be edited out, was shown in the first episode written on a business card handed over to Lee Jung-Jae’s character, Seong Gi-Hun, by a mysterious man in a black suit.
He is then drugged taken to a remote island and forced to compete against 455 others with deadly versions of playground games for a huge cash prize of 45bn Korean Won (around £28m).
The reported real-life owner of the phone number told Money Today that she has since been receiving “endless” calls and text messages.
“It has come to the point where people are reaching out day and night due to their curiosity. It drains my phone’s battery and it turns off,” the woman, who hails from the Gyeonggi province, said.
“This is a number that I’ve been using for more than ten years, so I’m quite taken aback. There are more than 4,000 numbers that I’ve had to delete from my phone.
“At first, I didn’t know why, then my friend told me that my number came out [in the series].”
She is reported to have rejected offers of compensation up to five million won (£3,073).
A Netflix spokesperson said: “Together with the production company, we are working to resolve this matter, including editing scenes with phone numbers where necessary.”
Reacting to the news on Instagram, Ofcom shared an image of the story on its official page, with the caption: “Things that wouldn’t happen in the UK because of Ofcom rules.”
Netflix dropped the dystopian South Korean drama on September 17. It is on track to become the streaming site’s most popular series of all time, overtaking costume drama Bridgerton.
