Warning: Major spoilers for last scene of Squid Game Season 3.
The third and final season of Netflix’s hit Korean series Squid Game is out now, and viewers continue to witness the struggle – both physical and philosophical - between Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), who wants to break Gi-hun’s faith in humanity.
As promised, the games have officially come to an end and a winner has been crowned. But at what cost?
The heart-pounding final game and the victor won’t be spoiled here. However, we’re about to delve into the finale’s last scene, a stinger for the ages which has already been described by fans as “the best thing (they) ever witnessed.”
So, once again, consider this sentence your red light if you don’t want to know how the series ends.
After the games come to a 'permanent' end, there’s a six-month jump.
Front Man In-ho visits Gi-hun’s daughter in America, and leaves her his uniform and his winnings from the first Games. After he leaves, In-ho is driving through traffic when he hears the familiar sounds of two ddakji tiles slamming the pavement, followed by a loud slap.
Rolling down the window, he makes eye contact with someone who is unmistakenly an American Recruiter finding new players for the Games.
So, Squid Game has gone global? Sure seems like it.
The camera pans and the suited US recruiter is revealed.
It’s Cate Blanchett.
Yes, Oscar-winning national treasure Cate Blanchett.
Blanchett’s Recruiter and the Front Man seem to exchange a nod of acknowledgement before the latter pulls away, leaving the US Recruiter to return to her prey, who begs for another attempt.
“As you wish,” she smirks.
Curtain drop.
Viral reactions
Fans immediately went into a frenzy.
One viewer wrote on X: “Seeing Cate Blanchett in squid game as the recruiter is the best thing I [have] ever witnessed."
“MY JAWS DROPPED??? MOTHER?? IN MY GAME OF SQUIDS?” another wrote, with one fan arguing that her appearance was “the only good thing about the season.”
"Oh my goodness nobody told me Cate Blanchett is in Squid Game," wrote one fan, with a user asking: "OMG, Cate Blanchett, is this a confirmation of #SquidGame spinoff series from a different country???"
Let’s explore that option...
What does it all mean?
Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk had promised that the third season of the show would be its last and would conclude the story of Player #456, Gi-hun.
No spoilers, but that box has been ticked. Emphatically.
However, considering that Squid Game is the biggest show in the history of Netflix (season 2 currently ranks No. 2 with 192.6 million views just behind Season 1 at 265.2 million, according to the streamer) and has proved hugely fruitful when it comes to merchandising and even a reality show competition series (in which constants get to walk away with their lives, just to reassure you), speculation has been rife over how the show could continue.
As we reported last year, there were rumours that an English-language remake of Squid Game was in the works, with David Fincher (Se7en, Fight Club, The Social Network) set to direct / produce.
The final stinger at the end of Season 3 seems to be confirmation that a US spinoff is definitely on the cards. And they’re taking it seriously, as it’s Cate Bloody Blanchett!
Read our thoughts on the English-language remake of Squid Game.
So far, Netflix has not released any official statement about any continuations of Squid Game.
Netflix’s official online magazine Tudum describes Blanchett’s character as “the American Recruiter.” Hwang Dong-hyuk had this to say about her casting: “And as for why Cate Blanchett, she’s just the best, with unmatched charisma. Who doesn’t love her? So we were very happy to have her appear.”
He added: “We needed someone who could dominate the screen with just one or two words, which is exactly what she did. If Gong Yoo is the Korean Recruiter, I thought she would be the perfect fit as the American Recruiter, bringing a short but gripping and impactful ending to the story.”
So, will Cate Blanchett be involved in an upcoming American version of the series? Maybe.
Or perhaps it was just a devilish little wink to end the series on a note that suggests that while hope can seem thrive amidst the most dehumanizing circumstances, humanity’s boundless capacity for cruelty will always be stuck in a vicious cycle.
We’d love for it to be that last option: a star-studded epilogue that opens things up, granted, but leaves the brutal capitalist critique on a high.
However, considering any major media company would be out of their capitalist minds to end their lucrative and enormously popular juggernaut series, there’s every chance that the games have just begun. For better and for worse.
Squid Game seasons 1-3 are currently streaming on Netflix.
