Netflix's most-watched series in history, "Squid Game," is back for the finale

600 million views worldwide. That's what Squid Game represents on Netflix. Roughly 8% of humanity has seen Hwang Dong-hyeok's South Korean series. Enough to make your head spin and your head ache. But clearly the Asian showrunner, who didn't think his idea would take the world by storm, is enjoying continuing the adventure with a third and, for the moment, final season of his ultimate survival game.

After a second season produced in the wake of the unexpected success of the first, and a bit disappointing it must be said, the initial recipes have visibly been found for this third season of six episodes. A kind of return to the roots, and to the fundamentals, which will allow the master of the game, played by Lee Byung-hun, to oppose the hero, 456, played by Lee Jung-jae. "When I was progressing in the writing of the second season, I quickly realized that I had too much material, confesses Hwang Dong-hyeok. Hence the interest of the third and final season because I wanted to explore all the narrative arcs at my disposal to have no regrets. We could no longer fall back on the same springs as in the first season, to surprise and renew ourselves, we had to innovate."

As he discovers the hell of the game—a battle to the death across various survival games for the ultimate winner to win a crazy amount of money while saving his life—the main hero, 456, took advantage of the second season to discover who was hiding behind the mask of the game master. "He has temporarily given up on this quest," Lee Jung-jae explains. "His goal is to unite the new players around him to move forward, so he asks himself a simple question: do they still have faith in humanity? That's the message of the series, in a way. Survive together or kill others to triumph alone."

A spin-off about the game master?

A masked but central character, the master of the game, played by Lee Byung-hun, could return in a series centered around his rise and his story. "My character is inevitably evolving," he announces. "The public wanted to know what this mask hides. Moreover, the series particularly left a visual impression on people. At the end of filming this season, I wanted to take the mask home with me (laughs). "

Beyond the criticism of South Korean society, rampant individualism, the isolation of the weakest and the law of the strongest, the series is above all intended to be a dense and physical adventure.

"Each survival challenge requires optimal physical condition," Lee Jung-jae explains. "Everything had to be physical to make it feel authentic. It's an emotionally gripping series when you're an actor because, even though it's fiction, the principle is simple: out of the 456 people involved in the game, only one will survive..."

How would you sum up this final season? "Crazy, crazy, incredible," concedes its creator. "Harmonious," continues Lee Jung-jae. "We're talking about a new beginning but also a climax," continues Lee Byung-hun.

For Park Gyu-young, an actress who joined the second season as Kan No-eul, this final season is "human, final and will bring its share of revelations."

It's said that fans won't have all the answers to their questions yet. Could a fourth season be possible if it continues to be a ratings success? Creator Hwang Dong-hyeok seems to be ruling out this possibility. "It's time to say goodbye. This series remains a turning point in my career, but with this third season, I wanted to reset everything a bit. What happens when number 456 succeeds in fomenting a revolution with the other contestants within the game?"

"Whatever happens, it's a landmark series, one that gets people talking, and opens up debate," concludes Lee Byung-hun. It will be difficult not to concede that Squid Game sets a kind of precedent. Among the major series that have shaken the world, the South Korean series ranks very high. Visually, aesthetically, through its style, its narration, its cruelty, Squid Game remains a strong marker in the history of Netflix and the history of series in general. No less.

Squid Game, available on Netflix.