Squid Game: The Challenge Reality Show Details:
| Based on | Squid Game by Hwang Dong-hyuk |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Reality competition |
| Season | 1 |
| Episodes | 10 |
| Release date | 22 November 2023 |
| Running time | 40–57 minutes |
| Age rating | TV-MA |
| Winner | Mai Whelan (player no. 287) |
| Announcer | Jennie Kwan |
| Directed by | Liz Oakes Ruaridh Connellan Gareth Birkett |
| Executive producers | Nicola Brown Tim Harcourt John Hay Toni Ireland Anna Kidd Stephen Lambert Louise Peet Nia Yemoh Stephen Yemoh |
| Edited by | Benn Wyldeck |
| Music by | Paddy Fletcher |
| Production Design by | Ben Norman Mathieu Weekes |
| Production Company | Studio Lambert The Garden |
| Distributor | Netflix |
Format:
456 players compete to win US$4.56 million (about £3.6 million), the largest cast and second largest cash prize in reality competition history. Through a series of games, each player is pushed to their limits and forced to ask themselves how far they will go to win.
Gameplay
Players were eliminated in the first two rounds by getting “shot” (dye packs in their uniforms). Players listed below were eliminated in that particular round.
- Red Light, Green Light
- Decision test
- Dalgona
- Phone test
- Warships
- Group Vote
- Jack-in-the-Box Test
- Marbles
- Allegiance Test
- Glass Bridge
- Die Test
- Circle of Trust
- Button Test
- Rock Paper Scissors
Squid Game: The Challenge Winner:
Mai Whelan (player no. 287), winner of Squid Game: The Challenge, receives her prize of $4.56 million.
About Squid Game: The Challenge Reality Show:
Squid Game: The Challenge is a ten-episode British reality competition television reality show based on Squid Game, the South Korean drama. The show features 456 players (the largest cast in reality TV history) competing for US$4.56 million, the largest single cash prize in reality television history.
In June 2022, it was announced that Netflix had given the production a series order.
Applications for the series opened in June 2022 with an announcement video released on YouTube. Netflix sought contestants from around the world but mandated that they must be English-speaking. The streaming service put out a final casting call in September 2022. Approximately 81,000 applied to be contestants.
The Netflix original was produced as a collaboration between independent television production companies Studio Lambert and the Garden, with Studio Lambert leading physical production in the UK.
Filming began in January 2023 across two studios in the UK, Cardington Studios in Bedford, and six giant sound stages in Barking, London.
Reports emerged that ambulances had been called to treat real-life injuries sustained while filming the show. Several players claimed in an interview that “Red Light, Green Light” had actually lasted for 7 hours, where players had to hold poses for up to 30 minutes. Netflix denied the severity of the reports, stating that the injuries were mild medical conditions and that they cared about the health and safety of the cast and crew. The local ambulance service also stated it had not been called out to the studios. Britain’s Health and Safety Executive evaluated the production after these complaints and found no actionable issues. Two unnamed players from the show threatened to sue Netflix after claiming that they had hypothermia during filming.
The first five episodes of Squid Game: The Challenge were released on 22 November 2023. Episodes 6–9 were released on 29 November, while episode 10, the finale, was released on 6 December.
The show was No. 1 on Netflix’s list of Top 10 English-language shows for the first two weeks after its release. It had 20.5 million views in its first week, 11.4 million in its second, and 6.6 million in its third, with a total of over 224 million hours watched within the first 21 days.
On 6 December 2023, prior to the release of the season one finale, Netflix announced a second season order.
