Despite mixed reviews from audiences, Netflix's "Squid Game" season 2 is showing signs of another resounding success, following the achievements of its previous season.
The series climbed to the Top 1 of Netflix's weekly non-English language TV show rankings globally, just 4 days after its release, recording 68 million views and ranking Top 1 on Netflix in 92 countries last week (from December 23 to December 29).
Amidst the "huge" achievements, one male actor attracted attention because he twice refused a role in this hit series, that is Son Suk Koo.
A close associate of Son Suk Koo revealed to Newsen that in “Squid Game” part 1, Son Suk Koo was offered the role of Sang Woo - the character played by Park Hae Soo, during the time he was working at his former management company, SBD Entertainment. But Son Suk Koo refused.
In season 1, Sang Woo is the central character, a team leader at Joy Investments who enters a deadly game due to a debt of 6 billion won. His storyline culminates in an ironic confrontation with his childhood friend, Gi Hun (played by Lee Jung Jae), which leaves him as one of the game's two final candidates.
As the second most prominent character after Gi Hun, Sang Woo appeared in most of the 9 episodes of “Squid Game” season 1. According to the media, refusing this role was like missing out on a winning lottery ticket.
The source explained, “At the time, both Son Suk Koo and his management company looked at the script for Squid Game with interest, but did not think it would become such a successful work.
After the film's worldwide explosion, it would be a lie to say there are no regrets. However, we console ourselves by thinking that every role finds the right actor for it.”
With the reputation of part 1, many people think that Son Suk Koo will seize the opportunity to participate in part 2. However, a close associate of the actor shared that although Son Suk Koo is open to this idea, the timing is not yet right.
When he received the script, most of the main roles had already been cast. Son Suk Koo was only given a portion of the script for security reasons and actors such as Im Si Wan and Kang Ha Neul were confirmed. This led to concerns about his character's screen time and involvement in the main plot.
Additionally, Son Suk Koo was committed to his filming schedule for Disney+'s “Big Bet” at the time.
Son Suk Koo briefly mentioned “Squid Game” during his appearance on JTBC’s variety show “Movie Room” in 2022 while promoting his movie “Unframed.”
“From a director’s perspective, this film feels very fresh. Unlike other death games where everyone fends for themselves, the teamwork is quite impressive,” he commented.
Son Suk Koo is a famous actor on the Korean screen. In 2022, he created a fever in Korea when he took on the role of Mr. Gu in "My Freedom Diary".
He then continued to make his mark with films and television shows, such as “The Roundup,” which sold over 12 million tickets when it was released.
“Big Bet” (also known as Casino) won the Best Drama award at the Blue Dragon Drama Awards. Other works include “D.P. 2”, “A Killer Paradox”, and “Troll Factory”.
