Final Game Begins: Netflix drops intense trailer for Squid Game season 3

• Netflix unveils trailer for Squid Game Season 3, teasing a powerful and emotional final showdown
• Season 3 introduces new characters, deadly games, and deeper confrontations—including a brother vs. brother clash
• Filmed across three countries with a $100M budget, the final season premieres globally on June 27, 2025

Netflix has officially unveiled the trailer for the third and final season of Squid Game, and it’s clear that this isn’t just a continuation. It’s a full-scale reckoning. Premiering worldwide on June 27, 2025, the season promises a powerful conclusion to one of the most groundbreaking and culturally impactful series of the decade.

The rise of Squid Game

Since its debut in 2021, Squid Game has evolved from a surprise K-drama hit into a global entertainment powerhouse. With over 1.65 billion viewing hours in Season 1 alone, the show sparked international discussions on class, desperation, and survival. From Halloween costumes to classroom debates, its influence reached far beyond the screen.

Season 2, which premiered in December 2024, expanded the show's universe. It dove deeper into the origins of the games, the elite VIPs funding them, and the global reach of the sinister operation. It also introduced new characters and power struggles, setting the stage for the final chapter.

Recap of seasons 1 and 2

In Season 1, we followed Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), a financially desperate man who joined a deadly competition featuring twisted versions of childhood games. After surviving betrayal, trauma, and unspeakable violence, Gi-hun emerged as the winner—but walked away with more questions than answers. Instead of fleeing the nightmare, he dyed his hair red and turned back, determined to fight the system from the inside.

Season 2 picked up that thread, showing Gi-hun infiltrate the organization while The Front Man—revealed as Hwang In-ho, brother of detective Hwang Jun-ho—tightened his grip on the games. Meanwhile, Jun-ho, thought to be dead after his fall in Season 1, was revealed to be alive and working in secret. As new players joined and the VIPs’ influence grew, the scale of the conspiracy—and the danger—multiplied.

Squid Game Season 3: The Final Chapter Begins

The new trailer opens with Gi-hun waking inside a coffin—a haunting metaphor for his forced return. But this time, he’s not a pawn. He’s on a mission.

Key highlights from trailer:

Red vs. Blue Teams: A massive gumball machine now assigns players to color-coded teams, adding a new layer of strategy, rivalry, and chaos.

Cheol-su’s Debut: The iconic robotic doll Young-hee now has a male counterpart—Cheol-su—whose eerie presence signals more dangerous games ahead.

Jun-hee’s Story: A pregnant contestant, Jun-hee (played by rising star Kim Si-eun), raises the emotional and moral stakes of the new season.

Detective Jun-ho Returns: After surviving a near-fatal fall, Jun-ho is back—and closing in on his brother. A confrontation seems inevitable.

Star-Studded Cast: Gong Yoo reprises his role as the mysterious recruiter. New additions include T.O.P and Choi Woo-shik (of Parasite), with the latter playing a tech-savvy contestant believed to be crucial to unraveling the system.

Production scale: Bigger, bolder, darker

Season 3 was filmed across South Korea, Thailand, and a confidential European location, with a reported budget of $100 million. New game arenas include a flooded battleground and a massive maze, all built using practical sets to heighten realism.

Visually, the show retains its signature style—neon lighting, haunting music, faceless guards—but this season introduces a more claustrophobic tone, reflecting the characters’ desperation and the stakes of rebellion.

Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has described Season 3 as his “most personal work yet,” saying:

 “This is Gi-hun’s final stand, but it’s also a mirror for all of us. When pushed to the edge, who do we become?”

Beyond the Series: Squid Game universe expands

The Squid Game franchise has extended far beyond its core series. Alongside the reality spin-off Squid Game: The Challenge, a new video game is set to launch in late 2025. Netflix has also announced a Season 3-inspired art installation in Seoul, opening this May.

The show’s commentary on wealth, power, and human morality continues to inspire academic research, cultural discourse, and activism around the world.

The endgame awaits

As Squid Game returns for its final season, it’s not just wrapping up a story, it’s closing out a cultural era. With bold new twists, returning icons, and a hero out for justice, Season 3 is shaping up to be the most explosive chapter yet.

The final game begins June 27, 2025. Are you ready?

10 underrated K-dramas you would enjoy watching

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier compiled 10 underrated K-dramas, which would be amazing to watch.

These hidden K-dramas deserve more recognition and are actually worth watching. They include: Little women, Ghost Doctor and Devil Judge.