Netflix Reveals Scrapped Squid Game Ending Where [Spoiler] Survives

In a new interview with Variety, Hwang confirmed that early drafts had Gi-hun survive and return to see his daughter.

"Originally, when I was planning for Seasons 2 and 3, I had no intention of having Gi-hun die," he said. "He may become the winner — and he would go back to see his daughter."

So what changed? The world did.

"Looking around at what was happening in the world… that kind of unhappy ending, and seeing Gi-hun's journey and his destination, it just didn't line up for me," he said. "I thought a better fitting story — and a closure to the story of Gi-hun's journey — would be for him to sacrifice himself for future generations."

That's where the baby came in — a child born during the final episodes and used as a symbol of the future. Hwang said there was never a version where the baby didn't survive:

"The baby was brought in as a symbol of the future and the next generation… There was never a moment where I thought about [killing the baby], because that would have been way too dark."

Gi-hun's final words in the show are cut off mid-sentence — and that was deliberate. Hwang said, "I wanted that last sentence to be a question that I asked all of our audience members… I thought that it would be better for him to show through action rather than finish that sentence in words."

The ending also introduced Cate Blanchett as a Squid Game recruiter in Los Angeles — a one-line cameo that sparked fan speculation about a possible U.S. spinoff. But Hwang shut that down too:

"It's not related to that," he said. "All I wanted was just an impactful ending… Honestly, I haven't heard officially from Netflix about David Fincher creating a Squid Game [U.S. version]."

As for what's next? Hwang says he's open to contributing if Netflix moves forward with new Squid Game content, but only depending on the project. "If they wanted to do a following season, then I think it's obvious I would have to participate and lead," he said. "But if it's the U.S. version… sharing of ideas would be enough."

And no — he's still not directing Season 4. Because there is no Season 4. Gi-hun is dead. Probably.