Squid Game: America’s Finale Was Just the Beginning — What It Secretly Sets Up Next

So, about that wild Squid Game Season 3 ending we all watched in June: turns out it might have been teeing up something big on this side of the Pacific. Multiple industry listings say a spinoff called Squid Game: America is in motion, with David Fincher circling it. None of this is officially stamped by Netflix yet, and the original creator says he is not involved, but here's the full picture of what is and is not real so far.

Is Squid Game: America actually happening?

There is a project listing on the Film and Television Industry Alliance site that pegs a February 26, 2026 start date in Los Angeles for a series titled Squid Game: America. The listing names producers Kim Ji-yeon, David Fincher, Zeus Zamani, and Rhett Giles, and describes it as a US-set take that lives in the same universe as the Korean original, showing how the games are run in America. That is the nuts-and-bolts paperwork floating around right now.

What does not exist yet is a formal Netflix announcement. Hwang Dong-hyuk, who created the original series, has said he has not been officially told by Netflix that Fincher is making anything Squid Game-related, and he has pushed back on reports claiming he is attached to this spinoff. At the same time, he has also said he likes Fincher’s work and would watch an American version if it actually happens. Mixed signals? A bit, but it reads like: rumors are ahead of the press release.

How Season 3 set the table

Quick refresher on that finale setup: after Gi-hun sacrifices himself to save Player 222’s baby, Front Man rescues the child before the island goes up. Six months later, he hands both the baby and the prize money to his brother, Jun-ho. Then the show jumps to Los Angeles, where Front Man clocks a mystery woman playing ddakji in an alley — the same recruiter's game that kicked off Season 1 — which looks a lot like a handoff to an American chapter.

About that rumored casting

The name tied to that LA scene is Cate Blanchett. Reports say she is currently the only actor attached, potentially as the recruiter we glimpse in the finale. Again, no official casting announcement yet, but if that cameo was her, the spinoff is already leaving breadcrumbs.

Why Fincher fits a Squid Game spinoff

Fincher doing a death-match mind game about money, power, and surveillance? Feels almost too on-brand. His 1997 film The Game is literally about a person dragged into a manipulative life-or-death puzzle. Tonally, he is a glove-fit for Squid Game’s moral rot and precision dread. One more name to watch: Dennis Kelly — who created Utopia and wrote Matilda the Musical — is reportedly handling the script. That combo screams stylish paranoia and sharp social bite.

What the current paperwork says

• Working title: Squid Game: America (reported)
• Format: TV series, not a film (reported)
• Start of filming: February 26, 2026 (reported)
• Location: Los Angeles, California (reported)
• Producers named on listing: Kim Ji-yeon, David Fincher, Zeus Zamani, Rhett Giles (reported)
• Writer: Dennis Kelly (Utopia, Matilda the Musical) (reported)
• Cast: Cate Blanchett attached, unconfirmed; potentially the LA recruiter from the Season 3 tag (reported)
• Logline snapshot: same world as the original, focused on how the games operate in America (reported)

The official word (such as it is)

Hwang Dong-hyuk has said he has not been officially told by Netflix that Fincher is making a Squid Game project, and he called reports of his own involvement in the spinoff groundless. He did add that he is a longtime Fincher fan and would be first in line to watch if it becomes real.

I have always loved Fincher’s work since Se7en. If he did an American Squid Game, I would click play immediately.

Lee Jung-jae is also publicly excited and says he has high expectations if this thing goes forward. Make of that what you will — enthusiasm from the cast does not equal a greenlight, but it is not nothing.

So what would it actually look like?

If the spinoff moves, expect American-specific games and a fresh batch of social commentary aimed squarely at US capitalism and desperation. The Season 3 tag strongly suggests Front Man has a footprint in LA, but no one has confirmed whether he shows up in the spinoff. Hwang has also said the broader Squid Game universe does not end with Season 3 and future stories may dig into new characters and perspectives — including the masked guards — rather than just continuing the same storyline beat for beat. That gives an American branch a lot of room to build its own identity while still feeling like the same twisted world.

Where to watch the original

All three seasons of Squid Game are streaming on Netflix right now. When there is something official to share on Squid Game: America, I will update — until then, consider this a very compelling, very detailed may-be.