[This story contains spoilers through season two, episode three of Squid Game.]
One of the enduring mysteries of the first season of Squid Game was what’s driving The Front Man, the enigmatic masked overseer of the Netflix hit show’s candy-colored death game. Korean film and TV fans were treated to a major surprise at the end of the first season when Lee Byung-hun, one of Korean entertainment’s most enduring stars, was revealed to be playing the elusive Front Man in Hwang Dong-hyuk’s thriller. But The Front Man’s full origin story and motivations remained a subject of speculation.
Sitting down with The Hollywood Reporter recently in Seoul, Lee promised that season two would deliver “the overall narrative of the character,” exploring his twisted psyche and motivations in-depth.
“In season one, I played the role of The Front Man from a more operational perspective, where he was simply the one running the games,” Lee says. The actor adds, however, that he showered Squid Game creator/writer/director Hwang with questions during filming to understand his character as much as possible. “We didn’t know then that there would be a second season. But still, as an actor, you really have to know your character to play him, even if he’s not so exposed. Thanks to the process that we went through on season one, though, I think we were both really ready to develop his story — his past and why he became The Front Man — for season two.”
Lee Byung-hun as the Front Man in Squid Game 2.
A major Front Man reveal again makes for a big moment in the new season now streaming. This time, the revelation comes at the end of episode three when it’s explained that Lee’s character has made the risky decision to enter the game as a player — Player 001, no less — to compete alongside the season’s ensemble. Soon, he allies with the show’s hero, Gi-hun (played by Emmy winner Lee Jung-jae), and a strange intimacy develops between the two characters. Unlike Gi-hun, the audience is in on the secret that Player 001 is actually a mortal enemy. But why is he toying with Gi-hun — and why has he chosen to jump into the game first hand?
“Gi-hun doesn’t know that Player 001 is the Front Man, so he thinks that he’s someone he can trust and rely on,” Lee Jung-Jae tells THR about his character’s surprising bond with his enemy, as he goes back into the game for a season of revenge. “He has high hopes that together they can stop the game and put an end to all of it.”
He adds: “There’s a weird suspense to some of the conversations they have together on screen — and it really intensifies in later moments. It’s going to be very fun for viewers to watch their relationship unfold.”
Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun in Squid Game S2.
Lee Byung-hun says The Front Man’s motivations will be revealed through “glimpses of his past” and “earlier life events” as the season continues after episode three.
“If you think about the way his life has progressed, his worldview has to be deeply rooted in a feeling of being extremely disappointed in mankind and the world overall — that he truly feels there’s absolutely no hope in humanity,” Lee explains, adding: “It’s this very firm belief that drives his choices — at least that’s how I understood the character.”
The actor believes The Front Man was pulled back into the game by “wanting to enlighten Gi-hun” — essentially, to convince him that humanity is beyond redemption.
“I almost feel that, subconsciously, he still sees a part of himself in Gi-hun,” Lee says. “And in that way, I think a small part of him is almost rooting for Gi-hun. As you observe his actions throughout Season 2, I think you’re constantly going to be wondering what The Front Man is actually thinking.”
The Front Man and Gi-hun’s uncanny intimacy might seem like one of season two’s more subtle acting notes, but Lee says the rapport with Lee Jung-jae came effortlessly. The two actors both began their screen careers in the mid-1990s and appeared alongside one another in the 1998 TV drama White Nights 3.98.
“We’ve been colleagues for a very long time,” says Lee Byung-hun. “We shot that one project together, but outside of that, we’ve been meeting in social settings and whatnot for years. So that part — creating chemistry together — wasn’t difficult at all.”
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Squid Game season two is now streaming on Netflix. Read a refresher on season one and THR‘s recent in-depth cover story on the hit show’s return.
