The second season of Squid Game sees the hit series continuing where it left off but with some major additions to the plot. Aside from Lee Jung Jae, Wi Ha Joon, and Lee Byung Hun returning as their original characters, a new cast enters the games as they bid for the million-won cash prize.
Among them is Park Sung Hoon, who you might know from The Glory and Queen of Tears. Some viewers raised their eyebrows when it was revealed that Sung Hoon would be playing a transgender woman in season two, a discussion director Hwang Dong Hyuk already foresaw.
Director Hwang Dong Hyuk on the Challenge of Casting a Trans Woman in Squid Game Season 2
From the get-go, director Hwang knew the importance of casting an actual transgender woman to play Hyun-ju. "I did anticipate such discussions to arise from the first moment I began creating the character Hyun-ju," he told TV Guide. "In the beginning, we were doing our research, and I was thinking of doing an authentic casting of a trans actor."
However, finding an openly transgender woman actor proved difficult, especially considering the context of the LGBTQIA+ community in Korean society. "There are close to no actors that are openly trans, let alone openly gay, because unfortunately in the Korean society currently the LGBTQ community is rather still marginalized and more neglected, which is heartbreaking," director Hwang added.
This led director Hwang to find someone who could play Hyun-ju and hopefully bring justice to her story. In the second season, she joins the do-or-die games as a way to fund her gender-affirming care and surgery.
"It was near impossible to find someone who we could cast authentically. And that led us to the decision to cast Sung-hoon," director Hwang shared, emphasizing that he had "complete trust that he would be the right person in terms of talent in portraying this character."
In a promotional video featuring the cast, Sung Hoon shared his thoughts on Hyun-ju's role in the series. "Even though she faces prejudice and tough situations, she shows strength, decisiveness, and a natural leadership," he states. "She breaks down stereotypes and shines as an inspiring character."
In a study titled Society at a Glance 2019: A Spotlight on LGBT People, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) made the conclusion that, compared to other countries, Korea is relatively less accepting of LGBTQIA+ identities. This could possibly explain the apparent lack of openly queer actors, and in turn, characters in certain K-dramas. However, some progress has been made, with the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ roles in popular titles such as Itaewon Class, Reply 1997, and Romance Is a Bonus Book, to name a few.
Squid Game season 2 premieres on Netflix this December 26.
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