Squid Game‘s most divisive character in Season 2 among fans is Thanos, and it turns out that the actor behind him is just as divisive due to his past. Squid Game Season 2 made its debut with Netflix near the end of 2024, and it was the most watched premiere in Netflix history breaking the records previously held by Season 1. This new season reintroduced fans to Seong Gi-Hun and the deadly children’s games, but also introduces fans to a whole new cast of characters who are gambling with their lives. And the one that’s gotten the most attention is a very volatile character named after a Marvel villain, Thanos.
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Thanos was a rather divisive character with Squid Game fans through the Season 2’s episodes, and the actor behind him carries just as much controversy. Choi Seung-hyun, who once performed with the pop group BIGBANG under the pseudonym T.O.P., was actually blackballed from the Korean entertainment industry in 2017 after being arrested for marijuana use (which is illegal in South Korea). Speaking to People, Squid Game series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk opened up about the actor’s courage in taking on a character who openly uses drugs even with that mark on his career.
Squid Game Creator Defends Thanos Actor
In 2017, Choi Seung-hyun was found guilty of using marijuana and was thus sentenced to ten months in jail and a two year suspension from his mandatory military service. The actor was thus not getting any work in the years since before appearing in Squid Game Season 2, and series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk opened up about casting the actor, “As you may know, the actor Seung-hyun, about nine years ago got involved in a marijuana scandal in Korea and wasn’t able to do any projects for the past nine years in Korea,” he began. “And so this is a comeback after quite a long hiatus, and particularly because he portrays a character that’s a rapper and also someone who is on drugs.”
Continuing further, the creator revealed how he felt about the star taking on the role, “I feel that it took him a lot of guts, in a way, to portray a character, especially someone who shares a lot of similarities that are quite negative to him as a person too,” Hwang stated. “So I think it took him a lot of courage to take on that role.” And at the end of the day, the creator was satisfied with what made it to screen, “Despite the long hiatus, I have to say, as a director, he performed very impressively and I’m very satisfied with what he did with the character.”
RELATED: Squid Game Creator Explains Why Season 2 Ends After That Shocking Cliffhanger
What’s Next for Squid Game?
The controversy behind Choi Seung-hyun’s past doesn’t entirely cross cultural borders as marijuana is legal in many states in the United States, and its use wouldn’t bar an actor here in the same way as it’s clearly done in South Korea. As for the character Thanos himself, Seung-hyun indeed brought the character to life in a perfect way as he was supposed to be as divisive as fans find him to be. He was purposefully introduced as a chaotic element in the second season, and is much different than any other character we’ve seen.
The actor’s past controversy shouldn’t inform how fans feel about the character itself, and vice-versa. As Squid Game’s creator explains, it was a brave move for the star to openly portray a character who actively uses drugs in the series. It’s a big move and it paid off well in the final result. But we’ll see what happens next when Squid Game returns for Season 3 later this year.
