“Squid Game” Director About Casting T.O.P, “Didn’t Expect Criticism Towards Him Would Continue”
Following the release of “Squid Game 2”, director Hwang Dong-hyuk had an interview and shared various stories about the making of this series. Especially, he mentioned the casting of Choi Seung-hyun, also known as former BIGBANG member T.O.P, for the role of rapper Thanos with a weak appearance.
The director said, “I had been auditioning many times and couldn’t find anyone suitable for the role. The directing team gave me a list and Choi Seung-hyun’s name was on it. I wondered if he was still active in the entertainment industry and they said, ‘He is willing to act’. At first, I thought he wouldn’t agree to play this role because the character’s background story is too similar to his. However, after much consideration, he reached out to me and said he would give it a try. During the audition and script reading, I could see great potential from him. He matched the character well, from his appearance to his acting”.
He continued, “In Season 3, there’s a story about a character whose life was ruined by drugs and I thought it could hold significant meaning if he portrayed this role. Considering all aspects, I decided to cast him, but people still haven’t forgiven him. I didn’t expect criticism towards him to continue. I was surprised to see the reactions. If I had known it would be like this, I wouldn’t have announced his casting early”
T.O.P was sentenced to 10 months in prison and 2 years of probation for smoking cannabis at his residence in 2016. “Squid Game 2” is his acting comeback after a long hiatus of 9 years. Thanos (real name Choi Soo-bong), a rapper who is addicted to drugs, seems to have been inspired by T.O.P’s life.
Director Hwang shared, “I wondered if it was okay for him to take on this role. I looked up and saw many celebrities did return to activities after drug-related scandals. I also believed that his hiatus was long and assumed that people would judge him only based on the result of his acting. However, as soon as the casting of T.O.P was announced, netizens poured harsh criticism to the point that I had to search to see whether he had done something worse”. He added, “Later, I found out that he argued with fans on the Internet and was criticized for his attitude when replying to fans’ comments online. However, I couldn’t just cancel his role. Instead, I decided to let him continue playing the role and see if he could be forgiven for his performance”.
Director Hwang believed that Thanos is a unique character and a necessary one for the development of “Squid Game” story. However, some viewers found the character strange and awkward. In fact, the backlash focuses on T.O.P, not the character. In this regard, the director said, “I wanted to create an MZ group. Issues like online gambling leading to debt and drugs are popular among young people. I wanted to mention those issues. It doesn’t mean I glorify the act of taking drugs with this character. I hoped it would make young viewers think again about drugs and stop themselves. I did the casting with positive intentions.”
Regarding the continuing controversy over his casting of a large number of actors from BH entertainment, from Lee Byung-hun to Park Sung-hoon, Lee Jun-wook, Won Ji-an and T.O.P, director Hwang Dong-hyuk insisted that he also tried to discover new faces, the same as he did in Season 1. The director emphasized that all the actors were selected through auditions, adding “The principle of all the casting calls is their acting ability.”
The production cost of “Squid Game 2” was 100 billion won but viewers’ reactions were full of disappointment. Season 3 will be released in the first half of next year and many are wondering if Season 3 would do better. Director Hwang shared, “It’s hard to say anything in detail. Personally, I like Season 3 the most. The story is more dynamic and it shows the real face of human being”.