Squid Game creator insists ‘I’m not rich’ despite show being worth £650m because ‘Netflix paid him no bonus’
HWANG Dong-hyuk, the creator of the widely popular Squid Game, has insisted “I’m not that rich” – despite the show being worth £650m.
Since its explosive debut last month, Squid Game has surpassed all expectations, with the Netflix series becoming one of the most talked about shows on the planet right now.
But despite masterminding the global phenomenon, Hwang has claimed he isn’t that rich, partly because Netflix didn’t pay him a bonus.
“But I do have enough, I have enough to put food on the table,” the 50-year-old told the Guardian.
“And it’s not like Netflix is paying me a bonus. Netflix paid me according to the original contract.”
The Wall Street Journal had previously reported that Hwang had to stop writing the script of the South Korean series at one point to sell his laptop for £500 in cash.
At the time, he was living with his mother and grandmother and struggling financially.
The nine-episode thriller, in which cash-strapped contestants play childhood games with deadly consequences in a bid to win 45.6bn won (£52m), became an international hit when it launched last month.
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Since its overwhelming success, Hwang has remained tight-lipped about a second season – until now.
In a recent interview, Hwang teased: “There are some other stories in the series that have not been addressed.
“I’ll just say, there are a lot of possibilities out there for season two storylines.”
Squid Game is available to stream on Netflix.
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