“We Made History Together” — ‘Squid Game’ Creators, Cast and Crew Celebrate Barrier-Breaking Emmy Wins

With six wins out of 14 nominations, Netflix’s blockbuster series Squid Game achieved several memorable milestones at the 74th Emmy Awards.

Series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk won the Emmy for outstanding directing for a drama series, while actor Lee Jung-Jae received the Emmy for outstanding actor in a drama series for his lead performance. This makes Hwang and Lee the first Asians and the first South Koreans to win in their respective categories, and the first ones to do so with a non-English language series.

At a press conference in Seoul today, Hwang called the experience of accepting his award on stage a “once in a lifetime moment” and a “great honor” that was “overwhelming and mind-blowing”. Lee, who could not attend, spoke through a pre-recorded video message at the press conference that hearing his name announced at the Emmys was “bewildering.” Expressing his delight and gratitude to fans of Squid Game and Korean content from all over the world, he added: “These wins are a happiness we all share together.”

The increasingly global reach of Korean culture — be it television, film, music, or food — was a theme the creators, cast, and crew of Squid Game were all asked about at the press conference. “We have always been hard at work,” said Hwang of Korean content creators. By leveraging the changing media environment and the entry of digital platforms like Netflix into global markets, this hard work has been able to “blossom into something wonderful.” He hoped that this success would inspire and motivate not just Korean creators, but creators worldwide. 

On the weekend before the broadcast ceremony, Squid Game had also picked up Creative Arts Emmys for special visual effects in a single episode; stunt performance; production design; and Guest Actress in a Drama Series. This last award was won by Lee You-mi, who became the first South Korean actress to win in this category, and the first actor to do so for a fully non-English language performance. Squid Game is also the first Korean series to be nominated for below-the-line production categories, and the first non-English language show to win at the Creative Arts Emmys.

Becoming a pioneer at the awards

The show’s nominations alone have made history at the Emmys. Squid Game is the first non-English-language show to be nominated for Outstanding Drama Series. Hwang was also nominated for outstanding writing for a drama series, making him the first Korean showrunner to score nods for both writing and directing. Actors Lee Jung-Jae, Park Hae-soo, Jung Ho-Yeon, Oh Young-soo, and Lee You-mi were all the first native Korean actors to be nominated in their respective categories. As executive producers, Hwang and Kim Ji-Yeon became the smallest producing team to be nominated for a drama series since Murder She Wrote in 1987.

These accolades come almost exactly a year after Squid Game debuted on Netflix on September 17 last year, and became a global phenomenon. The series clocked over 1.65 billion viewing hours in 28 days, and reached 111 million accounts, becoming Netflix’s first series to surpass 100 million members at launch.

“It has been a long journey of many surprises, and an emotional rollercoaster,” said executive producer Kim. “Times have changed, and we are truly living in a global era. In the past, only people who spoke Korean and knew about Korean culture would watch our content. Now, platforms like Netflix allow this content to reach so many more people. Through this exposure, our understanding of other cultures has deepened.”

Stunt performer Lee Tae-young echoed the sentiments of Hwang, Lee, and Kim when he spoke about his hope that the accolades won by Squid Game would open more doors for Korean creators, performers, and crew members. “We pour our heart and soul into our work. We have a lot of grit and passion,” he said. “This award for the stunt team recognizes the efforts of all stunt performers in South Korea, and I hope it will lead to better opportunities for the next generation.”

This June, Netflix confirmed the second season of Squid Game was in the works. At the press conference, Hwang revealed that he was currently working on the script for the new season, and has decided on the lethal games that will appear in it. But he revealed no details about these games and urged everyone to keep spoilers to themselves even if they came across rumors online. “You cannot let anyone know,” he urged. “Suspense is a huge part of the experience.”

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Talia M.

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