Squid Game season 2: how many episodes are in Netflix show - is it less than season one?

• Squid Game is back on Boxing Day 2024.
• The Netflix hit has a shorter episode count than the first season.
• However a third and final season is coming in 2025.

Netflix’s biggest hit of all-time is arriving just in time for Christmas. Squid Game will drop on the streaming service on Boxing Day, to help you through that festive hangover.

More than three years after it first took the world by storm, audiences will step back into the game as the story of Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) continues. And the show will continue in 2025 with a third and final season.

If you are excited for the return of Squid Game this festive season, you might be wondering what to expect. Here’s all you need to know:

Stay up-to-date with the latest UK news and culture with our free UK Today newsletter.

When does Squid Game come out on Netflix?

The hit Netflix series will return on Thursday December 26 - Boxing Day. A third series will arrive some time in 2025, with a date to be announced in due course.

How many episodes does Squid Game s2 have?

Fans might be surprised to find out that for its return on Boxing Day, Squid Game will actually be shorter than in its first season. There will be just seven episodes in the second series - two episodes less than in 2021.

Speaking to Deadline, show creator Hwang Dong-hyuk explained: “I wrote seasons two and three at the same time, and we were in production for both simultaneously, and currently we are in the post-production process for Season 3.

“When I was writing the script for the two seasons, I felt like there was a big turning point or an inflection point, and that was the end of episode seven, so I thought that it would do it justice to have a separate season after that. That’s why I had the first seven episodes as Season 2 and then the rest of Season 3.”

What are the episode titles for Squid Game s2?

Only the episode title for the first episode of the new season of the Netflix blockbuster has been revealed so far, as secrecy remains high around the fresh batch of episodes. The premiere of series two will be called: “Bread and Lottery”.

It certainly isn’t giving much away really, although the premiere episode for Squid Game in 2021 was called Red Light, Green Light. If you can remember, that was the name of the first game - a murderous version of the titular playground favourite.

However Bread and Lottery doesn’t as easily signpost to a game, outside of a lottery draw. But it could all be smoke and mirrors.

What are your hopes and expectations for Squid Game season two? Share your thoughts by emailing me: [email protected].