Actor Im Si-wan (36) has joined ‘Squid Game’ Season 2 as a coin YouTuber who failed to invest, meeting global audiences as a new face.
Meeting Im Si-wan at a café in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 9th, he shyly responded to the question, “Do you feel the popularity?” by saying, “The number of followers (3.19 million) surged by over 1 million. It’s amazing and I’m in awe.” He continued, “I’ve received various comments like ‘I didn’t know he was an idol,’ ‘I was surprised to hear his real age,’ ‘He’s so annoying,’ ‘His way of speaking is unique,’ ‘He’s infuriating,’ and ‘I can’t hate him because of his face.’ It’s been fun to read them every day.”
“The most gratifying feedback is definitely the compliments on my acting. I’m grateful for the visual evaluations as well, but when I see evaluations about my acting, it gives me a significant thrill, especially when it’s praise; it’s exhilarating.”
The Netflix series ‘Squid Game’ Season 2 (directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, hereafter ‘Squid Game 2’), which was released on the 26th of last month, depicts the fierce confrontation between Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae), who returns to participate in the game seeking revenge, and the Front Man (played by Lee Byung-hun), as well as the real game that begins anew.
The work recorded 126.2 million views (the number of views divided by the total running time of the work) just 11 days after its release, ranking second in Netflix’s all-time most popular non-English series.
In the series, Im Si-wan plays a once-successful coin YouTuber who falls into despair due to investment failures. He becomes a fugitive due to fraud charges and even breaks up with his girlfriend without a word. He is a character devoid of any sense of responsibility. However, he experiences intense inner conflict when he reunites with his ex-girlfriend during the game and faces harassment from the rapper Thanos (played by T.O.P), who was expelled from the entertainment industry due to drug addiction.
He mentioned, “I had deep concerns about the character’s direction. I constantly questioned the essence of humanity. The judgment of the character, who is a ‘great guy,’ between good and evil was not clear, and I kept pondering. I think he was just a person somewhere on the boundary between good and bad. One can’t always be good or bad. I tried to remember the keyword ‘just a human’ whenever I faced difficulties.”
“The keyword given by the director was, ‘If it’s Im Si-wan, this role might seem a bit kinder.’ Honestly, when I heard that, I was confused, thinking, ‘Should I act to seem kinder?’ or ‘Should I just play it as bad as the setting suggests?’ In the end, as I mentioned earlier, I just approached it as a human. Did it resonate? (laughs)”
He constantly clashes with T.O.P’s character in the series, stating, “When I was active, ‘Big Bang’ was an incredible group. Just passing by them felt different; their aura and light were extraordinary. Just receiving a glance from them was exciting and an honor; they were the ‘celebrities among celebrities,’ great superstars and seniors. I had no personal connection with them; they were beings that couldn’t exist in my world. But I met them as actors in ‘Squid Game.’”
Regarding the criticism and negative opinions about T.O.P’s acting that poured in after the release of the work, he said, “Viewer evaluations are free for everyone, so I respect that. It’s natural for different viewers to feel differently, and I have nothing to add to that.” However, he added, “What’s certain is that I definitely couldn’t have done it. The mission given to the role of ‘Thanos,’ the settings, the awkward rap, everything was challenging. I wouldn’t have been able to pull it off as well.”
He described director Hwang Dong-hyuk without hesitation as ‘God-perfect.’ Im Si-wan said, “The entire filming was a series of moments that felt like a gift,” and added, “Thorough preparation is a given, and on top of that, he fiercely explores to create something better. It felt like he was looking at an ideal in acting. I don’t think it could be more perfect in any aspect.”
He continued, “Since there were so many amazing seniors, I was busy observing on set. While acting is important, I was really curious about how he would handle the set, and there was so much to learn. From the very beginning, senior Song Young-chang was different. He spoke to younger colleagues without hesitation, approached them first, and eased the tension. He created an environment where so many people could comfortably chat and share fun moments.”
Moreover, he expressed, “Everything was fascinating, new, and experiences that are hard to replicate. Just being part of a power content that has garnered global attention, which I was a true fan of, is an honor.”
