If you’re about to dive into Squid Game Season 2, there’s a big choice you need to make: subtitles or dubbed. Fortunately, the show’s creator has made that decision even easier.
Three years after it became Netflix’s biggest show ever, Squid Game is back – and according to our five-star review, it’s even better than the first season.
However, debates over the ending of Season 2 and the difficulty of the games aside, something else has divided viewers: whether or not you should watch it in Korean with subtitles or dubbed in your native language.
Everyone has their preference (for example, Studio Ghibli movies usually cast A-list stars for their English dubs, so that often sways people), but creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has a strong argument for one of the options.
Why you should watch Squid Game Season 2 with subtitles
From Hwang’s point of view, watching Squid Game Season 2 in Korean with subtitles retains the “authenticity” of the show and its cast’s performances.
“I suggest for those of you out there to really get the essence of the actual actors voices and the nuances of their tones, I suggest watching it with subtitles on. I think it’s going to be for a better viewing experience,” he told LADbible.
Lee Jung-jae, who plays Gi-hun, agrees. “I think I would rather the viewers to watch it with subtitles, because when you watch it with dubbed, then I don’t think it conveys the authenticity of my performance to the fullest,” he explained.
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“You have to really listen to the voice of the actor, and the accent and the emotions and everything are really compiled into the voice of the actor.
“So yeah, I think it’s a better way to really immerse yourself into the character and into the story.”
This echoes what Hwang told Good Morning America after the release of the first season. “Please watch the subtitled one,” he said.
“If you don’t see the acting, the performance from the real actor, then you are not seeing anything. You are missing the most of the Squid Game fun.”
As Bong Joon-ho famously said, “Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films.”
In the meantime, find out why Hyun-ju isn’t played by a trans actress, why Squid Game’s prize money isn’t actually that much, and check out Season 2’s post-credits scene you may have missed.
