Lee Jung-jae from 'Squid Game 3' confessed that he lost 10 kg for his character.
On the afternoon of the 3rd, an interview with Lee Jung-jae, the lead actor of the Netflix series 'Squid Game' Season 3, was held at a cafe in Seoul's Sogyeok-dong.
'Squid Game 3' depicts Gi-hun, who loses his best friend in a game he re-enters with his own purposes, the Frontman who disguises himself as participant No. 001, and the final fate of participants who survive in the brutal games. Season 1 premiered in September 2021, causing a global phenomenon, breaking viewership records, and capturing audiences worldwide. Season 2 was released in December 2024, and it finally concludes with this last series.
'Squid Game 3' recorded 60,100,000 views just three days after its release, maintaining the No. 1 spot in Netflix's Top 10 across 93 countries, including South Korea, the United States, Japan, France, and Brazil. This marks the first time a Netflix show has reached the top spot in all countries during its first week and proves to be an unprecedented success. Additionally, it ranked 9th among Netflix's all-time series (non-English) in its first week of release, with Seasons 1, 2, and 3 all making the top 10 in the all-time most popular non-English series. Moreover, Season 2 ranked 3rd and Season 1 6th in the Global TOP 10 of the past week, showcasing its significant interest among fans worldwide. Currently, FlixPatrol has maintained the No. 1 spot for five consecutive days.
Earlier, Lee Jung-jae made history by winning six awards, including Outstanding Lead Actor, at the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards held in September 2022, while director Hwang Dong-hyuk won the award for Outstanding Directing. The Emmy Awards, often referred to as the 'Cannes Film Festival of Television' or the 'Academy Awards,' noted that it is the first record of receiving both the directing and lead actor awards in a non-English category. It is also a first for the entire Asian region.
In Season 3, Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae) loses his best friend Jeong-bae (played by Lee Seo-hwan) and fellow contestants due to a failed rebellion he led. It raises questions about whether Gi-hun can end the game, how the Frontman (played by Lee Byung-hun), who disguised himself as participant No. 001 and joined the game alongside Gi-hun, will fare, and whether Gi-hun will discover the true identity of the Frontman. The reunion of the Frontman, who returns as the game's orchestrator, and Gi-hun becomes a major point of interest.
To portray the character Seong Gi-hun, Lee Jung-jae said, "The director probably wrote considering fans who loved 'Squid Game' Season 1, and I have never received this kind of support and love before. It was truly a global affirmation of support." He added, "In that regard, I wanted to put forth my utmost effort and felt that I had to do so. Therefore, I aimed to do more, and I thought it would be good to show physical changes. I avoided enjoyable gatherings and hardly went to the food truck that was on set during lunch."
Lee Jung-jae stated that he lost a total of 10 kg, saying, "I didn't require the person who prepared my diet to do everything; I just asked for the vegetables among the side dishes to be steamed. They packed three meals in a styrofoam container, and I would have one for lunch, one for dinner, and so on. From the middle of filming, I reduced the three containers to two, and later to one. By the time I shot the final scene, I had been splitting one container into three meals for two months."
Regarding the reason for losing weight, he replied, "Actually, the basic rule of 'Squid Game' is that participants are allowed to eat. (laughs) I thought, would Gi-hun eat? I figured he wouldn’t. If the body shrinks like a dried squid and it shows well on screen, that should be fine."
In response to the question, "Were there any health issues?" he answered, "I had a severe diet during the filming of 'Assassination,' and I did it without restraint. It was severe, and I developed gastric issues. I realized, 'This is what happens when you diet improperly,' so this time it wasn’t to that extent."
Meanwhile, 'Squid Game 3' was released worldwide through Netflix on the 27th of last month.
[Photo] Provided by Netflix
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