Squid Game Season 2 highlights a major change for Seong Gi-hun which starts with his dyed hair as he decides to go all out in trying to put a stop to the games.
Gi-hun had a long journey in Season 1, with him starting as an immature and happy-go-lucky guy who had an insurmountable debt, ultimately ending the Netflix show's debut season as the grand winner of the infamous Squid Game.
Aside from bagging the grand prize of 45.6 billion won, part of the change that he made for himself is dying his hair red, and there is a deeper meaning behind it.
Why Gi-Hun Dyed His Hair Red in Squid Game Season 1
Squid Game Season 1's ending saw Seong Gi-hun making a bold decision to dye his hair red before heading to the airport to board a flight heading to Los Angeles to reunite with his daughter.
However, he changed his decision to board the flight at the last minute after he saw The Recruiter (Gong Yoo) in the metro station who was luring another innocent soul to the games.
Lee Jung-jae brings Seong Gi-hun to life, headlining the star-studded cast of characters in Squid Game Season 2.
Squid Game director Hwang Dong Hyuk spoke with Sports Chosun in September 2021 about the reasoning behind Gi-hun's hair color change in the Season 1 finale, noting that it is his way of showcasing his "inner anger:"
"I thought about this intuitively, thinking about how Gi Hun should change his hair in a hair salon. I imagined being him and thought to myself, ‘what is the color that you would never choose to dye your hair?’ Then I came to the conclusion that Gi Hun would never dye his hair red. It would be the craziest thing for him to do. So I chose the color and I thought it really showed his inner anger."
While viewers would think that Gi-hun had already let go of his grudge toward the Front Man and the organizers of the game, seeing the Recruiter again in the train station instantly flips a switch inside him, and his red hair cements the fact that his rage is still there waiting to be triggered.
At a press conference with Lucca Comics in October 2024 (via Dexerto), Hwang further expanded on his decision to have Gi-hun dye his hair red, pointing out that it is inspired by one of the characters from the hit anime Slam Dunk who has the same hair color, Hanamichi Sakuragi:
"The red hair of Seong Gi-hun at the end of Season 1, I got it from my favorite comic book 'Slam Dunk.' I don’t know the Japanese name, but he had red hair, so I got the idea from that character."
The series creator then described the hair color change as a "symbol of not being normal anymore:"
"That’s the symbol of not being normal anymore, he’s not an ordinary man. He’s been through those cruel games and experiences, he’s lost a lot of friends and people, so he’s trying to get back to normal life but he cannot. That red hair is like a symbol of his abnormality."
Here's Why Gi-Hun Decides To Change His Hair Again in Season 2
While his red hair color is still shown during the early moments of Squid Game Season 2, the show's two-year time jump revealed that he reverted his hair color to black while also sporting a new short hairstyle.
It is possible that the sudden change could simply be a design choice by the producers because it was mocked by viewers. Still, it could have a deeper meaning.
Gi-hun could have already let go of the inner anger he has been harboring against the Squid Game organizers since he realizes that revenge is not the answer if he wants to succeed in his plan to put an end to the games. He could have seen anger as a hindrance instead of his anchor.
Gi-hun does not want to be consumed by vengeance anymore. Instead, he decides to be smart about his tactics on how to destroy the game once and for all.
The hair change also signifies a fresh start for Gi-hun as he goes back to the games in Squid Game Season 2, indicating that he wants to send a message to the Front Man that he is an entirely different person from the immature first-timer he once was in Season 1.
All episodes of Squid Game Season 2 are streaming on Netflix.
Read more about the major plot twists that happened throughout Squid Game Season 2.
