Squid Game Season 1's Player 001, Oh Il-nam, is an old man who forged a strong bond with the eventual winner, Seong Gi-hun.
While Season 2 of the Netflix series introduced a new batch of players into the fold, there was still a plethora of memorable characters who stood out, such as the likes of Gi-hun, Kang Sae-byeok, and Cho Sang-woo.
Amid the long list of players and masked workers, Oh Il-nam stands out since he is the oldest player in the infamous Squid Game.
Who Is the Old Man in Squid Game?
Oh Il-nam (aka Player 001) is one of the players of the game who is revealed to be diagnosed with a brain tumor and he sees the Squid Game as a way to have fun before succumbing to the disease.
The character is played on-screen by O Yeong-su.
Throughout the games, Il-nam becomes close to Seong Gi-hun (played by The Acolyte star Lee Jung-jae), and he even reveals the truth about his past life while also helping Season 1's eventual winner to survive.
When the players decided to leave the game after the first round, it was Il-nam who convinced Gi-hun to return to the games and finish it, seemingly hinting that he wants him to win in order to become free of his lifelong debt.
At one point, during the Tug of War round, Il-nam's determination and tips help his team win and survive, eventually eliminating the other competitors who fell to their deaths.
The old man's fondness with Gi-hun is pure and real, with him considering him as his "Gganbu" which is a Korean term for "old and close friend" during the fourth round of the 33rd Squid Game.
Read more about the major plot twists that happened in Squid Game Season 2.
How Did the Old Man Get Eliminated?
Seong Gi-hun and Oh Il-nam's friendship took a major turn due to the rules of the Marble game that they have to play in order to advance.
The rules dictated that the players need to eliminate their partners by taking all ten marbles from their partners after winning a game of their own choosing within 30 minutes.
Unfortunately, it was during this time that Il-nam's dementia worsened, which led to concerns from Gi-hun.
Despite that, Gi-hun did not take advantage of Il-nam's illness to get better of him, cementing his compassion that he already built for the old man.
Still, Il-nam dominated Gi-hun in the game of marbles, but he allowed his friend to take the lead, which ultimately led to his elimination from the game.
Season 1, Episode 6 revealed that Il-nam was shot off-screen by one of the Squid Game guards wearing a triangle as symbols in their masks.
Il-Nam's Identity Twist Explained
In a shocking reveal, Squid Game Season 1, Episode 9 revealed that Il-nam was not killed during the marble games.
Instead, he faked his death because he is actually the founder of the Squid Games and is the one pulling all of the strings since the start.
Il-nam revealed the truth to Seong Gi-hun on his deathbed, summoning him months after he (Player 456) won it all.
He told him that he is actually a wealthy man who made a living lending money to people.
He got bored with his wealth, which is why he began to organize the annual Squid Game with the belief that he was offering something "fun" to make those people who had overwhelming debt feel alive as they endure their pathetic lives.
Il-nam saw humanity as selfish beings, and the games cemented that idea. He also revealed to Gi-hun that he willingly participated in the games to "feel something" before he dies.
In one final conversation before he passed away, Il-nam convinced Gi-hun to agree to a final bet involving a homeless man lying in the cold streets of Seoul.
The Squid Game creator bet his friend that no passerby will help the homeless man to prove his point that all humans are selfish, but Gi-hun believed that there is still goodness in the world.
At the end, a random passerby managed to seek for help for the homeless man, meaning that Gi-hun won the bet. However, Il-nam passed away just before he saw the good deed that the man did for the homeless man.
In Season 2, as a way to put an end to the games, Gi-hun decides to go back to the games and destroy the Squid Game from the inside.
The first two seasons of Squid Game are streaming on Netflix.
