Squid Game went out with a bang, as two-time Oscar winner Cate Blanchett made a jaw-dropping cameo in the final moments of the series finale,
signaling a potential U.S. spin-off of the hit Netflix survival drama
.
In the closing scene of the season three finale, released Friday at midnight PT, viewers were transported from the grim battlegrounds of Korea to the streets of
Los Angeles
. There, Blanchett was seen quietly recruiting new American players, hinting that the lethal game may soon be setting its sights on the U.S.
Her brief appearance confirmed long-swirling rumors that
Netflix
had been eyeing an international expansion of its most-watched franchise. While the streamer hasn’t announced official plans for a spin-off, Blanchett’s cameo makes one thing clear —
the game
isn’t over.
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The six-episode final season of Squid Game arrived just six months after season two shattered viewership records. Returning protagonist Gi-Hun (Lee Jung-jae) faced his deadliest trial yet, culminating in a brutal showdown with The Front Man (Lee Byung-hun).
The season didn’t hold back, upping the body count and pushing moral boundaries, including a shocking twist involving a newborn contestant, designed to jolt viewers and deepen the show’s anti-capitalist critique.
“Each season, we tried to stretch the boundaries of what people would expect,” said creator Hwang Dong-hyuk in a post-release statement. “We wanted to show the lengths to which the powerful will go, and how deeply corrupt systems can entrap even the most innocent.”
The original Squid Game made television history upon its September 2021 debut, ultimately earning Emmys for both Hwang and Lee. It also marked a turning point for international content on Netflix, becoming the streamer’s most-watched series ever.
Season two debuted to record-breaking numbers and climbed to the third-most-watched spot globally. Blanchett’s arrival elevates expectations for whatever version of Squid Game may come next.
The Australian actress, known for her selectivity and affinity for auteur-driven projects, has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, winning for The Aviator and Blue Jasmine. Her television work in Mrs. America and Disclaimer further cemented her reputation for prestige storytelling.
Blanchett previously hinted at her openness to longer-form television, telling
The Hollywood Reporter
in 2024, “If a story came my way that I felt could benefit from the amount of time that serialized storytelling can give it then, yeah. But I suppose it just depends.”
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