Squid Game: The Challenge is currently the most watched show on Netflix, thanks to its addictive gameshow adaptation of the original K-drama. But how long did contestants take part in the games, and how long did they take to film?
If you've been anywhere near the internet or the streaming service this week, the chances are you've seen Squid Game: The Challenge pop up on your feed. The new 10-part reality series sees 456 contestants put through their paces in a series of challenges - both mental and physical - in a bid to win $4.56million.
The challenges themselves included things like Red Light, Green Light, which was featured in the original show, but also new games like Warships. But how was it filmed?
According to Netflix (via Capital FM), the competition was filmed in just over two weeks - across 16 days - at a purpose built location in Wharf Studios, London, during January 2023. Cameras were on the contestants 24 hours a day, while they were filmed for competitions for around 16 hours a day, between 8am - 11pm.
Since the show aired, contestants have alleged on social media that filming for Red Light, Green Light took up to eight hours (!) for one challenge, with one person, Kayvon Moradi, explaining they had to hold "each position for 40-45 minutes" while filming.
Player 236 added on Instagram that it was "freezing", and that "Red Light, Green Light did not take five minutes like it looks like in the show. I think that the last round of people to make it through ended up playing for almost eight hours."
In response, producer Toni Ireland told Entertainment Weekly, “Each day was slightly different because we didn’t shoot a game every single day, and then some days they have tests and things like that, so it just sort of depended on that.
"They woke up around eight o’clock each day, exactly as you see on the show. The lights come on, the music plays, they get in line to brush their teeth, the guards came and delivered them their food.
"They weren’t really sleep-deprived. They got a good night’s sleep and they slept pretty well in the bunk beds."
The first nine episodes of Squid Game: The Challenge are now streaming on Netflix.
