Steven Spielberg called "Squid Game" cast "unknown" and fans are furious

Mar 24 2022, 9:49 pm

Steven Spielberg is feeling the heat from Squid Game fans online after making comments about the show’s casting during a panel.

On Saturday, Spielberg spoke about the hit Netflix show on a PGA Awards panel. According to Deadline, the director applauded the Korean drama for changing the industry.

Squid Game comes along and changes the math entirely for all of us,” said Spielberg. He thanked Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, who was sitting in the audience.

“A long time ago, it was domestic stars that brought the audience into movies,” he added. “Today, it’s interesting [that] unknown people can star in entire miniseries, can be in movies.”

The remark came during a conversation about the importance of high-profile stars in casting and how digital streaming services have created a space for unknown actors to successfully anchor shows and films.

While the West Side Story director praised the most-watched show on Netflix, fans were quick to point out that the Squid Games cast is, in fact, very well known.

The show stars Lee Jung-jae as the main character, Gi-hun, Park Hae-soo, famous model Hoyeon, Anupam Tripathi, Wi Ha-Joon, and Kim Joo-Ryung, to name a few. Fans stressed that while these actors aren’t well known to western audiences, many of them are very well established in South Korea and have the awards to prove it.

They feel Spielberg’s comments come from a very US-centric point of view.

“Argggg more ethnocentrism courtesy of Americans who can’t see past their own borders,” one person tweeted. “What series like Squid Game illustrate is exactly the opposite: that people around the world are satisfied with content other than English/white/US entertainment.”

Others say people are missing the point of the director’s comments.

Either way, his remarks have certainly created a discussion online. Here’s more reaction from Squid Games fans.

Luckily, due to its immense popularity, Squid Games season 2 has been confirmed, so if you didn’t know the actors, you’ll certainly know them now!

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