Are Squid Games Happening Worldwide? The Global Games Theory Explained

What started as a Korean phenomenon has revealed itself to be a worldwide operation.

From Season 1's international VIPs to Season 3's explicit confirmation, Squid Game has been building toward a disturbing revelation: the games aren't unique to South Korea. They're happening everywhere—adapted to local cultures, exploiting local desperation, entertaining global elites.

This isn't just a plot expansion. It's a thematic statement about capitalism's borderless nature. If debt and desperation exist everywhere, so do the games that exploit them.

Evidence for Global Games

Multiple clues across all three seasons point to worldwide operations:

• VIPs speak multiple languages (English, Mandarin, others)
• They discuss other "shows" they've attended
• The operation's scale suggests international funding
• Oh Il-nam's wealth implies global business connections

• Recruited contestants mention hearing about games from international contacts
• The organization's technology suggests international resources
• Guard uniforms include non-Korean text in certain scenes

• Explicit dialogue referencing games in other countries
• Cate Blanchett's cameo as an American recruiter
• Visual confirmation of multiple game facilities worldwide
• Discussion of regional variations in games

The Recruiter Network: We learn that ddakji recruiters operate internationally, each targeting their local desperate populations. Different countries, same exploitation mechanism.

The VIP Connection: Who Funds the Global Games?

The VIPs aren't just spectators—they're likely the operation's financial backbone.

Who Are the VIPs? Wealthy individuals from around the world who pay enormous sums to watch the games. Their masks and anonymity suggest powerful people who can't afford exposure.

Their Role in Expansion: VIPs likely fund games in their home regions. A Chinese billionaire funds Chinese games. An American funds American games. Each gets preferred access to their local operation.

• Membership requires wealth beyond measure
• Entertainment is human suffering
• Exclusivity increases desire
• Global expansion means global revenue

Protection Through Power: VIPs probably include politicians, business leaders, and royalty. Their power protects the operation. No investigation can touch people who own investigators.

The Franchise Model: Season 3 suggests the Korean games may be the original, with other countries running "franchise" operations. Local entrepreneurs of death, following established blueprints.

Cate Blanchett's American Recruiter: What It Means

The Oscar winner's cameo was brief but significant.

The Scene: Blanchett appears as an American recruiter, playing ddakji with a potential contestant in what appears to be a major American city. The scene mirrors the Gong Yoo recruiting scenes from Season 1—but translated to American context.

• American Squid Games exist (or are being established)
• The recruitment method is consistent globally
• High-profile actors lend credibility to the operation
• American contestants face similar debt-driven desperation

Fan Speculation: Many believe Blanchett's cameo sets up a potential American spinoff. The scene functions as both plot development and franchise expansion.

Thematic Significance: Having an American recruiter underlines the show's critique. America, capitalism's heartland, produces the same desperation as Korea. The American Dream creates American nightmares—and American games.

Hwang's Comments: "When Cate agreed to the cameo, I knew we could show audiences that this isn't a Korean problem. It's a global one. The games will go wherever capitalism creates desperation."

What This Means for the Squid Game Universe

Global games open massive storytelling possibilities.

• America (exploring American debt culture)
• China (social credit and surveillance themes)
• Brazil (inequality in developing economies)
• Europe (immigration and economic anxiety)
• Each would critique local manifestations of capitalism

Connected Universe: VIPs could travel between games. Winners in one country might compete in another. The Front Man structure could have international equivalents.

The "Olympics" Theory: Some fans speculate about an international competition—winners from each country facing off. The ultimate game of games.

• American games featuring hopscotch, freeze tag, musical chairs
• Japanese games with their rich tradition of children's activities
• British games with playground classics
• Each culture's innocence twisted into horror

The Danger: Expansion risks dilution. What makes Squid Game powerful is its specificity—Korean games, Korean context, Korean critique. Globalizing could lose that focus.

Hwang's Vision: "I've been asked about American versions. If they happen, they must be made by Americans, critiquing American society. I told Korean stories. Others should tell theirs."

The Games Never End

The global revelation is the show's final thematic statement.

Gi-hun wanted to shut down one operation. But how do you shut down a worldwide industry? How do you stop exploitation that exists in every country, in every economy, in every system that creates winners and losers?

The answer, which Season 3 confronts painfully, is that you probably can't. Not alone. Not even with billions of won. The games are bigger than any hero, any country, any revolution.

The Real Horror: The scariest thing about global Squid Games isn't the games themselves. It's the implication that enough people worldwide have the desperation to compete and the wealth to watch. The games exist because their conditions exist everywhere.

Hope or Despair?: Is the global revelation hopeless? Or does it suggest that global problems require global solutions? Maybe Gi-hun's failure isn't the end. Maybe it's the beginning of something bigger—a worldwide resistance to match a worldwide evil.

That's the question Squid Game leaves us with. The games have gone global. What now?