18 Winning Theories Fans Had About 'Squid Game'

From Redditor u/CaledoniaHeart91:

I think [Jun-ho] is still alive.

The Front Man hit him in the shoulder. He could have easily killed him, or ordered the staff to kill him, but he fired one bullet, which could very well be non-fatal.

The Front Man has proved he has no problem killing and shot his own staff member in the face for taking off his mask. But instead, he hit his brother in the shoulder... in fact it was a similar injury to the one he himself received. I think he gave his brother a chance, and that somehow Jun-ho did manage to survive the fall...

It would be interesting to see if Series 2 involves him and Gi-hun working to end the games.

Posted by u/Maximum-Range:

During Episode 7, two of the VIPs make some interesting comments at about 12:26:

VIP #2: "The games this edition have been amazing."

VIP #3: "Right. The contest in Korea was the best."

This seems to imply that the squid game organization is international [...] Otherwise, why mention Korea as if there are other contests to compare against?

If we get a Series 2, do you think we'll find out that there is a "squid USA division," "squid UK division," and so on? It would make sense thematically with such a powerful organization.

Redditor u/greyfriarshobbies believes that it's no mishap that there were an odd number of players left before the marble game. The game must be played in pairs, leaving one odd man out to presumably be eliminated from the games - and this odd man was meant to be Il-nam. He would be dragged off and "disposed of" with no questions, just in time for him to go back to running the game as the VIPs arrive.

He even takes off his jacket and goes to sit alone in a corner, encouraging Gi-hun to choose someone else as a partner and making himself seem like he isn't an option.

But due to Gi-hun's unpredictability, this plan fails, and the fast-talking Minyeo is left behind after everyone is paired up. No longer able to make a smooth exit, Il-nam purposefully loses the marble game to get out of his player role, and Minyeo is awkwardly taken back to the waiting area with the lukewarm excuse for her survival being that they took pity on the weakest link.

From Redditor u/FaradaysFoot:

What the main characters did after leaving and before reentering the game foreshadowed their deaths.

1.) Jang Deok-Su offed someone and jumped off a bridge -> was offed by another contestant through falling off a bridge

2.) Kang Sae-byeok threatened to stab someone's throat with a knife -> got stabbed in the throat with a knife

3.) Abdul Ali - took something valuable from someone and ran -> got something valuable taken from him, and dude who did it ran

4.) Cho Sang-Woo - tried to unalive himself in a suit, drenched -> unalived himself in a suit, drenched

These are too many coincidences, what do you think?

Redditor u/_ree6 believes that the police chief Gi-hun tries to report the games to is actually a part of the Squid organization - or at least involved in protecting it. The theory posits that the chief purposely dialed the wrong number when Gi-hun handed him the Squid business card. If he had dialed the correct number, he would have gotten a "this number no longer exists" message like Gi-hun does when he tries to call again, rather than hearing the confused woman who picks up. 

Moreover, when Jun-ho later asks the same police chief for Gi-hun's name, the chief can't remember it - but another officer does. Perhaps the chief was playing dumb.

Then, of course, there's the fact that the games take place every year. That's hundreds of people disappearing from the same area - it'd be a wonder if the police didn't notice, especially if people like Sang-woo and Gi-hun's mothers reported their sons missing. In fact, Jun-ho goes missing right after he calls the chief to request backup - would that not be investigated?

Finally, in Episode 8, it's entirely possible that Jun-ho did have a strong enough signal to send his evidence to the chief before being caught. He lets Front Man know this, but the latter seems entirely unconcerned and even says the police will be slow to act, anyway. Perhaps Front Man is unconcerned because he has a contact at the police station that's willing to make sure the evidence disappears: the chief.

Redditor u/Virguoso_001 noticed some odd details about the death of the old man, Il-nam. The scene where he and Gi-hun meet for the last time features a number of shots emphasizing the glass of water he drinks. He also does not offer any of that water to Gi-hun, despite them having shared food throughout the games and being Gganbu - close friends who share everything.

Eerily, the old man also seems to know exactly when he will pass (at midnight), and there's an ornate clock conveniently placed for him to keep track of time. 

This fan posits that the water was poisoned, and Il-nam drank it to take his own life. Perhaps he wished to go out on his own terms after one last game with Gi-hun and to reveal his identity as the game's creator without having to face any consequences.