THE REAL SQUID GAME

STUDENTS IN NORTH KOREA ARE SET TO PAY A VERY HEAVY PRICE FOR WATCHING THE HIT SHOW

- Sara Tapia

It’s Netflix’s most watched show ever, ranked No. 1 in 94 countries and viewed in 142 million homes worldwide in the month after its release, but one man is set to pay the ultimate price for indulging in the streaming service’s hit series, Squid Game. A North Korean student who bought a smuggled copy of the show is reportedly facing execution by a firing squad, while six others have been sentenced to five years hard labour for watching it.

Radio Free Asia recently reported that copies of the violent drama had arrived in the reclusive country, despite the best efforts of authorities to keep out foreign media. Smuggled into the country from China, they began spreading among people on USBs and SD cards. “This all started last week when a high school student secretly bought a USB drive containing the South Korean drama Squid Game and watched it with one of his best friends in class,” a law enforcement source told the not-for-profit news agency.

“The friend told several other students, who became interested, and they shared the [USB] with them. They were caught by the censors in 109 Sangmu, who had received a tip-off,” added the source, referring to the strike force that specialises in catching illegal video watchers.