At first, the idea of a reality show based on Squid Game felt like it could only be satire. The fictional series imagines a dystopian game where desperate contestants compete to win big money—or lose their lives. Netflix’s Squid Game: The Challenge eliminated the lethal part of the competition and instead amplified the idea that amassing as much money as possible is a good thing, actually.
It seemed antithetical to Squid Game‘s entire anti-capitalist message, but season one of The Challenge was a huge hit—so huge, Netflix brought it back for a second season and now has a “celebrity” edition on the way. Squid Game: The VIP Challenge is seemingly replacing the third season of The Challenge, which was accepting applications from hopeful participants late last year.
According to a post on Netflix’s own Tudum, the cast of VIPs will include mostly people who’ve found fame by appearing on other reality shows. The exceptions are the Kardashian-adjacent NBA player Tristan Thompson and Spice Girls member Mel B. The rest: real estate mogul Ryan Serhant, star of Netflix’s Owning Manhattan; Real Housewives of Atlanta‘s Kim Zolciak; Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise escapee Hannah Godwin; TikTok superstar Kristy Sarah; and Dylan Efron, actor Zac Efron’s brother, who has carved out his own following thanks to stints on The Traitors and Dancing with the Stars.
The clear frontrunner to win, however, is probably “Viper,” who competed in Squid Game: The Challenge season two and sounds ready to flex on the newcomers: “I did learn that every single decision should be considered in great detail,” he told Tudum last year after winning the “Second Chance Fan Vote,” guaranteeing him a spot in the third season. “I will surely use a microscope with every choice I make.”
There’s no word yet on when Squid Game: The VIP Challenge might hit the streamer or what the prize might look like for this version of the show. Will losers be forced to watch the last episode of Squid Game season three on repeat until they crack? Only Netflix knows.
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