Lee Jung-jae demands $1 million for each episode of Squid Game 2: Report
Lee Jung-jae
On Thursday, Netflix made a special announcement for Squid Game fans. The giant streaming platform unveiled the highly-anticipated cast for the second season of the popular South Korean series and revealed that along with the OG star cast, which includes Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon, Gong Yoo and Lee Byung-hun, several new faces have joined the ensemble cast.
Former boy band Big Bang member T.O.P has also secured a role in the OTT series. And no,lead actor Lee Jung Jae, who shares a longstanding friendship with T.O.P, didn't play a pivotal role in his casting decision.
Denying the rumours, Lee Jung Jae's agency Artist Companyissued a statement and as per Soompi, it read, "We would like to express our position regarding the reports about actor Lee Jung Jae’s involvement in the casting of Squid Game 2. Some of the reports that claim actor Lee Jung Jae was involved in the casting of Squid Game 2 are not true. The casting of a project is the authority of the director and the production company. In particular, actor Lee Jung Jae understands more than anyone that due to the great interest in Squid Game 2, many actors work hard to make an appearance, and [the cast members] are decided through audition."
Meanwhile, the actor is also trending across social media platforms for allegedly asking a hefty salary for the second season of the series.According to the South Korean tabloid Dispatch, Lee Jung-jae has demanded $1 million plus per episode in Squid Game 2.
Dispatch stated, "Netflix cannot afford to overlook Lee Jung Jae's request," and emphasised, "Lee Jung Jae asked Netflix seeking a substantial guarantee of over 1 million dollars per episode, which means his appearance fees will amount to a staggering total of over 13 million dollars (given the 13 episodes)."
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Netizens had mixed reactions to the news! One tweeted, "He’s too humble, he deserves 10x more." Another wrote, "All jokes aside, Netflix made close to 1Billion on the first season, if the 2nd season does the same or better 10M total for the main character is fair tbh.. (about 10 ep )."
A third comment read, "The first season generated $900 million in value. There were 9 episodes. If everything is exactly the same in season 2, he’s asking for 1% of that value. As the main character."
There has been no confirmation from Netflix or the actor regarding the requested paycheck. If found true, it'll make Jung-jae one of the top-paid actors in South Korea.
The new season will feature Park Gyu Young, Jo Yu Ri, Kang Ae Sim, Lee David, Lee Jin Uk, Choi Seung Hyun aka T.O.P, Roh Jae Won, and Won Ji An. Squid Game: The Challengewill release in November 2023.
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