“Squid Game” has once again seized the world’s attention, with its highly anticipated second season sparking conversations around watercoolers worldwide.

The latest installment logged 487 million hours viewed in its debut week, toppling the 448.73 million-hour benchmark set by season one's first week back in September 2021.

At the heart of the saga is Lee Jung-jae, the lead whose portrayal of Gi-hun, a man driven by equal parts desperation and defiance, captivated audiences in the first season. Lee is back to reprise his role, this time as a transformed man in a return that, by his own admission, was fraught with emotional weight.

“When I first stepped onto the filming set, I found myself hesitating at the door, holding the handle but unable to open it right away,” said Lee during a group interview on Thursday. “If I stepped through that door, I’d have to act out those hellish situations from season one all over again, and that felt like a significant burden to me."

Lee’s memories of the first season remain vivid, particularly the stark contrast between the show’s beginning and end.

“When I first entered the set, it was filled with 456 beds and 456 actors, a tightly packed scene, ” he recalled.

"Fast forward about a year, during the final shoot of season one, there were only three beds left, and just three of us actors, including me," he said.

"With so many beds gone, the floor of the set was fully exposed. Looking at it, I could feel the traces of all the people who had 'died' on that floor, the bloodstains — a stark reminder of what we had filmed there over the past year. That image remains deeply etched in my memory," said Lee.

Gi-hun emerges in the second season as a profoundly altered man. Once a carefree gambler coasting through life, he now stands as a figure hardened by the twin weights of guilt and loss. However, Lee resisted framing the transformation as a mere “change.” Instead, he said he saw it as an inevitable unfolding of Gi-hun’s psyche in the wake of a series of traumas.

“After three years living as a homeless man, Gi-hun’s lighthearted nature was completely eroded,” Lee said. “Even when he tried to start anew and reunite with his daughter, his conscience wouldn’t let him escape the horrors he’d witnessed.”

For Lee, the trajectory of Gi-hun’s character isn’t defined by abrupt shifts but by the accrual of emotional weight, the kind that reshapes a person. “If you consider Gi-hun’s emotions and the choices he’s made, it’s not so much a shift as it is an inevitable progression,” he added.

Looking ahead, season three promises to take psychological warfare to unprecedented levels, with an array of betrayals and twists.

“The betrayals don’t just happen once; they evolve, creating a tapestry of deception and shock,” Lee teased. “The psychological games this time are dynamic, and I think viewers will be utterly captivated.”

But Lee’s creative pursuits aren’t confined to the deadly arena of “Squid Game.” Having debuted as a director with the 2022 action thriller “Hunt,” which earned him accolades including a Blue Dragon Film Award for best new director, Lee is now diving into a new project.

“I’m in the midst of writing a script,” he shared.

“It’s an idea that struck me and took shape quickly, so I felt compelled to pursue it. We’re also exploring the possibility of developing it as a Korean-American collaboration, and, because of that, I think it might take a bit more time,” he said.

Offscreen, Lee has recently been embroiled in speculation after being spotted dining with former People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon.

Addressing the rumors, Lee dismissed any suggestion of political involvement. “People might be naturally curious about why well-known individuals meet, but this was simply a casual dinner with an old high school classmate,” he clarified. “There’s no agenda or assistance involved — just two friends catching up over a meal," he said.