“Squid Game: The Challenge” contestants talk fear of death, practice cookie scraping and why eliminated players should stop whining

SPOILER ALERT: This story contains details from the first five episodes of Squid Game: The Challenge

EXCLUSIVE: Squid Game: The Challenge It may seem like an oversaturated fever dream, but for the contestants immersed in the world of the Korean mega-hit, it all felt deadly real.

Netflix welcomed 456 viewers to its lavish reality show that reimagined Hwang Dong-hyuk’s unique vision. For two players, the recreation was as precise as walking on the screen.

Dash Katz (player 141) and Lorenzo Nobilio (161) tell Deadline they were fans of the show before coming to the winter set Squid Game: The Challenge at Cardington Studios, 50 miles north of London, earlier this year.

The January blues were quickly dispelled when they came face to face with Young-hee, a menacing robot doll that appeared in the original Squid gameLiterally shoot anything that moves in the show’s opening sequence, “Red light, green light.”

Death wasn’t an option for the Netflix reality series, so producers Studio Lambert and The Garden showered contestants with automatic detonators that sprayed black ink upon their elimination.

“It definitely exceeded my expectations because the set was so realistic,” said Nobilio, a London-based Italian private equity executive. “It was an absolutely immersive experience … you really feel like you’re really going to die.”

Dash adds: “If my friends were eliminated, it would feel like they were actually dying. And you see how much I grieve, it was extremely extra.

Nobilio and Katz both avoided Young-hee’s attention and earned a ticket Squid game Dormitory at London’s Wharf Studios, where the games begin in earnest and contestants get their first glimpse of the $4.56 million cash prize.

Without all the comforts of home, including a phone, coffee and a watch, players were thrown into a reality-altering universe that Katz said was designed to cause chaos.

“Without windows and without clocks, you don’t know what time it is or how much sleep you get. It was crazy. It will breed chaos,” Katz added.

Nobilio compares the experience to playing in a casino in Las Vegas, although the odds of winning are even lower than betting against the house, since only one player can win the cash prize.

Katz, who uses they/their pronouns, entered the program with a social strategy. They wanted to befriend anyone willing to form an alliance, but when Katz formed a tug-of-war team in episode three, he chose to target players who “betrayed me first”.

The conflict did not make it into the final cut, but Katz’s retaliation was included in the show. “I look like a total snake. The people I was connected with lied to me at first, but it couldn’t be seen. I may look like a savage, but my back was against the wall,” they say.

As a reality TV superfan, Katz understands the grammar of the genre and holds no grudges against Netflix for his portrayal on the show, even if it has fueled homophobic abuse on social media.

Intern Squid game According to Dorm, Katz was fully supported by the producers. “When I was abused by other actors, there were therapists on set as part of the welfare system. “I felt very validated,” Katz recalls.

Nobilio adds that “mental health was not underestimated in the program.” Although Nobilio exudes confidence – to the point where he shamelessly steals an extra portion of food in episode one – he sometimes felt isolated because he was outnumbered by the Americans.

To prepare for her experience, Katz studied Squid game Before participating in the show, you can gain knowledge about it and even memorize Korean songs. Nobilio went to the gym because he believed that strength training could increase his chances of success.

Both admit to feverishly practicing scratching cookies Squid games second game where players have to cut a shape out of a honeycomb dalgona candy with only a stitch. Katz says that’s the only reason they completed the task – and with just one second to spare.

Despite the intensity of the experience, the New York-based model says she would do it all over again. As for the eliminated contestants who complained about the conditions during filming, such as the freezing temperatures that left some people in “Red Light, Green Light” needing medical treatment, Katz reminds the co-stars of the spirit of the show.

“It’s not Barney and friendsin other words Squid game“, smiled Katz. “You know what you signed up for.”