Squid Game ‘milk theory’ about the Front Man is wrong for one big reason
NetflixA viral post about Squid Game Season 2 has linked the Front Man to Il-nam, aka the original Player 001 – and it’s all to do with one line about milk. However, there’s something you should know.
In the first season of Squid Game, Gi-hun quickly befriended Il-nam as they proceeded through the competition’s gauntlet, surviving Red Light, Green Light, Dalgona, and Tug-of-War together.
However, their relationship appeared to reach its heartbreaking end in Marbles when Il-nam sacrificed himself – but it was all a ruse, as Il-nam was the creator of the contest, and Gi-hun found him on his deathbed at the end of the series.
In Season 2, the Front Man takes over in more ways than one: not only is he at the top of the food chain, but he takes Il-nam’s place and competes alongside Gi-hun as Player 001. But what if the Front Man and Il-nam had a deeper connection all along?
You’ve been misled by the Squid Game ‘milk theory’
A post on X/Twitter with two screenshots from Squid Game Seasons 1 and 2 implies that the Front Man is Il-nam’s son. While this theory strictly hasn’t been debunked, there’s one problem: a key quote in the post is completely made up.
The top screenshot is allegedly from a scene where Il-nam tells Gi-hun, “You are just like my son, he couldn’t drink milk too.”
The bottom image shows the Front Man giving his milk to Jun-hee (Player 222), telling her, “Here, I can’t drink it anyway.”
Listen, even I’ll admit that I was shocked… at first, until I went back to Season 1 and re-watched this seemingly revelatory scene – and that’s not how it plays out.
Gi-hun asks a guard for chocolate milk because he had problems digesting normal milk as a child, and Il-nam giggles and tells him, “As a kid I’m willing to bet you got spanked a lot… my son did too. He was just like you, friend.”
Also, in Season 2, he doesn’t say, “Here, I can’t drink it anyway.” He says: “I don’t drink plain milk.”
NetflixUnfortunately, this post has tricked a lot of people; more specifically, it’s been viewed nearly 27 million times and racked up over 385,000 likes.
As others have pointed out, Gi-hun and the Front Man’s issues with milk are more likely a nod to the fact that an estimated 75% of Koreans are lactose intolerant. Also, Il-nam said he only had one son, but we know the Front Man and his brother Hwang Jun-ho share the same father.
Again, there is a (slim) possibility that Il-nam is the Front Man’s father – but if that’s true, it has nothing to do with milk.
In the meantime, find out the simple reason Thanos speaks English in Squid Game Season 2, what we know about Squid Game Season 3, and our predictions for the third chapter.