Squid Game: Ashley trolls fans amid Player 278 backlash

Player 278 has become the newest “villain” of Squid Game: The Challenge, and after the backlash to her actions in Glass Bridge, she doesn’t have any regrets.

In place of actually murdering people for their failure, The Challenge has upped the social experiment aspect of Squid Game over violence; players maiming each other psychologically, straining the strongest allegiances in pursuit of that giant piggy bank hanging above their dorm.

Ashley Tolbert, aka Player 278, is the latest example of why the show has proven so fascinating. In Glass Bridge, the vast majority of players agreed to take the 50/50 leap once, at which point those behind would overtake. It was a fair agreement… but Ashley wasn’t having it.

Not only did her refusal to go in front of Trey (301) rankle the group, but it also led to his inevitable elimination. She’s been criticized by fans all across social media – but she doesn’t care.

Squid Game: Ashley/Player 278 responds to Glass Bridge backlash

Ashley has shared several Instagram posts clapping back at her critics. In one post, she promoted a link to her online store with a t-shirt that says, “#NotATeamPlayer.” In another, she captioned a video of her dancing with people’s comments about her behavior in Glass Bridge.

@a_tolb: Instagram

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she responded to the controversy in more detail. “I was really upset about that,” she said, referring to the remaining players’ decision to take one turn each.

“I went off and had to step out, seeking out production, and during this time, this was when everybody comes up with the plan to overtake the person [in front of them after one jump]. Mind you, this whole time I’m feeling upset about my low number, I’m not agreeing to any plan with anybody. It’s a game for $4 million, it’s one prize, only one person takes home the prize.”

When asked what she’d have done if Trey asked her to overtake him, she said: “I would have said the same exact thing. ‘I’m going to stay my ass right here, and if someone else wants to volunteer to overtake me, you can.’ Because I didn’t have to. I could have stood right there and everybody could have continued on with their game. Trey didn’t have to be eliminated. Trey didn’t even have to take an extra jump.

“Once he was eliminated, I turned around and I said, ‘F**k that, y’all are gonna help me.’ And guess what, everybody had to come up and start overtaking me. The same way that everybody was looking at me like, ‘She didn’t do her part,’ he could have looked back at them and said, ‘Okay, somebody step up then.’

“They were trying to be a kumbaya team, and hold each other’s hand, and get 20 people across the bridge. That wasn’t happening. I was thinking about what worked for me, because I was there for me. I came by myself and left by my damn self.”

While fans are still appalled by what went down in Episode 8, Ashley is relaxed about it. “Somebody has to be the villain, and it lands on me for not taking an extra jump,” she added.

Squid Game: The Challenge Episodes 1-9 are available to stream on Netflix now. You can check out our other coverage below:

• Squid Game: The Challenge all eliminations so far
• When is the last episode of Squid Game: The Challenge out?
• Squid Game: The Challenge release schedule
• Squid Game: The Challenge filming locations
• Squid Game: The Challenge reviews
• Is Squid Game: The Challenge real?
• Squid Game: The Challenge soundtrack
• How are players eliminated?
• Why Player 299 joined the show
• Did the players actually fall in Glass Bridge?
• Squid Game fans slam “coward” Player 278
• Players allegedly asked to “pretend” to compete
• Squid Game: The Challenge player details set conditions
• Squid Game: The Challenge producers hit back
• Squid Game: The Challenge contestants threaten lawsuit
• Squid Game: The Challenge receives audience backlash