TV & Movies

Squid Game’s Mai says “every day was fear” in The Challenge

Daisy Phillipson
Mai, Player 278, in Squid Game: The ChallengeNetflix

Squid Game: The Challenge Player 287, aka Mai Whelan, has opened up about her time on the Netflix competition series – and it sounds like experiencing it was just as much of a roller coaster ride as watching it, with Mai saying “every day was fear.”

While plenty of other players stole the limelight in the earlier episodes of Squid Game: The Challenge, Mai emerged as a key contestant in the latter half. Not only was she skilled in forming alliances with her peers, but she also took a cutthroat approach to the game. 

In Episode 6, for example, Mai was seen badmouthing TJ, Player 182, as she didn’t trust him. However, in the allegiance test, TJ chose to save Mai, and he also gave her the last (and therefore best) position for the Glass Bridge game, all of which led to her being in the finale. 

While opening up about her past, Mai revealed that she’d survived numerous traumatic events and come out the other side – but that’s not to say it was an easy ride for her on the show, which presented its own set of unique challenges. Warning: spoilers ahead!

Squid Game’s Mai says “every day was fear” in The Challenge

Squid Game: The Challenge’s finale, which dropped this week, finally revealed Mai, Player 287, as the winner of the $4.56 million. In a new interview with Netflix’s Tudum, she spoke about the challenges of the competition, saying: “Every day was fear for me.”

“It was a relief to go back to normal life and not worry about getting eliminated. I needed that after two and a half weeks of intense go, go, go, and emotional ups and downs,” she explained. “But the person that came into [the competition] is me. I’m still Mai, and she hasn’t changed – except that I came out stronger.”

What Mai found a struggle was the constant questioning of who to trust, an experience shared by every player that survived the games – especially as so many of the tests were either down to chance or alliances. 

“Every day was fear for me – fear of getting eliminated, or fear of getting picked on. It was a real fear coming from deep inside me,” she continued.

“One day, you’re happy and talking to everyone, and the next day it’s like, ‘Oh, I don’t know if I can trust that person.’ It was very hard to protect yourself and process every personality you met. Every minute of every day [was spent] just waiting to either be eliminated or advance to the next game.”

Mai, Player 278, in Squid Game: The ChallengeNetflix

Now she’s come out the other side, Mai is proud to have won and for the message it tells viewers at home, adding: “People will think it couldn’t possibly be me. I am so glad that I’m a woman, I’m a minority, and able to overcome everything at my age. So I’m putting it out there, ‘Don’t be afraid. Be who you are and just plow through.’”

If you want to be in with a chance of winning $4.56 million, casting for Season 2 of Squid Game: The Challenge is out now – you can find out more here. 

Squid Game: The Challenge is available to stream on Netflix now. Check out more of our coverage below:

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