​People Are Saying Squid Game Was Inspired By Takeshi's Castle

Fans of Netflix's latest hit series Squid Game have been reminded of another extreme game show - and this one's real.

The premise of the Squid Game is simple: a number of players who are short of money compete against each other in a selection of potentially deadly children's games for a share in a $38.5 million (£28m) prize.

Netflix

Sounds familiar, right?

Yep, lots of people reckon it reminds them a lot of cult TV series Takeshi's Castle, which was reknowned for making its players go through all kinds of ridiculous tasks and challenges.

Of course, Takeshi's Castle didn't come with Squid Game's deadly twist, which sees players literally get killed if they don't succeed.

However, we often saw contestants thrown into lakes of muddy water or smacked in the face by giant boulders, which didn't exactly look pleasant.

Comedy Central

The similarities between the two ideas have led some fans to believe that Squid Game was actually inspired by Takeshi's Castle, implying that the latter must have copied the former in some way.

Sharing screenshots from each to compare, one Twitter user said: "We know who did it better..."

And it seems many other people are inclined to agree, with one tweeting: "Squid Game simply took inspiration from Takeshi's Castle."

Someone else wrote: "Squid Game is just Takeshi's Castle with less injuries and pain."

Another said: "Squid Game is just a violent Takeshi's Castle."

One other also added: "So basically Squid Game is like a slightly more dramatic Takeshi's Castle."

Others also reckon the show 'copied' Hunger Games, although the first novel in that franchise was written in 2008 - supposedly the same year Squid Game Hwang Dong-hyuk wrote the script for the series.

He actually spent more than a decade trying to secure funding for the project.

Speaking to The Korea Times, he said: "After about 12 years, the world has changed into a place where such peculiar, violent survival stories are actually welcomed."

Netflix eventually came on board in 2019, and the show was given the green light in the same year.

Topics: Entertainment, Netflix, TV, Squid Game

Jess Hardiman

Jess is a journalist at LADbible who graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics - indecisiveness at its finest, right there. She also works for FOODbible and its sister page Seitanists, which are both a safe haven for her to channel a love for homemade pasta, fennel and everything else in between. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

@Jess_Hardiman