Netflix hit series “Squid Game” will return with a second season.

“Discussion about a second season is indeed in progress, but nothing has been confirmed yet,” a Netflix official told The Korea Herald on Wednesday morning.

Earlier, Hwang Dong-hyuk, the director and writer “Squid Game,” had said that there would be a second season of the dystopian drama during a special screening and Q&A with reporters in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The creator told the reporters through a translator that there will be “Squid Game Season 2.”

“So there has been so much pressure, so much demand and so much love for a second season. So I almost feel like you leave us no choice. I will say there will indeed be a second season. It’s in my head right now. I’m currently in a brainstorming stage,” the Associated Press quoted Hwang as saying during Netflix’s red carpet event in Los Angeles.

The director believed that it was too early to say “when and how that’s going to happen,” but hinted at the return of actor Lee Jung-jae as the protagonist.

Hwang’s Netflix debut series “Squid Game” revolves around hundreds of cash-strapped players accepting an unexpected invitation to compete in six different children’s games for grand prize of 45.6 billion won ($39 million).

The nine-part thriller became a global sensation and the streaming platform’s biggest series ever, surpassing 100 million views. The popularity led “Squid Game” to become a first Korean series to reach the No. 1 slot on Netflix US and topped Netflix’s global TV show lists for more than 20 days.

As the world watched the Korean series, the dystopian thriller spawned many new trends around the world.

Items from the drama caught the attention of viewers, resulting in dalgona-making kits being sold on eBay. Dalgona, a type of Korean honeycomb, was enjoyed by countless TikTok users.

The green tracksuit and pink jumpsuit inspired numerous Halloween costumes this year.

The games, enjoyed by Korean children in the 1970s and the 1980s, attracted viewers across generations who created parodies and memes in both online channels and television programs in Korea and countries around the world.

Netflix announced in October that “Squid Game” was watched by 111 million households around the world.

By Lee Si-jin (sj_lee@heraldcorp.com)