Spoilers for Squid Game Season 1 and the later Player 001 storyline. Oh Il-nam, the elderly contestant known as Player 001, was secretly the wealthy figure behind the Squid Game. His apparent desperation for prize money was a deception. He is not the same person as Season 2’s Player 001: that role is taken by Front Man Hwang In-ho, who enters under the alias Young-il.
Who is Oh Il-nam really?
In Season 1, Oh Il-nam is introduced as an old man competing alongside Seong Gi-hun. The reveal is that he was not a powerless contestant hoping to win the prize: he was the wealthy business scion behind the competition. Netflix describes him as having been “always the wealthy business scion behind Squid Game” in its Season 2 ending explainer. The Korean Film Council’s KOBIZ likewise describes the first-season twist as revealing Il-nam as the creator of the games: KOBIZ’s feature on Player 001 and the Front Man.
That secret changes the meaning of his friendship with Gi-hun. Gi-hun saw Il-nam as an ally and fellow player; the reveal makes his apparent vulnerability and participation look different, because he had helped create the deadly competition rather than being trapped in it like the other contestants.
What happens to Il-nam?
In the Season 1 finale, a year after Gi-hun wins, Il-nam contacts him from his deathbed. They discuss whether people can still be trusted to act with kindness, and make a wager around that belief. TIME’s recap says Il-nam loses the bet and dies shortly afterward: TIME’s recap of Squid Game before Season 2.
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Why are there two Player 001s?
“Player 001” identifies a position in a particular game, not one person across the series. In Season 1, the player is Oh Il-nam. In Season 2, Front Man Hwang In-ho enters the competition using the alias Young-il and takes the Player 001 position. Netflix and KOBIZ distinguish In-ho’s later deception from Il-nam’s first-season identity; the two men are not the same character.
| Season and game | Player 001 | What the identity conceals |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | Oh Il-nam, played by Oh Young-soo | He is the wealthy figure behind the games, not a desperate contestant. (Netflix Tudum; Netflix Tudum) |
| Season 2 | Front Man Hwang In-ho, using the name Young-il | He hides his identity as the Front Man while entering the game. (Netflix Tudum; KOBIZ) |
Why the marbles episode still matters
Il-nam’s apparent bond with Gi-hun is central to the emotional force of the marbles episode and the later reveal. In a 2022 Netflix Tudum feature about casting, creator Hwang Dong-hyuk said, “We wanted Il-nam to be unknown so that he would seem like the actual character in the show.” The feature identifies Oh Young-soo as the actor playing Il-nam, also known as No. 001, and quotes him reflecting on how the marbles game reveals people’s humanity. Read Netflix Tudum’s account of the marbles scene and casting.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
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