The Viral TikTok Version Of Squid Game's Red Light Green Light Is Hilarious
When creators on TikTok used neon YouTube videos as backdrops to make Selena Gomez's "Love You Like a Love Song" transition, the app was quick to create a filter that did the job. Considering that TikTok relies heavily on trends for its viewers, it makes sense that the app never sleeps on one and churns out features and spotlights with regularity. So, when "Squid Game" flooded literally every screen, the app was on high alert for trends.
If you haven't watched the show yet, the plot line follows cash-strapped people betting their lives for a chance to win money by playing children's games. The creator and director of the show, Hwang Dong-hyuk, told Hollywood Reporter, "I read a lot of comic books revolving around surviving death games — Manga like 'Liar Game,' 'Kaiji' and 'Battle Royale.' And well, I read some stories about these indebted people entering into these life-and-death games and that became really immersive for me because I was struggling financially myself." So, Dong-hyuk got the idea to create a show around this premise, a "Korean survival game piece in [his] own way," (via Hollywood Reporter).
Creators on TikTok reinterpreted "Squid Game" in their own ways, too. Read on to see how they did it.
You can play the game with a filter
Many Tik Tokers are recreating the Red Light, Green Light game from "Squid Game" where a creepy mega-sized doll tells you when you can move (green light) and shoots you when you move but aren't supposed to move (red light). One TikToker captioned his version of the game "POV: you joined squid game but you love attention" as he executes a perfect split. Another accurately showed us what it would be like if were to join the game with our best friends — we would die immediately, but at least we'd make each other laugh (via TikTok).
In addition, an Instagram creator engineered an AR filter with the game for those of us who want to play, minus the consequences. TikTok has its own version of Red Light Green Light in its filters where TikTokers are blinking (fast) to survive. The app also has a filter with the Toffee Game, one of the games in the show, which is just as nerve-wracking.
"Squid Game" dethroned "Bridgerton" as the most watched series on Netflix and #1 for weeks only to be replaced by "You" (via Business Insider). However, the gruesome Korean drama is still taking top spot on TikTok hashtags — over 40 billion people are tuned into variations of toffee candy recipes from the show, fantasy stan videos for Gong Yoo and, of course, brilliant fan art matching the show's visuals (via TikTok).