Did ‘Squid Game’ creators plagiarize this Japanese movie?
Netflix’s Squid Game has faced repeated questions about whether its creators lifted elements from the 2014 Japanese film As the Gods Will. The shared premise of deadly children’s games keeps drawing attention, even as the Korean series moved into new seasons and international spin-offs. Overlap in genre tropes is common, yet specific visual matches in the opening contest continue to prompt discussion.
Squid Game
Netflix has built a strong catalog of Korean series, from the historical zombie thriller Kingdom to the romantic comedy Crash Landing on You. Squid Game quickly became one of the platform’s biggest international successes. Season 2 premiered on December 26, 2024, and drew strong viewership numbers while following Gi-hun back into the competition. The franchise now includes plans for Squid Game: America, with filming scheduled to begin in early 2026.
As the Gods Will (2014)
Directed by Takashi Miike, As the Gods Will adapts the manga Kamisama no Iu Tōri. The story follows high school student Shun Takahata and his classmates as they are forced into lethal games. It opens with a giant Daruma doll enforcing a deadly version of Daruma-san ga koronda, the Japanese equivalent of Red Light, Green Light. Players who move at the wrong moment are eliminated in graphic fashion, setting the tone for the survival contest that follows.
Plagiarism
Viewer comparisons have focused on the giant doll head, the countdown clock, and the run-slide sequence during the first game. These visual parallels prompted the initial wave of online discussion. Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has stated that the Squid Game script was written in 2009, before the Japanese film reached theaters. He noted that similarities largely stop after the opening round and that later games diverge significantly. Overlap in storytelling occurs naturally across cultures, yet the timing of the script offers a clear defense against claims of direct copying.
Creator Response and Timeline Defense
After allegations surfaced in 2021, Hwang addressed the issue directly. He confirmed the original draft predated the 2014 release of As the Gods Will and emphasized that any shared elements were limited to the first game. Subsequent coverage noted that later episodes follow distinct rules and character arcs. This timeline clarification helped shift some conversations away from outright plagiarism accusations toward questions of genre influence instead.
Franchise Expansion and Spin-offs
Season 2 maintained the core tension of desperate players returning to the games while introducing new contestants and higher stakes. The series continues to expand with Squid Game: America set to begin production in 2026. International versions signal sustained global interest and move the property beyond its original nine-episode run into a broader entertainment franchise.
Recurring Allegations Over Time
Claims linking the two works resurfaced around the season 2 premiere in 2024. Media outlets and fan discussions again highlighted the opening game sequence, though coverage now often includes Hwang’s earlier timeline statement. The pattern shows that visual comparisons persist even as the series evolves, keeping the conversation active into 2025 and 2026.
Broader Death Game Genre Context
Both Squid Game and As the Gods Will sit within a long tradition of stories that place ordinary people in lethal versions of playground games. The trope appears across Japanese manga, Korean thrillers, and earlier works such as Battle Royale. As the Gods Will draws directly from its source manga, while Squid Game developed from a script Hwang refined over many years. Shared genre conventions explain many surface similarities without requiring accusations of direct copying.
The debate continues because the opening sequence remains visually striking, yet the documented timeline and expanding franchise place the works in a wider context of survival-game storytelling. Viewers can weigh the shared imagery against the separate creative paths each project followed.
