WTF Is Up With Player 044, The Shaman, In Squid Game & Did She Secretly Predict Gi-hun’s Future?

WARNING! This article contains major SPOILERS for Squid Game season 2’s ending!Player 044 proves to be one of the most enigmatic new characters in Squid Game season 2, with the mysteries shrouding her role being all the more intriguing the notion that she may have predicted Gi-hun’s ultimate fate. Picking up two years after the time-jump from Squid Game season 1’s ending, season 2’s Games introduce a variety of new personalities competing against Gi-hun, including some lovable allies and worrying adversaries. Though the backstories and motivations of most recurring players are understood by Squid Game’s season 2 finale, that isn’t the case for Player 044, aka Seon-nyeo.

Played in Squid Game’s ensemble cast by Chae Cook-hee, Player 044’s first few moments on screen indicate that she’s going to play a complex role in the Games. Offputting and somewhat of a wild card, she enters with an ego and hot-tempered disposition that teases her as an obstacle to Gi-hun’s revolution. It’s revealed that Player 044 was once a renowned and powerful Korean shaman, who was responsible for giving prophecies and curses. Her remarkable intuition and reputation even result in Player 044 gathering followers in the Games, hinting at a deeper purpose for the Shaman’s eccentricities.

There Has To Be A Greater Purpose To Player 044 In Squid Game

Her Role Has To Have More Meaning In Squid Game’s Future & Twists

While Squid Game season 1 had its fair share of wildcard players who were unpredictable and whose loyalties were difficult to decipher, there seems to be a bigger purpose for Player 044 than simply highlighting how eccentric the personalities of those who join these games can be. Rather, Player 044 introduces a more cult-like aspect to the Games that wasn’t present in Squid Game season 1. Whether real or not, her powers have begun to influence other vulnerable players in these Games who are already very susceptible to suggestion, manipulation, and believing the influence of higher powers being at play.

Many of the people who joined these Games are lost and in search of some guidance or force to lead them in their lives and, hopefully, allow them to survive Squid Game’s competitions and leave with the money they need in the outside world. Player 044’s history as a shaman and ability to analyze the other players so accurately gave some of those people a figure to believe in and, hopefully, protect them – even if it ultimately proves misguided.

It’s clear that the Shaman wants to stay in the Games regardless of the bloodshed and lethal risk, but her full motivations for doing so, regardless of the money, seem to go deeper. Perhaps she does have powers of intuition that show her certain outcomes of the Games, or allow her to curse and manipulate others into losing. Maybe she was chosen by Squid Game’s Recruiter to add a more mystical and unpredictable layer to these Games’ player dynamics. Whatever the case, Player 044’s purpose can’t simply be as the wild card, especially after she seemingly predicted Gi-hun’s grim future.

Did Player 044 Predict Why Gi-hun Will Die In Squid Game Season 3?

Player 044 Looks At Player 222 Before Telling Gi-Hun There’s A Reason He Returned

It would be easy to dismiss Player 044’s odd behavior and cryptic lines as simple eccentricities, but there are a few crucial moments in Squid Game season 2 that suggest her mystical abilities may have some credibility. The hit Netflix show is certainly leading audiences to believe that there’s some truth in her predictions and powers, and that makes Gi-hun’s future all the more worrying. After already correctly predicting that Gi-hun had played the Games before, and thus also won, a strange interaction between the two hints that she knows Gi-hun will die in Squid Game season 3.

In season 2, episode 3, Seon-nyeo confronts Gi-hun and tells him that his return was for a deeper purpose outside his will, offering to rid him of his bad karma. Gi-hun ignores her, but she brings up his fate again in episode 6. In the game where players must form groups of 10, Player 044 runs into the room with Gi-hun’s group. She soon takes a beat to stare at Player 222 and her pregnant belly, immediately looks at Gi-hun and says, “So there’s a reason you’ve lived longer than you were destined to,” then looks back at Player 222.

The implication here is that Player 222 is not only the reason why Gi-hun returned to the Games, but also why he’ll die there. Gi-hun and his group have formed a close bond with and become protective of Player 222 and her baby, so Player 044’s line suggests that Gi-hun will end up sacrificing himself to save Kim Jun-hee. If Player 044’s prediction is correct, then Gi-hun’s purpose in returning to the Games and delaying the death he was “destined” to have is because he’s meant to save Player 222 and the baby for some greater purpose.

Gi-hun Saving Player 222 Would Be A Fitting Fate For Him In Squid Game

Gi-hun Would Be Able To Save A Family After Failing His Own

It’s unlikely that Gi-hun will survive Squid Game season 3, and sacrificing himself to save Player 222 would be a fitting conclusion to his story. Gi-hun’s arc in Squid Game has largely involved the notion that he’s failed his family, especially concerning his daughter. Additionally, Gi-hun was plagued by guilt after Squid Game season 1 when he failed to save Sae-byeok’s life, so being able to sacrifice himself for Player 222 and her baby would give him the peace of self-redemption. If he couldn’t save his own family, maybe he could save this one.

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In Squid Game, a mysterious invitation to join a competition is sent to people at risk who are in dire need of money. Four hundred fifty-six participants from all walks of life are locked into a secret location where they play games to win 45.6 billion won. Games are selected from traditional Korean children’s games, such as Red Light and Green Light, but the consequence of losing is death. To survive, competitors must choose their alliances carefully – but the further they go in the competition, the more likely betrayal will rear its ugly head.

Release Date

September 17, 2021

Cast

Wi Ha-joon
, Anupam Tripathi
, Oh Yeong-su
, Heo Sung-tae
, Park Hae-soo
, Jung Ho-yeon
, Lee Jung-jae
, Kim Joo-ryoung

Seasons

2

Writers

Hwang Dong-hyuk

Showrunner

Hwang Dong-hyuk

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