‘Squid Game' Season 3 dominates Netflix charts with record-breaking global viewership
This impressive figure firmly secured its position atop Netflix's non-English chart, surpassing its nearest rival by nearly tenfold. The Spanish series 'Olympo' garnered only a fraction of the views, highlighting the unmatched popularity of 'Squid Game.'
The surge in interest for Season 3 also prompted viewers to revisit earlier seasons. Season 2 climbed to third place, while Season 1 re-entered the chart at sixth place during the same period. This renewed attention underscores the series' enduring appeal and cultural impact.
Remarkably, the latest season's viewership exceeded the combined total of all top 10 English-language shows, which collectively drew 34.5 million views. The leading English series, 'The Waterfront,' managed only 11.6 million views in comparison.
'Squid Game' has consistently drawn global attention since its debut in 2021, captivating audiences with its intense depiction of desperate individuals competing in deadly games for a cash prize.
The final season brought this narrative to a dramatic conclusion, focusing on the journey of the main character, Gi-hun, and the ultimate resolution of the high-stakes competition.
The third season comprises six episodes, all released globally on Friday, 27 June 2025. Fans eagerly awaited the finale, which promised to tie up complex storylines and reveal the fate of central characters. Early reactions have praised the season for its emotional depth and gripping suspense.
With the conclusion of Season 3, the creators have signalled that no further seasons are planned. However, speculation about possible spin-offs or related projects continues among fans and industry insiders.
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Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Style News: Aupen x Fullerton Hotel couture bag, Jo Malone pop-up at Paragon
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Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
My Perfect Weekend with Physical: 100 star Hong Beom-seok
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Over the weekends, Hong Beom-seok enjoys going on cafe dates with his wife, where he will order an iced americano. Who: Hong Beom-seok, 39, is the runner-up of the second season of Netflix's hit K-reality competition Physical: 100 (2023 to present). He has also taken part in other South Korean reality shows, such as Mission CodeRed (2023), King Of Wrestling (2022) and The Soldiers (2021 to 2022). Hong served in the South Korean special forces for over 11 years and was a firefighter until 2022. The South Korean personality now uploads fitness content on his YouTube channel, which has amassed 334,000 subscribers. The Puma Korea ambassador was in town in end-June for the Hyrox Open Asian Championships at the National Stadium, as the captain of Team Korea. He finished the Men's Pro Division race with a time of one hour and 26 seconds. He is married to homemaker Jung Da-young, 39, and they have two sons aged 15 and 11. Hong Beom-seok shares insider tips on how to train for the Hyrox race, which took place at the National Stadium on June 28 and 29. PHOTO: PUMA SINGAPORE 'The most memorable weekend I've had was when I went camping with my family. Two years ago, we went to a province called Gangwon-do, which is in the upper north region of South Korea. It is near the beach and the view was really beautiful. Back home in Yongin, I visit cafes with my wife, where we can have a conversation, listen to music and have coffee. You can call it a date. I always get the iced americano from a cafe near my place. Over the weekends or after work and when the kids are asleep, I tend to watch Netflix or Disney+ dramas. I am enjoying K-drama Mercy For None (2025) on Netflix. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore $500 in Child LifeSG credits, Edusave, Post-Sec Education Account top-ups to be disbursed in July Singapore Over 40% of Singaporean seniors have claimed SG60 vouchers: Low Yen Ling Asia 4 dead, 38 missing after ferry sinks on way to Indonesia's Bali Singapore $1.46b nickel-trading scam: Ng Yu Zhi's bid for bail midway through trial denied by High Court Singapore Pedestrian-only path rules to be enforced reasonably; focus on errant cyclists: Baey Yam Keng Singapore Jail for 'sugar daddy' who gave minor cash for sex, threatened to post her explicit videos online Singapore Train service resumes across Bukit Panjang LRT line after power fault led to 3-hour disruption Asia Bus carrying 46 passengers crashes with two lorries in Johor, leaving two dead, 16 injured I wake up earlier than the rest of them, at about 6 or 6.30am, and go jogging for an hour. For the rest of the day, I do not have time to exercise as I am spending time with my family. I enjoy eating bread a lot. In particular, I enjoy fermented breads, like a normal loaf or a ciabatta, the kind that you can dip in a jam. So, I jog really hard for an hour in the morning, then I eat bread. '
AsiaOne
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People aren't boycotting SingLit, they just don't know about it, say insiders on poor readership, Singapore News
An avid reader of fantasy and dystopian fiction, 27-year-old Megan often turns to social media platform Goodreads and TikTok sub-community BookTok for recommendations on what to read next. Both platforms have become go-to resources for book lovers to discover trending reading lists and reviews on popular titles. "I haven't come across much Singapore Literature (SingLit)," said Megan, who declined to give her full name. She told AsiaOne that the only SingLit titles she had encountered were from English class during her schooling years. Many readers have similar experiences with SingLit, and are largely unaware of the vast range of titles and genres published by the literary community in Singapore, as seen in the results of the National Library Board's (NLB) National Reading Habits Study 2024. Only three in 10 adults had read a SingLit book in the past 12 months, according to the study released on June 26 which surveyed 3,725 Singapore residents. Among the 2,575 respondents that were non-readers of SingLit, over half said that they were unaware of local authors and literary works. 25 per cent of the group also said that they were not interested in Singaporean themes, and 18 per cent said that they were unable to find SingLit books in the genres that they like reading. Lack of awareness, not lack of interest "I have friends who are otherwise big readers but have basically no awareness of what titles are being released in the local scene," said local author Lee Wen-yi. Speaking to AsiaOne, the 26-year-old recounted a time working in a SingLit-focused bookstore, where "someone came in and said they didn't even realise Singapore had authors". Though that experience was definitely "on the extreme end", it "still speaks to the wider condition", saying that the results of the NLB survey did not surprise her. "It's not like people are actively boycotting SingLit — most times they genuinely don't know what books exist to interest them, or where to find them," she said. Alex Chua, Co-founder of Book Bar, an independent bookstore that features local and Asian literature, echoed Lee's sentiments and said that he has encountered his fair share of "people who walk in not knowing there were so many Singapore authors". Chua thinks that interest in SingLit has been picking up over the years however, adding that he has noticed a constant flow of newcomers in attendance at Book Bar's events, which range from book launches to poetry readings. 'Same themes or subjects' The lack of interest in SingLit may also be attributed to the common misconception that SingLit works are "always about the same themes or subjects", said 27-year-old poet Laura Jane Lee. Laura and Wen-yi agreed that the misconception may be due to "what's being put in the school syllabus", since most readers' first impression of SingLit is through literary texts in school. While such texts "have a lot of literary value, they aren't always what will hook everyone into searching out more local writing," Wen-yi told AsiaOne. The necessity to study such texts on a deeper level may sometimes lead readers to think SingLit is "boring". Sceptics may also think that local literature is "not as good as international authors" and that "the quality of the writing is not good", said Book Bar's Chua, sharing that there are many internationally published local writers, such as Amanda Lee Koe and Low Ying Ping. Laura shared similar thoughts, adding that there is a "tendency for the average Singaporean reader to look towards anglophone centres of literary production as a metric of literary merit", suggesting the need for a shift in perspective towards SingLit. Speaking to AsiaOne, Associate Professor Angelia Poon from the English Language and Literature Department at National Institute of Education (NIE), also said that "there is actually a wide range of texts to choose from — poetry, novels, short stories, plays, non-fiction, essays." "We sometimes forget that SingLit is multilingual," she said, adding that there is a multitude of vernacular literature that has become more accessible with English translations. "Given how diverse Singapore literature is, it'll be hard for one not to find something that would be of interest." Limited marketing resources The discoverability of SingLit is also impacted by the lower marketing budgets that local publishers and bookstores have, according to those whom AsiaOne spoke to. Even in a digital age with BookTok and online book communities gaining traction, a majority of readers are still only exposed to books from Western publishers, said Wen-yi, who released her debut novel in 2023. "Just in terms of scale, it is hard for the much smaller number of SingLit titles — with much fewer marketing resources behind them — to break through the noise," she said. "It takes a much more concerted effort, or a stroke of luck and virality — like with Teo You Yenn's This Is What Inequality Means — for a SingLit title to gain the same kind of traction," she added. Internationally published books, under household names like Penguin Books or Harper Collins, understandably get more attention and "are supported by much bigger distribution and publicity networks than local indie publishers have", Wen-yi said, which unfortunately result in "a disparity in the support behind each title". Apart from traditional marketing efforts, Book Bar's Chua also said that SingLit books could be better promoted by Singaporean politicians, of whom many are known to be book lovers. "I think that we like to talk about our sports stars, but there isn't as much talk about our literary stars, like Jemimah Wei who clinched a US$500,000 (S$636,935) book deal," he told AsiaOne, adding that there are often so many new titles published each month that he struggles to find space to display them in store. Wen-yi also highlighted a visit to mainstream bookstore, Popular, during a recent trip to Malaysia where she noticed "a whole bookshelf section of local Malaysian authors". Similar displays of SingLit at mainstream bookstores locally could provide the needed boost for local works, she said. Speaking to AsiaOne, Assistant Professor Ann Ang from the English Language and Literature Department at NIE also said that there could be greater efforts by NLB and government agencies to promote SingLit. While they do a "stellar job", she believes that more could be done to bring literary works on permanent display in public places. She raised Poems on the MRT — a collaboration between the National Arts Council, SMRT and Sing Lit Station that displays excerpts of Singapore poetry throughout SMRT's train network — as a good example, though "unfortunately temporary" as it will only run till the end of October. Bringing SingLit to the public space could also take the form of "an excerpt from a book in place of a mural", or "quotes set into the facade of our cultural institutions, universities and libraries", she added. SG Culture Pass: Will it boost readership? As announced during Budget 2025, eligible Singaporeans will receive $100 in SG Culture Pass credits in September. Apart from tickets to local performances and exhibitions, credits may also be used to purchase SingLit titles, said the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY). According to the Singapore Writers Festival (SWF) website, SG Culture Pass credits will also be valid to purchase festival passes and selected ticketed programmes at the festival in November. When asked if the SG Culture Pass would boost SingLit readership, Chua said that it would "definitely allow people who might have been unwilling to spend on a SingLit book to give it a chance". While optimistic that the credits would provide the much-needed push for some readers, Wen-yi also said that "it's unlikely to make that much of a difference specifically for SingLit, unless it's accompanied by big marketing pushes for the books". [[nid:713288]]
