‘Squid Game’: How Much Did Lee Jung-jae Get Paid for Playing Seong Gi-hun?
Lee Jung-jae has become a global celebrity after the success of the Korean drama series Squid Game on Netflix. The South Korean actor won over the hearts of audiences playing Seong Gi-hun, a.k.a player 456. While playing down-on-his-luck chauffeur on Squid Game, Jung-jae made some serious coin in real life. So how did Jung-jae get paid for his role on Squid Game?
Lee Jung-jae’s role on ‘Squid Game’ as Seong Gi-hun
South Korean actor, Jung-jae got his start as a fashion modeling before he started acting in 1994. Jung-jae has appeared in countless Korean films and TV shows. While he was famous in Korea before the massive success of Squid Game, he has now become a household name, gained millions of social media followers, and is even taking over the internet as the biggest meme of 2021.
Lee Jung-jae plays Seong Gi-hun, a divorced chauffeur and gambling addict who lives with his mother who struggles to support himself and his daughter with all of his debts. Gi-hun participates in the Game to settle his debts and become financially stable enough to gain custody of his daughter.
How much did Lee Jung-jae get paid for ‘Squid Game’ role?
Netflix’s Squid Game was one of the most expensive Korean dramas ever created. The show cost around 20 billion won, or $17,017,583, to produce. Creating elaborate sets, hiring hundreds of extras, and paying famous Korean actors doesn’t come cheap.
According to Today Online, as one of the most established actors, Jung-jae earned the most of the entire cast. He was paid an estimated 300 million won, around $253,637, per episode. With nine episodes, Jung-jae would have walked away with over $2.2 million, making him the second-highest paid Korean actor.
How much did the other cast of ‘Squid Game’ get paid?
Park Hae-soo plays the Seoul National University graduate, Cho Sang-woo, or player 218. He was the second-highest-paid actor in the series. Hae Soo made an estimated 42.5 million won per episode, rounding out to be about $35,998 per episode, which amounts to around $323,982 for the nine epodes.
HoYeon Jung, who plays Kang Sae-byeok or player 067, was the least experienced actor. As Squid Game was her premiere acting role, she reportedly only made “a few hundred thousand Taiwan dollars” per episode. 200,000 Taiwan dollars is equivalent to $7,152.00, which means she made around $64,368 for the entire season.
It’s obvious why Jung-jae earned the most money for the series, as he was the main character in a costly Korean drama. The success of Squid Game only continues to grow as more and more people stream the K-drama. It will be interesting to see what Jung-jae will do next with his newfound international celebrity.
