KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 4 — Four contestants of Netflix’s reality survival show Squid Game: The Challenge are seeking legal action for putting contestants through ‘inhumane conditions’.
Speaking to Variety, they revealed 456 unpaid contestants were met with cold temperatures, injuries, and fatigue leading to fainting spells, some requiring medical attention.
Squid Game: The Challenge is a reality show based on Netflix’s hit series Squid Game, it features contestants surviving the deadly games recreated from the show.
Its co-production company, Studio Lambert, has been slammed by the former contestants for ‘not caring for the safety of participants' during production.
According to former contestants, players were woken up as early as 3.30am before being driven to Cardington Studios, Bedford where they waited with coats and warmers on top of their green tracksuits.
After waiting till lunchtime, they had their warmers and coats removed and spent almost two hours completing the show’s first game: red light, green light.
Players allegedly stood motionless in the cold for up to 26 minutes in between setups, causing many to ‘collapse' as medics were called in numerous times.
Despite ‘relaxation’ breaks being allowed the contestants complained that many players were injured and were denied restroom breaks for long periods of time.
The participants also claimed that meals given back in the hotels were ‘stale’, some claiming they got a ‘cold hamburger’ from McDonald's.
Social media influencers were also reportedly scripted to advance further in the game to keep viewers' interest through on-screen storylines.
After news of the alleged conditions came out on The Sun in January 25, Netflix responded in a statement saying it ‘cared deeply’ about the health of participants and that they were prepared for the cold.
Studio Lambert and co-production company The Garden also came out and denied claims that they ignored the health of players and that the show was rigged in any way.
“If they had told us it was going to be that cold, no one would have gone through with it,” one former participant told Variety.
“The conditions were absolutely inhumane and had nothing to do with the game.”
