ANN/THE KOREA HERALD – Oh Young-soo, who played player No 1 in Netflix’s South Korean megahit Squid Game, directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, took home the best performance by a supporting actor in a series, limited series, or television movie trophy at the 79th Golden Globe Awards, becoming the first Korean actor to win at the awards organised by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
Oh was nominated in the category along with Brett Goldstein of AppleTV+’s Ted Lasso and HBO’s Kieran Culkin of Succession.
“Upon hearing the news of the award, I said to myself ‘I‘m a decent man’ for the first time in my life,” Oh said in a statement released through Netflix after the award announcement. “It is no longer ‘us in the world’, but ‘the world in us’.
“While embracing the fragrance of our culture and the love of our family, I thank you all around the world. I wish you have a beautiful life. Thank you,” Oh said.
Although Netflix did not submit the hit series to compete at the Golden Globe Awards, it was nominated for three Golden Globes last December – Best Drama Series, Best Television Actor – Drama and Best Supporting Actor – Television – under the event organiser‘s new rule that allows for work that was not submitted to be reviewed and nominated.
The Squid Game team did not win the other two prizes for which it was nominated. Jeremy Strong of HBO’s Succession won the Best Television Actor – Drama category that Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae was nominated for, along with Brian Cox of Succession, Billy Porter of Pose and Omar Sy of Lupin. The Best Drama Series prize went to Succession as well.
Hwang‘s nine-part Netflix series has topped the global platform’s charts since its release in
September 2021.
The show became the most-watched Netflix show of all time, reaching the No 1 spot of the most-watched show chart in more than 90 countries where the streaming service is available.
The series features a story about hundreds of cash-strapped players who are invited to compete in children‘s games, which later turn out to be survival games that they have to risk their lives playing. Only the final winner of the game gets to survive and win a KRW45.6-billion- (USD38.9 million) prize.
Reflecting its global success, Squid Game has won multiple awards at American award events.
In November, the series won the breakthrough series’ long format category at the 2021
Gotham Awards.
Also, Hwang’s work clinched the bingeworthy show of 2021 award at People’s Choice Awards in December. The show was nominated with strong competitors like Disney+‘s Loki, Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso, and HBO’s crime drama Mare of Easttown.
The American Film Institute selected Squid Game as one of the three winners of special honour in December last year as well.
Belfast and Summer of Soul were also recognised as the “works of excellence that fall outside of the Institute’s criteria of American film and television” along with Squid Game.
