Whenever you're investing, in the end it's up to you to make the final call based on your own judgment.
Lee Myung-gi quoting from one of his videos to remind Thanos that it was his responsibility for the loss of his money due to a failed crypto investment in "001"
Lee Myung-gi (이명기 I Myeong-gi?) also known as Player 333, was a contestant in the 37th Squid Game, as well as one of the finalists of the competition.
On the run for fraud and violating telecom and financial laws, Myung-gi went into hiding for 6 months to prevent anyone from finding him. During that time, Kim Jun-hee (his girlfriend, whom he got pregnant) tried to contact him, but Myung-gi ignored her calls to protect Jun-hee from foes using her to find him. Despite this, it’s been stated Myung-gi was a “good boyfriend to Jun-hee” before everything went down and he likely would’ve returned to her after he managed to settle everything. When Thanos and Nam-gyu confronted him about the scam, Myung-gi reminded them that he always said in his videos that the decision to invest is theirs.
Myung-gi votes to continue the games so he can make more money. However, it's quickly established that Myung-gi does have a good heart when Jun-hee (Player 222) approaches him before the second game. Myung-gi is surprised to see that she is in the games and worried for her, especially when realizing she didn't get rid of the baby. He apologizes for ghosting her and attempts to team up with her, but she rejects him.
Myung-gi assigns himself the mission of protecting Jun-hee so that she can leave the games. When Myung-gi's team manages to complete the Six-Legged Pentathlon and returns to the Dormitory, Myung-gi turns to look at Jun-hee and he hopes that she will make it too. When Jun-hee's team returns to the dorm, Myung-gi is relieved to see that Jun-hee is alive. Although the Prize money is still very little, Myung-gi immediately changes his vote to "X" to get Jun-hee out of there, despite making Thanos furious at him.
During the third game, Mingle, in the second round it's announced that the number is 4. Myung-gi and Player 154 joined Park Gyeong-seok (Player 246) and Player 071 in the final seconds, saving all 4 Players from elimination. When the players leave the rooms, Myung-gi is relieved to see that Jun-hee is alive.
Myung-gi gets blamed by Hyun-ju for Young-mi's death.
In the fourth round, when Jun-hee runs to Room 06 along with Kang Dae-ho, Cho Hyun-ju, Park Yong-sik, Jang Geum-ja and Kim Young-mi and Young-mi falls to the floor, Myung-gi quickly enters the room and closes the door to save Jun-hee from death, although he feels bad for having to sacrifice Young-mi. Hyun-ju blames him for Young-mi's death but Myung-gi declares that it wasn't his fault and that he had to leave her outside to save them from dying too. Jun-hee and Dae-ho say that Myung-gi is right, knowing that it was either sacrificing 1 life or sacrificing 7. Myung-gi thanks Jun-hee for supporting him, but she tells him to not get the wrong idea, and that she only did it because he was right.
In the fifth round, when it's announced that the number is 2, Myung-gi immediately grabs Jun-hee and takes her to Room 34 to get her to safety. He attempts to genuinely make amends with her and start over when they get outside, however, he suggests they invest in future's; showing that while his intentions are genuine, still maintains his habit to some extent.
Above all else, Myung-gi is an extremely brave and intelligent individual. Despite being physically weaker than Thanos, he never allows himself to be bullied or pushed around by him, even standing up for Min-su and then Jun-hee against Thanos. During the first game, he locks his arms to his chest to stop his body from shaking and he's the only person in the bathroom brawl who kept a fork on him, which he uses to stab Thanos in self-defense and locks the stall so nobody can enter and attack him. Despite his hatred of Thanos, he's shown to be shocked and horrified after killing him, sitting completely unresponsive and traumatized until Jun-hee warns him to hide before the riot. Later, Myung-gi was shown to be willing to join Gi-hun's rebellion against the game staff, only backing out when Jun-hee signaled him not to join it.
As the 37th Squid Game progresses we see the games start to take a toll on Myung-gi's psyche as well as his sense of morality, depicting him more and more as someone driven by misguided self-interest. Early on, we see he struggles with accepting accountability when confronted about the crypto-scam he had advertised on his channel. While he does seem to have a degree of genuine concern over Jun-hee throughout the games, such as genuinely offering to let her kill him to survive and being concerned for her after he passed the 4th game (especially when he thought she was being killed), this is also contradicted by many of his choices in the show, such as his disappearance after Jun-hee decides to keep their child without contacting her, leading to questions over his true intentions and feelings towards her well-being. The biggest shift in Myung-gi's personality occurs as the games get closer to their climax, as Myung-gi is willing to kill more people than necessary during the Hide and Seek game, due to a combination of greed and a desire to make enough money to give Jun-hee a happier life on the outside, resulting in the accidental death of Hyun-ju, who had been protecting Jun-hee in his absence. While Myung-gi was shown to be immediately remorseful to the point of tears when he realized what he did and hid Jun-hee and Geum-ja (as well as his baby) from Nam-gyu to protect them, during jump rope, when Jun-hee blames him for killing Hyun-ju, Myung-gi tried to defend himself by insisting he didn’t know she was helping Jun-hee.
When confronted, he becomes dismissive and continues to focus on the fact that his actions were done for Jun-hee to keep her safe and help them escape. He's shown to be saddened by Geum-ja's plea to the other players to end the games and later by her suicide too, even shedding a tear when seeing her body. Later he attempts to help Jun-hee pass the 5th game but sadly is forced to leave her behind after talking there’s no way for him to save her, being heartbroken by her suicide. However, he was relieved when Gi-hun managed to pass the game with his baby, sighing in relief afterwards. When the other players tried to attack Gi-hun and the baby, he was standing up to protect them before the guards jumped in. While he voted O for the first time since the first round, it’s all but stated he did this to blend in with the other finalists while seeking to save his daughter secretly. During the final round, he convinced the other players to eliminate Min-su to give Gi-hun and the baby a chance, though he showed remorse when forced to kill Min-su, apologizing to him while admitting he didn't want to do it and looking down at his body in sorrow while appearing to be zoned out. Later, he betrays the rest of the finalists and sides with Gi-hun.
However, after the other finalists are eliminated, he snaps due to paranoia of being betrayed by Gi-hun. By the end of the series, through a combination of greed and fear, Myung-gi becomes hysterical, willing to sacrifice his infant child to win the Squid Games and take all the money for himself, unwilling to trust Gi-hun's assertation that he will sacrifice himself so that Myung-gi and his kid could survive together. However, he was shown to be extremely remorseful, having an emotional breakdown as he threatened his baby and even tried to convince himself Gi-hun slept with Jun-hee and it wasn’t his child so the guilt of his actions would hurt less (he even cries when asking Gi-hun about him promising Jun-hee to protect the baby), showing that deep down he did love his daughter and didn’t want to kill her. Overall, Myung-gi's personality is very complex, with him placing a strong degree of importance over the safety of himself and those close to him as well as financial security, even at the cost of other people's lives. He is capable of caring for other people and feeling remorse for his actions but he tragically allowed his greed, selfishness and fear to get the better of him.
History
2024
Formerly a cryptocurrency trader, Lee Myung-gi ran a channel called "MG Coin," where he advised his followers on cryptocurrency investing. He had also been dating a woman named Kim Jun-hee, who got pregnant sometime in early 2024. The two had a positive relationship and mutually agreed to abort Jun-hee’s baby. Shortly thereafter, Myung-gi advertised a brand-new coin known as "Dalmatian" and advised everyone to invest every last cent into it. The cryptocurrency proved to be a hoax, and everyone who had invested in it, including the rapper Thanos, his friend Nam-gyu, and even his girlfriend Kim Jun-hee, lost ₩15.2 billion collectively when Dalmatian's inventors took the money and fled. Myung-gi became a fugitive from the law after this and was wanted for fraud and violating several investing and communication regulations. Jun-hee ended their relationship after he fled and shut down his YouTube channel. Because she was pregnant, she tried to stay in contact with him, but he completely stopped contacting her for six months, leading her to suspect that he had been covertly killed.
On September 1, 2024, The Recruiter approached Myung-gi in a subway station. In return for money, he encouraged him to play a game of ddakji, striking Myung-gi when he lost. He then handed him a contact card so he could go to the Squid Games. Unaware that she had also received a contact card, he disregarded Jun-hee's call. Myung-gi chose to participate in the games in an attempt to gain money because he owed ₩1.8 billion.
"001"
He asks for his wallet and phone during the 37th Squid Game because he needs to check the cryptocurrency market. The guard then explains his scheme and ensuing debt while playing the video of him getting slapped. Thanos (Player 230) and Nam-gyu (Player 124), who lost a lot of money as a result of Myung-gi's cryptocurrency swindle, approach him after he signs the consent form. At Myung-gi, Thanos loses his rage and snatches his collar, but he is calmed down before he can attack.
After taking his player picture and starting Red Light, Green Light, Myung-gi becomes confused when Seong Gi-hun (Player 456) starts adamant that everyone would perish. He votes "O" to proceed with the games after passing.
"Six Legs" & "One More Game"
Myung-gi completing Jegi.
Later, he is confronted once more by Thanos and Nam-gyu, who advise him to earn a lot of money so that he may reimburse them for the stolen goods. After Thanos shoves Myung-gi's food in his face after Nam-gyu grabs it, the altercation turns physical. Myung-gi is successfully overpowered by Thanos and Nam-gyu, but fortunately Hwang In-ho (Player 001) intervenes and finishes off the attackers.
While he is sitting by himself, Jun-hee walks up to him and says she is also participating in the games. She is shocked that he was unaware of this and calls him conceited. Myung-gi is annoyed to hear that she did not have the abortion he had anticipated, and she reminds him that he also conned her when he wonders why she is here. Jun-hee claims that because he voted "O," he is keeping her from leaving and that she doesn't want to make amends with him.
Myung-gi tries to partner up with Jun-hee when it is revealed that the upcoming game would be one with teams, but she declines. Myung-gi ends up teaming up with Players 313, 050, 241 and 249, he plays Jegi and his team manages to survive. He is relieved when Jun-hee comes back alive. Because of her, he switches his vote to "X", even though "O" still receives a sizable majority. Myung-gi is confronted by Thanos, Nam-gyu, and Gyeong-su in the men's restroom for choosing to vote "X" even though the prize money was insufficient to cover his debt. When Thanos claims that Myung-gi is his slave and that he must reimburse him after receiving the full prize, Myung-gi insults his memory, pointing out that in this case, Thanos would be dead. Infuriated, Thanos prepared to attack him but backs off after In-ho, Jung-bae and Dae-ho enter. The latter two offer to protect Myung-gi case he’s bullied again, although he insist he's fine.
"O X"
The first two rounds of "Mingle" are successfully completed by Myung-gi, in the second round he and Player 154 saving Park Gyeong-seok and Player 071 at the last second. Myung-gi watches Jun-hee and her group joke about her pregnancy from a distance and he's relieved to see that she is alive. He completes the third round and in the fourth round, Young-mi, a member of Jun-hee's gang, is unintentionally knocked to the ground during the subsequent round when the number is 6. Myung-gi realizes that time is almost up and Young-mi is too far from the room, so he immediately runs to the room, enters and closes the door, leaving Young-mi outside but saving Jun-hee and the group from death. After Young-mi was shot, Hyun-ju and the others were completely broken for her death, and Myung-gi felt miserable as well, for an innocent person was killed. Hyun-ju is upset and blames Myung-gi, but Myung-gi declares that it's not his fault and that it was the only option for them to survive, so he saved them. When he tells the other's to speak up, Jun-hee and Dae-ho admit that there wasn't enough time to save Young-mi. After the round, Myung-gi thanks Jun-hee for defending him, but she tells him that she only did it because he was right. In the fifth round, when it's announced that the number is 2, Myung-gi immediately grabs Jun-hee and rushes her into a room to save her.
After everyone has gone back to the dorm, Myung-gi takes Jun-hee to a corner and tells her that he wants to be with her, asking her to give him a chance to be a good boyfriend and a good father. He says that since the "X" team is probably going to win the vote, their combined prize money will pay off his debt. But as he starts discussing his new investment plan, Jun-hee thinks he will just take her money and leave her and the child behind. When Thanos and Nam-gyu saw the couple holding hands while conversing, they conclude that they were probably intimately linked. Myung-gi votes "X", sticking to his strategy, but the vote is tied.
Myung-gi intervenes to protect Park Min-su after he sees Thanos and Nam-gyu trying to coerce Min-su into altering his vote while he is in the restroom. "X" vs. "O" splits the bathroom as he starts yelling that they are using force to change the vote. By making fun of his connection with Jun-hee and pointing out how big her stomach is, Thanos intimidates Myung-gi. Then he threatens to cut off his finger, give it to her, and ask her out if Myung-gi doesn't change his vote. Myung-gi tries to strike Thanos in vengeance, but he avoids him, and soon after, everyone starts fighting. After choking Myung-gi, Thanos overpowers him and starts striking him while declaring that his life would be his. Myung-gi kills Thanos by stabbing him in the throat with the fork from their supper. He is shocked by this deed, pushes Thanos' body away, and locks himself in a bathroom stall, sobbing as the battle rages outside.
"Friend or Foe"
Myung-gi and the survivors of the fight return to the Dormitory and the teams do a player count to find out which team lost the most players. Jun-hee sees Myung-gi among the survivors and sees that he's covered of Thanos' blood. When he gets back to his bed, Jun-hee tells Myung-gi to hide when the lights go out and not do anything no matter what happens, Myung-gi nods at her and Jun-hee tells him to wipe Thanos's blood off himself, which Myung-gi does. With this, Myung-gi survives the Special Game. In the morning, he witnesses Gi-hun and a handful of X players pretend to be dead in order to take the guards weapons. Gi-hun's group asks for volunteers after they successfully defeat the guards, Myung-gi almost joins but declines after Jun-hee quietly shakes her head. Despite not being a direct participant in the revolt, he survives after it has ended.
"Keys and Knives"
When Gi-hun is returned in a coffin with a pink bow, he witnesses as Gi-hun is lifted out and watches the piggy bank fill with the earnings that has amassed from the players that died during the riot and the revolt as well as Gi-hun trying to have the guards kill him out of grief.
In the next game, which is revealed as Hide and Seek, where the Red team has to find members of the Blue Team and kill them, while the Blue Team has to hide for thirty minutes or find an exit, Myung-gi notices Jun-hee is on the Red Team and tells her to switch with him, not willing to let her be a killer while also noting that she would have a better chance at survival if she hid. When she seemingly refuses, he sincerely offers to let her kill him so she can pass the game and survive. Before the game starts, she hands him the knife, making him be on the Red Team, while Jun-hee joins Cho Hyun-ju and Jang Geum-ja in surviving.
Before the red team enters, he’s approached by Nam-gyu, who is high on the pills from the cross he took from Thanos' corpse. Despite the two being enemies, Nam-gyu sets their rivalry aside as he disliked Thanos anyway and thought Myung-gi was "awesome" for killing him, and offers a chance for the two to partner up in taking out one person each. Although he initially refuses, Myung-gi eventually agrees as he realizes that the longer he takes to find and kill a person, the more danger Jun-hee could be in.
"The Starry Night"
After entering, Nam-gyu offers Myung-gi a drug as a thank you for killing Thanos but the latter refuses. The two finally corner Player 235 and when Nam-gyu is about to kill him, Myung-gi stops him as he believes he will run off once he gets his kill and he agrees to the sensible solution to have the two of them kill Player 235 simultaneously to make it count as a half kill for both of them, requiring them to work together again to kill another player. Upon stabbing Player 235, the two proceed to hunt for more members of Blue Team to pass. Along the way, they finally corner Player 411 and simultaneously stab him to earn their pass and Myung-gi starts off to find Jun-hee, being terrified when he thinks he hears her being murdered and threatening to kill Nam-gyu if the latter harms her after the latter promises to “protect” Jun-hee with Myung-gi. Nam-gyu pressures him to keep killing more Blue Team members in order to raise the cash prize as the rules did not specify that they had to kill only one. After some consideration, Myung-gi ends up agreeing (because his debt still isn’t covered yet and more money means he can give Jun-hee a happier life on the outside) and decides to go on another killing spree with him. The two take out two members of Seon-nyeo’s cult. Myung-gi and Nam-gyu nearly find Im Jeong-dae, who disguised himself as a dead player in order to hide, but an impatient Myung-gi instructs Nam-gyu to keep moving. After the game approaches its end, when Cho Hyun-ju is about to tell Jun-hee that she found an exit, Myung-gi suddenly stabs her twice in the back and kills her, only to look inside the room to see Jang Geum-ja and Jun-hee alive but having recently gave birth to their daughter. He's immediately remorseful upon realizing what he's done, tearing up in regret. In order to protect her, Geum-ja and their daughter from a murderous Nam-gyu, he tells him the room is clear and leaves.
"It's Not Your Fault"
After the game, Myung-gi awaits for Jun-hee's return and is relieved to see that she survived. He's reluctant to approach her, due to guilt of killing Hyun-ju. During the night from afar, he watches her with their daughter but maintains his distance. As the players vote, he's shown to be saddened listening to Geum-ja's plea to the O voters to end the games and continues to vote X. In the morning, he is shocked to find that Geum-ja hung herself in the night and watches as Jun-hee is saddened and horrified by her demise, with Myung-gi even shedding a tear himself. In the next game, Jump Rope, Myung-gi watches as Gi-hun goes first, carrying Jun-hee's baby across as he narrowly survives and makes it, much to Myung-gi's relief and happiness. More player's attempt to cross but are then pushed off by Player 096.
"222"
After Gi-hun takes care of Player 096 by throwing him off the bridge so the other's can make it through, Myung-gi notices that Jun-hee was remaining behind due to her fractured ankle from Hide and Seek, which would effectively make it where she is unable to cross alone. Myung-gi approaches her one last time and attempts to lend his help to try and redeem their relationship, but she keeps coldly rebuffing him. Having no choice but to leave her as she announces that she wants nothing more to do with his existence, he crosses the bridge soon after and witnesses as Jun-hee ends up tossing herself over the edge due to her being unable to cross in time and avoid the rope. Myung-gi is left heartbroken and saddened by this sight and tragedy, breaking down into tears, but maintains his distance from her baby, who is now being cared for by Gi-hun, who promised to be her guardian throughout the remaining games as his final promise to Jun-hee.
Later, Myung-gi returns to the dormitory hall and witnesses as Jun-hee's baby is instated in the games as Player 222, taking her mother's place, which enrages the other players. Just before the players could mob and kill both Gi-hun and the baby, with Myung-gi watching helplessly before standing up to intervene and protect them, the guards luckily stop them from committing any further action. The remaining players are then treated to a final feast as well as a vote to end or continue the games. Myung-gi votes to continue and watches as a guard feeds his daughter baby formula to keep her fed and alive. He later falls asleep from the heavy eating and drinking. Although Gi-hun was initially offered a chance by In-ho to slaughter the remaining players, Myung-gi included, for his and the baby's freedom and victory, he turns it down and refuses due to seeing Kang Sae-byeok's ghost.
"⭘△☐"
The following morning, the players are gathered to play the final game: Sky Squid Game. The remaining players end up on the Square tower, where the rules are explained to them: each player has to push a button on the tower and then spend fifteen minutes deciding who to push off the tower and kill as a sacrifice. At least one player has to die in order for the rest to move to the adjacent Triangle tower, and the same rules apply on the Triangle to reach Circle, and then once more to win. Myung-gi joins players 100, 336, 203, 353 and 039 as they decide to democratically vote how they will kill another player, deciding to team up and split the money six ways as players 125 (Min-su), 222 (Jun-hee's baby), and 456 (Gi-hun) await their fates. When the team initially votes to kill 222, Myung-gi makes them reconsider in order to buy Gi-hun and the baby time, and points out Min-su, who was already having withdrawals from drug abuse. They all agree but Myung-gi sits back as the other’s proceed to corner him towards the edge. Unable to get close enough to push Min-su off without being dragged off as well, Myung-gi takes matters into his own hands as he grabs the nearby removable pole, sincerely apologizes to Min-su as he admits he didn't want to kill him and proceeds to finally push Min-su to his death as he is distracted by his hallucinations, looking down at his body in sorrow afterwards.
The surviving eight players proceed to the Triangle tower, with the six players trying to devise a plan to remove the baby from Gi-hun's clutches as they wished to kill 222 first, then kill Gi-hun on the Circle tower in order to ensure that the six members of their team will survive. Their repeated attempts to remove the baby from Gi-hun fail as they try to convince him to let her go while also having one of them be tied to a wrapped strand of jackets for protection. Finally when player Lee Seung-won tries to struggle against Gi-hun, Myung-gi takes the opportunity to take the pole from the tower's center, ordering Gi-hun to move as he pushes Seung-won to his death, defecting over to Gi-hun's side as both of them are armed. He then announces that he was the biological father of 222, much to everyone's surprise. He also admits to Gi-hun that he had planned to escape with both Jun-hee and the baby, but it changed when she died. In order to try and forge a final alliance by brutally beating Player 039 to near death and use him as a "lunchbox" (sacrificial pawn): basically using him as a sacrifice by dragging him to the Circle tower and tossing him over the edge to his death, Gi-hun and Myung-gi refuse to bend to this level, causing the remaining players to fight.
Myung-gi ends up struggling against Player 353, but after a grueling fight, Myung-gi ends up sending him falling to his death. When Gi-hun finally kills Player 203, the two surround Player 100 (Im Jeong-dae), where he continuously tries to convince them to use the "lunchbox", both men refuse and Myung-gi remorselessly executes him by pushing him over the edge. As the second round ends, they then turn around to see Player 039 crawling towards the other side of the triangle platform. Myung-gi tries to convince Player 039 that they weren't planning to throw him off in the final round, pleading with 039 to talk. Player 039 refuses to talk, however, and refuses to believe that he won't be thrown off. He then commits suicide by falling off the platform, leaving Myung-gi in shock as he turns to face Gi-hun.
"Humans Are..."
Do you know why I chose to go in this fucking hellhole? 'Cause I was constantly getting fucked over by guys like you!
Lee Myung-Gi telling Seong Gi-hun why he played in the games in “Humans Are…”
Now with the three players remaining: Gi-hun, the baby, and himself, he makes a play that is almost guaranteed to have him win: he goes ahead to the circle tower and collects the final pole to use, and then traps Gi-hun on the bridge leading to the circle tower. As the announcement gives the players five minutes to make it across to the other tower before the bridge closes, Myung-gi refuses to move, despite Gi-hun offering to sacrifice himself on the next tower so that both him and his daughter could survive. He then insists on Gi-hun setting the baby down on the bridge and backing up so that he could pick her up with the pole and bring her over to his tower. Gi-hun realizes that he intends to kill both him and the baby so that he could take all of the money for himself, and keeps refusing, but when he realizes he was nearly out of time, he relents and sets the baby down so that Myung-gi could retrieve her. However, as he is distracted holding her for the first time, Gi-hun grabs the knife he possessed and leapt across at the last second, prompting the two to engage in one final fight for survival. Myung-gi threatens to drop the baby as he holds her over the edge, although he has an emotional breakdown showing he doesn't want to kill his daughter but feels it's necessary to ensure he survives. After Gi-hun backs off, Myung-gi gently sets his daughter down before attacking the former with the knife. However, neither men notice the button to start the game as they fight and despite Myung-gi nearly getting the advantage, Gi-hun is able to disarm him.
Fate
Myung-gi's corpse.
Both Myung-gi and Gi-hun end up tumbling over the edge of the tower during their fight, with Gi-hun holding onto exposed rebar on the edge with one hand and the other was holding his jacket, while Myung-gi was also holding onto Gi-hun's finalist suit jacket in an attempt to save his life. Despite Gi-hun trying to save Myung-gi by pulling him up, the fabric was beginning to tear due to Myung-gi still holding under his weight. The jacket rips in two, sending him plummeting hundreds of meters to his death below.
Gi-hun committed suicide not long after, leaving Myung-gi and Jun-hee's only daughter as the sole survivor and winner of the Squid Games, who is left in Hwang Jun-ho's care by In-ho.
Relationships
Allies
Kim Jun-hee
Myung-gi and Jun-hee have a complicated relationship. It's confirmed by Jo Yu-ri that Myung-gi was "a good boyfriend" to Jun-hee before everything. Due to her having no parents or family, it's likely he was the only person she loved in years. She even trusted him enough to invest in the Dalmation coin. However, after it turned out to be a scam, Myung-gi disappeared and ignored Jun-hee for 6 months, although he did it to protect her, since he believed that the people who wanted to kill him could use her to find him. Before this period, he learned that she got pregnant with his child and advised her to abort it. However, when he disappeared, unbeknownst to him, she kept the baby in hopes of making her happy and to start a new family.
When the two reunited, Myung-gi was shocked by her presence as well as the fact that she was far along in her pregnancy, just about due for her labor. He argued with her about the fact that she was putting her own life at risk for being in the games as well as their unborn child. Jun-hee dismissed his concerns and wished to not have anything to do with him.
Over the course of the games, Myung-gi often approached her and tried to win her back and even team up with her, promising to take her back and help care for her and her baby once their debts were settled. However, Jun-hee believed that he only wanted her for her money so that he could pay off his own debts and then run away again and refused his offer. However, as time went on, their relationship began to show improvements once more, as when Myung-gi was willing to participate in Gi-hun's revolt, he looked at Jun-hee, who signaled for him not to do it, implying that she wanted him alive for now.
During Hide and Seek, when Jun-hee was on the Red Team, Myung-gi convinced her to switch with him, refusing to let her become a killer as well as the fact that her pregnancy would slow her down. He then offered to be on the Red Team in her stead and kill someone so that he could spend the rest of the game protecting her. Despite reluctance, Jun-hee agreed. When she heard his number passed on the announcement, she was relieved to hear that he succeeded and was on his way to protect her. When Myung-gi finally found her, upon having killed Cho Hyun-ju unaware of their friendship, he looked inside and was shocked to see that Jun-hee had just finished giving birth to their daughter. To protect her from Nam-gyu, he told him that nobody was in the room where he was looking and then left.
When he approached her again, Jun-hee angrily ridiculed him for killing Hyun-ju and pushed him away as he tried to defend his actions. Later during the Jump Rope, when he saw that Jun-hee had a fractured ankle from trying to run from the Red Team during Hide and Seek, he tried to convince her to let him help her across the bridge and pushed for her to take his help as she was otherwise going to sit there and die. Jun-hee then finally severed her ties with him, refusing his help and announcing that she was going to go far away from him with her baby and forget about him. When Jun-hee willingly killed herself for being unable to get across the bridge. Myung-gi was heartbroken over her death.
Jun-hee's baby
Myung-gi's feelings towards his and Jun-hee's baby were complicated through the series to say the least. Initially, Myung-gi had agreed with Jun-hee for her to get an abortion. However, he later developed a sense of protectiveness over Jun-hee and the baby upon learning she didn’t get rid of it. Myung-gi made it his goal to get Jun-hee out of the games so they could start a new life with their baby.
However, after Jun-hee’s death, Myung-gi’s feelings became more complicated. He did stand up to protect his baby after the guards announced she was a player. However, despite knowing she was now a player, he voted O for the games to continue but it’s heavily implied this was simply to trick the other finalists.
When the final game started, Myung-gi subtly worked to protect the baby. First, he convinced the others to target Min-su to buy Gi-hun and the baby time. Then, he betrays the others on the 2nd pillar and joins Gi-hun’s side, finally admitting he’s the father of the child. Myung-gi intends to make sure he, Gi-hun and his child all survive.
However, when 039 commits suicide, Myung-gi tried to force Gi-hun to stay back and hand over the baby, implicitly intending to sacrifice her as a last ditch attempt to save himself, albeit he seemed to be emotional when he held her for the first time. When he lost his pole in the fight against Gi-hun, he resorted to threatening to drop her over the edge to save himself. However, he was extremely guilty about this, sobbing as he tried to convince Gi-hun (and himself) he was capable of doing so and when Gi-hun backed off, he did gently set her down to safety.
Ultimately, while Myung-gi prioritized his own survival the most, he did love his child and if things had gone his way, would’ve preferred to survive with her.
Hwang In-ho
In-ho protected Myung-gi from Thanos and Nam-gyu. Myung-gi was left unaware of In-ho's true identity.
Kang Dae-ho
In the fourth round of the Mingle game, when Hyun-ju accuses Myung-gi of causing Young-mi's death, both Jun-hee and Dae-ho defend him. They argue that Myung-gi made the right decision, as time was running out and it was ultimately better to sacrifice one life than risk losing seven. Earlier in the bathroom, Dae-ho, In-ho and Jung-bae offer their support and promise to protect Myung-gi if he faces any further bullying, despite hm declining, stating he'll be fine.
Park Min-su
Myung-gi protected Min-su when Thanos and Nam-gyu threatened him to join them in the next vote and asked Team X for help against the aggressors. When Min-su hid between Team X and Thanos tried to go after him, Myung-gi stood in the middle to stop him. Despite saving him from Thanos, he deemed him as a worthy sacrifice in the final round, Myung-gi had his team agree to kill him and ended up pushing him over the edge as he hallucinated, killing him to pass the first tower. However, Min-su was the only person that Myung-gi showed remorse for killing, apologizing and admitting to him he didn't want to do this, as he was trying to save Gi-hun and his baby, looking at Min-su’s body in sorrow.
Neutral
Seong Gi-hun
After Gi-hun saved his daughter during Jump Rope, Myung-gi kept an eye on him as he tended to Jun-hee's baby, with Gi-hun being unaware that Myung-gi was the father. In the final game, Sky Squid Game, Myung-gi played along with his group to make it seem as though he was going to push Gi-hun over the edge as soon as they could recover the baby from his tight grip. However, he eventually broke character on the second tower when he instructed Gi-hun to move as he proceeded to push Lee Seung-won to his death as he tried to struggle against Gi-hun. He then admitted that he was the father of the baby and assured him that he was on his side. The two teamed up against players Kim Yun-tae, Im Jeong-dae, and Kim Gi-min, which resulted in the two defeating the three and killing them. When the one other player that could have been sacrificed between the four: Player 039, committed suicide to avoid being used as a sacrifice, Myung-gi's attitude towards Gi-hun and the baby shifted quick as he realized that one of the three needed to be sacrificed and he refused to have Gi-hun be on the third tower, telling him to hand the baby over and stay on the second tower, likely intending to kill the baby and take all the earnings. Gi-hun, despite telling him that he was willing to sacrifice himself to let the two leave alive, was left with no other choice but to surrender the baby. However, he was able to grab the knife he had and leapt over to the third tower to fight Myung-gi. The latter tried to use the pole to shove Gi-hun over the edge to kill him, with neither men pressing the button to start the game.
In the end, both men ended up tumbling over the edge, with Gi-hun holding onto some exposed rebar for dear life, while Myung-gi held onto his finalist jacket. Gi-hun held onto the jacket trying to save him but in the end, Myung-gi fell to his death regardless due to Gi-hun's jacket ripping in two. This left Gi-hun conflicted as it meant that Jun-hee's baby will survive but he also didn't want Myung-gi to die.
Enemies
Thanos
Thanos used to be subscribed to Myung-gi's YouTube channel. However, after the failure of the Dalmation coin, Thanos developed a hatred of him. Thanos was his primary tormentor throughout the games, but Myung-gi was undeterred, standing up to Thanos and receiving help from players like Hwang In-ho. When Thanos threatened Myung-gi and tried to go after Park Min-su and Kim Jun-hee, Myung-gi became enraged, attacked Thanos and eventually ended up killing him in self-defense. He goes in a bathroom stall and looks at his blood filled hands, horrified at what he has done. He stays in the stall for the remainder of the bathroom fight until he is seen walking out of the bathroom.
Nam-gyu
Tension between Nam-gyu and Myung-gi during Hide and Seek.
Myung-gi and Nam-gyu had a very surprising and tension filled dynamic. Myung-gi promoted a cryptocurrency called Dalmatian which turned out to be a scam. This led to Thanos and Nam-gyu targeting him due to both being victims of the scam. After Myung-gi killed Thanos in the bathroom fight, Nam-gyu decided to team up with Myung-gi in Hide and Seek, leading to the deaths of Players 235 and 411. Nam-gyu also suggested to Myung-gi to kill more blues, leaving less players for the other reds and earning more prize money. This led to the death of Players 006, 447, Cho Hyun-ju, and indirectly Park Yong-sik. Despite their partnership, Myung-gi didn't trust Nam-gyu to “help” him protect Jun-hee, lying he didn't find anyone to save her, Geum-ja and their baby.
After Hide and Seek, the two were no longer allies due to their partnership being for just that game.
Behind the scenes
Lee Myung-gi was portrayed by Im Si-wan.
Kill count
| Character | Information | Image/GIF |
|---|---|---|
| "Friend or Foe" Bathroom Fight | ||
| Thanos (Player 230) |
Stabbed twice in the neck with a metal fork; self-defense. | 
|
| "The Starry Night" Hide and Seek | ||
| Park Jae-cheol (Player 235) |
Stabbed in the chest with a hunting knife; shared kill with Nam-gyu. | 
|
| Player 411 | 
| |
| Player 447 | Stabbed in the chest multiple times with a hunting knife after Seon-nyeo left her group behind. | 
|
| Cho Hyun-ju (Player 120) |
Stabbed twice in the back with a hunting knife. | 
|
| "⭘△☐" Sky Squid Game | ||
| Park Min-su (Player 125) |
Pushed from a great height with the help of a pole, without resistance. | 
|
| Lee Seung-won (Player 336) |
Pushed from a great height with the help of a pole, unexpectedly. | 
|
| Kim Yun-tae (Player 353) |
Kicked and pushed from a great height with the help of a pole; self-defense. | 
|
| Im Jeong-dae (Player 100) |
Pushed from a great height with the help of a pole. | 
|
| Character | Information | Image/GIF |
|---|---|---|
| "Humans Are..." Sky Squid Game | ||
| Kim Jun-hee's baby (Player 222) |
Uses the threat of throwing her from a high place as a means to save his life. | 
|
| Seong Gi-hun (Player 456) |
Attempted murder with Il-nam's knife to kill him and be the last player standing. | 
|
| Character | Information | Image/GIF |
|---|---|---|
| "It's Not Your Fault" Hide and Seek | ||
| Most Eliminated Seekers | Indirectly caused by killing more hiders than necessary, leading to them being unable to find a hider to kill in time. | 
|
Trivia
- According to Hwang Dong-hyuk, Myung-gi was genuinely trying to protect Gi-hun and the baby at the start of the final round, planning to sacrifice Player 039 (37th Squid Game) so all 3 could survive together. However, his paranoia of Gi-hun betraying him lead to him snapping and threatening his child. He also confirmed the reason he accused Gi-hun of sleeping with Jun-hee was because he was trying to convince himself the child wasn't his so the guilt would hurt less. According to Hwang, before 039’s suicide, “Myung-gi never even considered killing his child”.
- After Player 039 chose to commit, Myung-gi was left with no other choice but to save himself from Gi-hun, and risk the baby's life, as he lacks trust/faith in other people due to being tricked and scammed previously.
- Despite his actions, Hwang Dong-hyuk said he didn’t consider Myung-gi someone “inherently evil” but rather someone more human who constantly makes bad decisions (Si-wan himself would later come to agree with this view) and told Si-wan that “Myung-gi has a good side too”, even admitting he wanted Yim Si-wan to play him so he could “come across as good”. Hwang said Myung-gi is able to justify his actions by telling himself that despite what he does, there are still worse people around him.
- While Myung-gi threatens his child, there’s a minor translation error. The subtitles claim he says “I’ll do it” and he says as such in the English dub, but in the original Korean, he says “I can do it!” This highlighted Myung-gi’s regret/reluctance at what he’s about to do.
- Both Im Si-wan and Jo Yu-ri have stated in separate interviews that they don't actually think Myung-gi would have dropped the baby in Sky Squid Game. Even Hwang himself admitted after he saw Si-wan's performance he "wasn't sure" if Myung-gi could've done it.
- Myung-gi, Kim Jun-hee, and Park Gyeong-seok are the only players introduced to the audience before the games in season 2. Ironically, in season 1 the only players shown as Seong Gi-hun, Kang Sae-byeok and Cho Sang-woo, the final 3 survivors of season 1.
- The 3 are also the players focused on after everyone completes Red Light Green Light; which also happens with the major characters in season 1.
- Myung-gi shares some similarities with some other characters:
- Cho Sang-woo: both are calculating and intelligent players who fell into debt due to investing (futures for Sang-woo, cryptomarket for Myung-gi), both are the first players who have their name and debt shown onscreen, and make tough decisions to save others (Sang-woo pushing the glassmaker and Myung-gi locking Young-mi out). They also kill their allies - Myung-gi killed Hyun-ju and Min-su while Sang-woo killed Ali and Sae-byeok. Like Sang-woo, who is saddened for having to kill Ali, Myung-gi is also saddened after pushing Min-su off the pillar and then look at his corpse solemnly, and both Sang-woo and Myung-gi protected Ali and Min-su prior to having to kill them. They're also the last players that Gi-hun faces in the final game, in which Gi-hun ultimately wins despite trying to save both of their lives. The difference is that Sang-woo was originally an ally and teammate to the heroes and becomes more antagonistic as the games progress while Myung-gi was never in the same group as the main characters. Another difference is that Sang-woo was willing to sacrifice his life so Gi-hun could win and take the prize money, while Myung-gi would’ve done it for Jun-hee but was unwilling to sacrifice his life to save even his own baby daughter, much less Gi-hun.
- Kang Sae-byeok: his rivalry with Thanos is similar to Sae-byeok's rivalry with Jang Deok-su, and both Sae-byeok and Myung-gi become finalists. They both also vote for the game to continue and prefer to work alone rather than as a group, even rejecting the heroes offering to protect them from their bullies, and even both placed 3rd overall in their respective games. But their personalities are different, as Sae-byeok acts cold and uncaring but is actually caring and kind, whilst Myung-gi acts friendly, but later turns out to be cold and ruthless. And unlike Sae-byeok who remains heroic and becomes an ally of Gi-hun after slowly learning to trust other’s, Myung-gi falls into the path of evil and has to fight against Gi-hun in the final game that ends with his death because he never manages to trust other people (except possibly at the end when Gi-hun tried to save him). Another difference is that Myung-gi participates in the final game while Sae-byeok doesn't, as she was killed by Sang-woo before the game.
- Hwang In-ho: both started off as well-respected individuals (a police officer and popular YouTuber) who ended up losing their reputation, though for In-ho he accepted bribes while Myung-gi was scammed. Both end up joining the Squid Game's to cover their debt, with their lover being a primary motivation for them; In-ho sought to win and help his pregnant wife while Myung-gi tried to help Jun-hee (his pregnant ex) escape the games so they could start a better life together. However, both end up failing, as In-ho's wife died outside the games while Myung-gi watches Jun-hee commit suicide. This ends up being the last straw for both of them to fall into villainy. They also fall into villainy because they were corrupted by someone (Nam-gyu for Myung-gi, Oh Il-nam for In-ho). Also, both are shown to love their kids even after their fall to villainy, with In-ho being absolutely furious when Thanos tells him to "take care of his own kids" while Myung-gi tries to protect his daughter throughout the final game. Ironically, despite In-ho wanting his child to survive, it tragically died with his wife. Meanwhile, Myung-gi reluctantly tried to kill his daughter but instead she survives, outlasting both her parents. Finally, both Myung-gi and In-ho become finalist, but In-ho won the prize money while Myung-gi lose and die.
- There are also some slight similarities between Myung-gi (specifically in Six Legs) and Player 271. Both have their meals taken from them (by Thanos and Nam-gyu/Deok-su) and initiate a fight to take it back, but both end up losing badly, kicked and beaten up. Player 271 is kicked to death by Deok-su. However, In-ho intervenes to stop the fight, preventing Myung-gi's fate from being like Player 271's.
- Three of the characters whose name and debt amount were displayed on the TV being revealed to the players in 001 were killed by Myung-gi. Cho Hyun-ju (Player 120), Thanos (Player 230), and Im Jeong-dae (Player 100).
- Myung-gi was the only one who was shown in the August trailer only once, revealing the numbers of the participants.
- The crypto scam is similar to a real-life 2021 Squid Game cryptocurrency scam when a group used the series' popularity to create a cryptocurrency called Squid Coin before rug-pulling and running away with millions of dollars. It is unknown if the Dalmatian coin incident was inspired by this specific incident or other similar scams.
- Hwang In-ho and Lee Myung-gi's actors had coincidentally appeared in another film, "Emergency Declaration"
- Coincidentally, Kang-ho Song's, an actor in that movie, character name in the movie as "In-ho".
- Myung-gi was one of the last three players during the final round of Sky Squid Game, alongside Seong Gi-hun and his baby.
- Myung-gi is the only player to appear in every episode of season 3 alongside Gi-hun. He’s also one of the only main character’s to do so, alongside Gi-hun, In-ho, Jun-ho, No-eul and Gyeong-seok.
- Alongside Gyeong-seok, Myung-gi has the most appearances of any player in the series aside from Gi-hun and (if he’s considered a player) In-ho; the two appear in all but one of season 2’s episodes and in every episode of season 3. Considering Gyeong-seok’s time as a guard trying to escape in season 3, Myung-gi has the most appearances as a player in the series behind Gi-hun as well.
- Most likely only the players in the game Sky Squid Game (not including Park Min-su, Lee Seung-won and Kang No-eul ), Hwang In-ho and the VIPs know that he is the biological father of Kim Jun-hee's Baby.
- Myung-gi already had his debt settled with the amount he would get from the split, though he still voted to stay, glaring at the prize money before voting.
- Myung-gi was the last O voter to die.
- He was also technically the last initial player of the 37th Squid Game to be eliminated, excluding Seong Gi-hun and his baby, as Gi-hun was a returning player and the baby became a player late into the competition.
- Myung-gi is presumably the last player to be recruited by The Recruiter, as Choi Woo-seok and Kim Jeong-rae began following him immediately after Myung-gi was handed the business card. Other players were likely recruited by other recruiters.
- Myung-gi was similar to Sang-woo from season 1, as they were both wanted for fraud.
- Myung-gi placed 3rd overall in the 37th Squid Game, mimicking his player number, 333.
- Myung-gi and Sae-byeok both placed third in their respective seasons.
- Myung-gi was the last person to join his pentathlon team, as the other four can be seen together without him.
- The only times Myung-gi was seen voting was only when he voted O, while all the times he voted X were off-screen.
- Out of 455 people (excluding himself) only 2 people knew him , player 124 and 230 (excluding 222 because it was simply it's ex girlfriend and not a subscriber). Doing some math, about 1 person out of 228 would know him. Dividing the population of South Korea (51,75 milion) by 228, we can assume that he had about 227.000 subscribers on his YouTube channel.
- It's possible that Myung-gi was the player that VIP John was going to bet on, as his number was the most similar to Jun-hee's after the fourth game.
- Myung-gi is the only person who voted X after Hide and Seek to then survive and pass the Jump Rope game.
- It's possible he's a weapons or combat specialist, since he was determined to join the rebellion. More because of Jun-hee's suggestion, he didn't want to go. Probably if he had gone to the Revolt, he would have learned weapons from Hyun-Ju and would have had to go get the ammunition instead of Dae-Ho.
Mistakes
- In the bathroom fight scene in Behind the Scenes, we can see the other Player 333 that was portrayed by an unknown extra.
Appearances
Gallery
Season Two
.jpg "Player 333 (S2).jpg (34 KB)")
Season Three
Promotional
.jpg "333(s2).jpg (30 KB)")
.jpg "Jun-hee and Myung-gi(2).jpg (79 KB)")
_team_O.jpg "Myung-gi (error) team O.jpg (120 KB)")
References
- ↑ Under the traditional Korean age system, which was changed in June 2023, a year is added to a person's age after birth, meaning he would've been born in 1995. His birth year, as stated, is given under the international age system.
- ↑ "001"
- ↑ During the 37th Squid Game, which began on November 1, a day was skipped when the players tied the vote after Mingle, with Jump Rope occurring on November 6, and the final game happening on November 7.