Squid Game Behind-The-Scenes Footage Takes Us Inside The Tug-Of-War

"Squid Game" has become an international phenomenon. The South Korean survival drama series recently became the most-watched show ever on Netflix and has utterly dominated social media and entertainment news since its release in September. The series follows a group of deeply indebted citizens competing in various children's games for a massive cash prize. While the games seemingly appear harmless and fun, the competition quickly devolves into a battle of life and death. These ultimately disturbing games include such schoolyard classics as Red Light, Green Light, marbles, and tug-of-war, all with a deadly twist for the adult contestants.

The tug-of-war, in particular, is one of the more memorable games played in the series, partially because of how intense the game itself is, and partially because the nature of it forces the competitors to literally kill or be killed. Thanks to the release of new behind-the-scenes footage, fans were able to get an in-depth look at just what makes this sequence so captivating.

In the "Squid Game" version of tug-of-war, each team is fighting to pull their opponents over a ledge, where the losing team will fall to their deaths. The three-minute sequence is harrowing and kinetic, with both sides exerting themselves to the max trying to pull the others off balance.

In the behind-the-scenes footage (via YouTube), the first thing that becomes clear is that the exertion we see on the character's faces wasn't just an act — they all look exhausted filming this scene. Against a massive blue screen, the actors pull back on their rope, screaming madly and planting their feet as they are dragged closer to the "edge," which is actually only a few feet above the ground. When the director yells "cut," the actors all sit down immediately, sweating and gasping for air.

There's a reason it looks so realistic on-screen — they're actually being dragged across the floor, and whatever is pulling on their rope is giving them a hell of a fight. It gets even more impressive when you think of how many takes they must have gone through for this scene.

After the filming is done, we get a short glimpse of all the actors lying on their backs, laughing with one another but clearly in need of a power nap. If that isn't method acting, we don't know what is.