During all three seasons of Squid Game on Netflix, rainbows have featured. The sets for the games are incredible, and are usually bright and colourful, the complete opposite of the darkness that takes place there.
And it turns out, the use of rainbows throughout the show was definitely on purpose. In season three, during the hide and seek game, players were running past rainbow walls, and around the corners were other players, ready to murder them. This cruel juxtaposition was a choice by the show’s creators.
via Netflix
The rainbows in Squid Game are very metaphorical, and it’s quite sad
The set designer of Squid Game spoke out about the use of rainbows in the show back in season two, when one of the games involved players walking along a rainbow floor. No, it’s not just a pretty design. All the rainbows you’ve seen each season have represented a much deeper meaning. It’s to do with childhood innocence, and the fine line between life and death.
Production designer Chae Kyoung-sun said: “The director suggested creating two circles, and it got me thinking about the meaning of the rainbows. People say the path to heaven is decorated with rainbow colours.”
The creator then went on to say similar symbolism is used with the coffins in the show. They continued: “As you know, we wrapped the coffins like gifts. That was kind of a reflection of our tough, competitive reality in this world where so many people fail. People are tired of the harsh reality. So it was a way of wishing those who passed away a peaceful afterlife, where there would be no more pain. I think the rainbows share the same meaning as the coffins.”
via Netflix
The playing rooms being vibrant and colourful, and decorated with rainbows is meant to reflect childhood innocence, and playfulness. The innocence quickly disappears when players die, and the room is covered in blood. This is meant to represent the stark difference between life and death, and how life can be over quickly. It’s cruelly ironic, really.
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