Squid Game Season 3's Kang Ae-sim Was 'Very Worried' Viewers Would Find Geum-ja Monologue 'Boring'

[Warning: The following contains spoilers for Squid Game Season 3. Read at your own risk!]

The time has finally come to say goodbye to Player 149, Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim). Ever since Squid Game Season 2 introduced her and Player 007, Yong-sik (Yang Dong-geun), as the mother-and-son duo participating in the games, viewers have been bracing for their impending separation and theorizing on which family member would die first. 

But few could've guessed that it would be Geum-ja's actions that would lead to her son's demise. In an effort to protect Jun-hee's (Jo Yu-ri) newborn baby during the Hide and Seek game, Geum-ja stabbed Yong-sik — literally — in the back. The incapacitated Yong-sik was ultimately shot to death by the pink soldiers, but the crushing guilt weighed on his mother just the same. Some time in the night, she took her own life — but not before Geum-ja delivered one of the series' most powerful monologues. 

"Are you blaming yourself for everything that has happened?" she asked Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) in the third episode of Squid Game Season 3, after Hide and Seek concluded and the number of survivors dwindled to 25. Similar to her previous attempts at engaging with Player 456, she received no response. Gi-hun has barely uttered a word since he led a failed uprising against the game's organizers, which resulted in the deaths of many, including his best friend, Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan). But Geum-ja approached the deeply traumatized player again with a plea: to protect Jun-hee and her baby. "No matter how you look at it, life just is unfair," she began, and launched into a nearly three-minute speech.

"It actually didn't require many takes," Kang, who plays Geum-ja in Squid Game Season 3, told TV Guide about the monologue. "It was only just one take that we needed." But the actor shared her initial concerns about the pivotal speech. "Before going into that scene, I was very worried that it may come off as a little bit boring to people, as it is quite long," Kang said. "I was like, 'Would they wait for me to talk about all this?' I questioned myself." 

More on Squid Game Season 3: 

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• Everything to know about Squid Game Season 3

But the actor decided to gather her courage and try her best. "On set, director Hwang [Dong-hyuk] and everyone helped me focus," Kang recalled. "They created a really nice atmosphere for me."

Geum-ja started her monologue by talking about human nature. "Bad people do bad things, but they blame others and go on to live in peace," she said. "Good people, on the other hand, beat themselves up about the smallest things." Geum-ja then transitioned to talking about how her son was a "good" person. Gi-hun remained disengaged the entire time she talked. It wasn't until Geum-ja said, "In the end, I killed [my son]" that Gi-hun turned his head toward the distressed mother. 

"The most important thing I focused on was, why am I telling Gi-hun about my son and everything? It's because my main objective is to persuade him [to help Jun-hee and her baby]," Kang explained. "So I wanted to be very frank about what I've done and my emotions so that I could show him my authenticity."

The desperation was clear in her final words to Gi-hun. "Instead of me and my son, please save Jun-hee and her baby," Geum-ja said. "Please, sir. I beg you."

For the first part of Season 3, Gi-hun, who has only seen his attempts to help people lead to harm, resorted to detachment and inaction. This monologue — and Geum-ja's death — appeared to be a turning point for him. Before the next game began, he approached Jun-hee and, as Geum-ja had wished, asked to help her and the baby survive.

Squid Game Season 3 is available to stream on Netflix.