Squid Game season 2 continues to smash records for Netflix, but it's still can't compete with the streamer's most-watched non-English show of all-time

Seong Gi-hun staring intently at a Squid Game soldier in Squid Game season 2

(Image credit: No Ju-han/Netflix)

Squid Game season 2 continues to break on Netflix after its December 26, 2024 launch
The hit show's latest season has been viewed by 126.2 million people
It's still got a long way to go to usurp its forebear as the most-watched non-English TV Original, though

Squid Game season 2 arrived over the 2024 festive season and, unsurprisingly, it's continuing to break records on Netflix.

As revealed by the streaming titan during this week's update to its Top 10 lists, one of the best Netflix shows' second season is dominating its competitors in the non-English language category. Indeed, its closest rival, which is – funnily enough – Squid Game's debut season, simply can't compete in the viewership stakes, with season 2 accruing four times as many minutes streamed as its predecessor over the past seven days (December 31 to January 7). If this was a real-life version of the eponymous battle royale-style games, Squid Game's sophomore season would've already walked away with the prize money.

That said, season 2 has a long way to go in order to become the most-watch non-English Netflix original series of all-time. Ironically, it's currently being kept off top spot by – yep, you guessed it – Squid Game season 1. So, how close is season 2 getting to potentially knocking its predecessor off its perch? Well, it's got a long way to go, and the below data suggests...

How many people have watched Squid Game season 2?

The Recruiter and Gi-hun sit at a night club table in Squid Game season 2 — (Image credit: Netflix)

At the time of writing, Squid Game season 2 has been seen 126.2 million times in its first two weeks on the world's best streaming service – that's a record for a Netflix TV Original, by the way – with a total of 904.7 million hours viewed.

By comparison, the first season was watched by over 265 million people and has amassed an eye-watering 2.2 billion hours viewed since its mid-2021 release. With numbers like that, I doubt this season will come close to matching its forebear's unprecedented success.

Nevertheless, there's been plenty of promotional material, for Squid Game season 2, not to mention fan fervor for the hit show's return, which has no doubt contributed to its recent success. Recently, Duolingo launched a terrifying campaign to try and encourage people to learn Korean, playing on the brand's creepy vibes which teamed scarily well with the Squid Game pink guards.

If season 2 doesn't manage to defeat season 1, it'll be up to the survival drama's third and final entry to try and do so. Squid Game season 3 is set to arrive sometime this year, too, so we may not have long to wait for an answer to that brain-teaser.

Lucy is a long-time movie and television lover who is an approved critic on Rotten Tomatoes. She has written several reviews in her time, starting with a small self-ran blog called Lucy Goes to Hollywood before moving onto bigger websites such as What's on TV and What to Watch, with TechRadar being her most recent venture. Her interests primarily lie within horror and thriller, loving nothing more than a chilling story that keeps her thinking moments after the credits have rolled. Many of these creepy tales can be found on the streaming services she covers regularly.

When she’s not scaring herself half to death with the various shows and movies she watches, she likes to unwind by playing video games on Easy Mode and has no shame in admitting she’s terrible at them. She also quotes The Simpsons religiously and has a Blinky the Fish tattoo, solidifying her position as a complete nerd.