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Smiling and Unsmiling Seong Gi-hun
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About
Unsmiling Seong Gi-hun refers to a reaction image of Squid Game character Seong Gi-hun (portrayed by actor Lee Juan-jae) getting his ID photo taken for his second time on the death games. Often used together in contrast with his smiling ID photo from the first season of the show, the image achieved popularity as Smiling and Unsmiling Seong Gi-Hun comparison meme format in early November 2024, inspiring redraws in January 2024.
Origin
On October 31st, 2024, the official trailer for season two of the South Korean survival thriller series Squid Game premiered[1] (shown below). In the trailer, the protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Lee Juan-jae) is shown taking his ID photo for his second time on the death games. Unlike Gi-hun's first time on the games, he doesn't smile when prompted to, keeping a grim and determined expression.
Later on October 31st, the official X[2] account for Netflix posted a two-panel image comparing Seong Gi-hun taking his ID photograph in seasons one and two of the show. The post (shown below) garnered over 17 million views, 14,000 reposts and 239,000 likes in four days.
Spread
In early November 2024, the image was adopted as a meme format on social media, primarily on X / Twitter. For example, on November 1st, 2024, the official X[3] account for the esports team G2 posted a meme about VALORANT based on the template that garnered over 560 reposts and 5,700 likes in three days (shown below).
On November 2nd, 2024, X[4] user @jinirets used an alternative version of the format for a meme about typing quirks, which gained over 3,200 reposts and 89,000 likes in two days (shown below).
2025 Redraw Resurgence
On January 10th, 2025, artist @t0myu3 posted the earliest viral redraw based on the image, replacing both images of Gi-Hun with Hatsune Miku. The post (shown below) received over 9.3 million views, 63,000 reposts and 581,000 likes on X[5] in five days.
The post was followed by other artists, first on X and later on other platforms, joining in on the redraw trend. For example, on January 11th, 2025, X[6] user @ErinArtista posted a fan art of Dragon Ball character Gohan that gained over 6,700 reposts and 83,000 likes in four days.
The redraw format achieved viral popularity in mid-Janaury 2025, with multiple examples going viral.
Various Examples
Templates
Search Interest
External References
[1] YouTube – Squid Game: Season 2 | Official Teaser | Netflix
[3] X – @G2VALORANT
[4] X – @jiniirets
[6] X – @ErinArtista
Related Entries 16 total
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