Squid Game: The Challenge proved so stressful for one contestant that they were filmed desperately trying not to vomit as they fought to survive Netflix’s controversial new series.
Spencer – aka Player 299 – gagged repeatedly in the second episode after a terrible decision he made resulted in the elimination of multiple contestants – and destroyed their chances of winning the $4.56 million cash prize.
The tense exchange took place during Dalgona – a game where players are given 10 minutes to remove their shape from a piece of Korean candy using a needle. If it breaks or they run out of time, contestants are automatically eliminated.
Before the competition, four participants from four different groups had to agree on the shape each group would take: a circle, a triangle, a star or an umbrella.
Spencer – Player 299 – was seen gagging repeatedly in the second episode of Squid Game: The Challenge when he was overwhelmed by the pressure while playing Dalgona
He reluctantly chose the umbrella shape for his group, after the star, triangle and circle had been chosen by others
Chaos ensued among the players, with no one willing to choose the umbrella due to its complicated shape, with eight participants booted before the game even started after failing to agree on a shape.
Spencer and three other players were then given the responsibility to make their choice.
With only two minutes to make a decision, Spencer opted for the umbrella for his team, on the condition that the other players would jump in to help his teammates once they had prepared their own candy.
But unbeknownst to Spencer, players are not allowed to help each other.
When he heard the devastating news, he started gagging and said, “Oh God, no. Please don’t, please don’t, please don’t. Jesus Christ, please don’t. Oh God.’
A fellow player heard the commotion and winced: “Oh… if he throws up.”
Unfortunately for Spencer, the pressure – and the gagging – didn’t subside, and when two of his teammates were knocked out next to him, he started choking again.
He admitted: ‘I feel the pressure on my shoulders. I can’t look around or I’ll puke, but it’s really hard not to see all the other people around me and what they’re losing because of what I’ve done.
Spencer chose to adopt the umbrella form for his team, on the condition that the other groups would come and help his teammates.
The umbrella shape is the most difficult to remove of the four shape options
Spencer frantically tried to keep his vomit down for the entire match and admitted he couldn’t see across the room or he would puke.
‘I think some of them will hate me. I think some of them will remember me for the rest of their lives as the person who ruined their chance to become a millionaire.”
Speaking in his confessional before the task began, Spencer said, “I was definitely a mama’s boy.
‘I remember wetting the bed a lot, crying when I was taken away from my mother. I was very introverted.
“As I got older, it took me a long time to come out of my shell and start talking to people.”
He added: “I think I’m empathetic. I sometimes think of a mistake.’
Spencer’s co-stars were dropping like flies as they struggled to cut the umbrella shape out of the candy – and it wasn’t long before he too succumbed to the pressure.
His fellow players were eliminated after failing to cut the candy without breaking it
Spencer was close to throwing up after being eliminated from the competition himself
He was left gagging after dramatically falling to the ground after being ‘shot’ by the supervisors
“This will be a win for me,” he said, seconds before breaking his candy, causing him to gag again.
The new competition series is based on the 2021 South Korean survival drama Squid Game, created by Hwang Dong-hyuk.
The popular TV phenomenon saw 456 players, all in deep financial debt, risk their lives playing a series of deadly children’s games for a chance to win a $4.56 billion prize.
In the new real-life game show, contestants are ‘shot’ with black paintballs when they are eliminated.
The show was heavily criticized by contestants, some of whom claimed they were ‘treated like animals’ and forced to stand in freezing temperatures for hours while filming in Bedford, United Kingdom.
When temperatures in the studio reportedly plummeted to -3 degrees Celsius, some disgruntled players argued about having to film in such conditions and considered suing the streamer.
One participant told The Sun at the time: ‘We were tortured for eight hours. We were just food. You wouldn’t treat animals like that. I know the show was supposed to be tough, but it felt inhumane.
“At one point I noticed they were wearing a black casket with a pink ribbon, just like in the original show. I feel like they prioritized a good opportunity over helping us.”
People were reportedly unable to move their feet due to freezing temperatures in Britain, with the scene likened to a ‘war zone’.
Another player claimed that people were ‘dropping like flies’ because of the temperature.
Reports also emerged claiming some participants shouted ‘medic’ before being carried away in freezing conditions.
In a statement, Netflix and the show’s producers, Studio Lambert and The Garden, said that “although it was very cold on set – and participants were prepared for it – any claims of serious injury are untrue.”
They continued: ‘We care deeply about the health and safety of our cast and crew and have invested in all appropriate safety procedures.’
Elsewhere, two players are said to have ruined their chances before the show started after bed hopping at the Tower Hotel in London, where the contestants stayed for two days before filming started.
