Squid Game US Spinoff ‘Heckler’ Officially Scrapped

Netflix has reportedly shut down the US spinoff it had been developing off the back of 'Squid Game.' The project, known internally by the working title 'Heckler,' had been in the works for several years before the streamer decided not to move forward, according to trade reports.

The spinoff was set to be directed by David Fincher, the filmmaker behind 'Fight Club,' 'Zodiac' and 'Gone Girl,' with the script written by Dennis Kelly, known for the series 'Utopia.' While conceived as a US production, reports had suggested filming could actually begin in the UK before the end of the year.

The moment that stoked the most speculation came in last year's Season 3 finale, when Lee Byung-hun's Front Man character watches actress Cate Blanchett playing ddakji, a Korean paper-tossing game, in an alley in Los Angeles. The show's creator was quick to clarify the scene wasn't a direct tie-in to the spinoff, and it was never confirmed that Blanchett was actually attached to 'Heckler.' She has only said that a return to the franchise remains a possibility.

Behind the cancellation is a series of leadership changes at Netflix that reshuffled the company's franchise priorities. Fincher himself has reportedly been tied up with a separate project starring Brad Pitt, further sapping the spinoff's momentum. Netflix is said to be leaning toward country-specific versions rather than one English-language US spinoff, though no regional follow-up is currently in active development.

'Squid Game,' led by Lee Jung-jae and Lee Byung-hun, remains one of Netflix's flagship hits, with Seasons 1 through 3 drawing cumulative viewership of 265.2 million, 192.6 million and 145.8 million respectively — among the strongest numbers ever for a non-English-language title. The show became the first Korean production to win at the Critics' Choice Awards in 2022 and picked up multiple Emmy wins that same year. Its creator is now developing a new crime drama centered on gambling.