Everything We Know About Squid Game Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk’s New Show “The Dealer”

Netflix has officially locked production on Hwang Dong-hyuk’s upcoming show The Dealer, a high-stakes casino crime thriller with a supernatural edge starring Jung So-min, Ryoo Seung-bum, Lee Soo-hyuk, and Ryu Kyung-soo. The show is set in Oceanland, a newly opened casino whose glamorous exterior hides a chaotic reality. By allowing local patrons onto its floors, the casino becomes plagued with troublesome customers, sending its revenues into decline. In a bid to turn its fortunes around, Oceanland announces its largest-ever gambling tournament.

Amid this turmoil is Jung Geon-hwa (Jung So-min), one of the casino’s ace dealers, who is hiding a secret: she can detect lies after consuming alcohol. When Geon-hwa is scammed out of her deposit for her new home and her marriage plans fall apart, she decides to enter the tournament herself, using her supernatural ability to win back what she has lost.

The Cast and Characters

Jung So-min stars as Jung Geon-hwa, expanding her roster of diverse projects like Alchemy of Souls, 30 Days, and Would You Marry Me, with a serious thriller like this one. 

Ryoo Seung-bum of Good News, Tazza: One-Eyed Jack, and Berlin fame plays Hwang Chi-su, a washed-up casino shill surviving off money earned as a street performer. Once a corporate employee with a conventional married life, Chi-su spiralled after divorce and poor decisions, losing everything to Oceanland’s tables. His alliance with Geon-hwa pulls him into a high-stakes scheme where loyalty is constantly negotiable.

Lee Soo-hyuk joins as Jo Jun, a mysterious poker player whose flawless control and unreadable expressions disrupt the casino’s fragile balance. His presence at the table injects tension and unpredictability, making him one of the series’ most dangerous wild cards.

Ryu Kyung-soo plays Choi Woo-seung, Geon-hwa’s fiancé and a violent crimes detective. Gentle and affectionate in private, Woo-seung is relentless in his investigations—placing him on a collision course with the criminal underworld Geon-hwa is trying to survive. The role allows Ryu to flex a wider emotional and psychological range.

Lee Soo-hyuk, known for the viral S-Line, joins as Jo Jun, a mysterious poker player whose flawless control and unreadable expressions disrupt the casino’s fragile balance.

Ryu Kyung-soo plays Choi Woo-seung, Geon-hwa’s fiancé and a violent crimes detective. Gentle and affectionate in private, Woo-seung is relentless in his investigations, placing him on a collision course with the criminal underworld Geon-hwa is trying to survive.

Who’s Behind the Camera?

The Dealer is directed by Choi Young-hwan, a veteran cinematographer making his directorial mark after working on projects like Smugglers, Tazza, Escape from Mogadishu, and Memoir of a Murderer. His background suggests a series that will lean heavily into mood, texture, and tension rather than flashy spectacle.

Backing the project is Firstman Studio, the production company behind Squid Game. Adding to the hype, Hwang Dong-hyuk, the mind behind Netflix’s most-watched series of all time, is involved as a planner and producer, raising expectations for a morally complex, socially sharp narrative rather than a straightforward crime thriller.

The Dealer is set to consist of 11 episodes, each with an approximate runtime of 45 minutes. Netflix has not yet announced a release date for the series.