The Finger Heart Gesture In Squid Game, Explained

One of the things that has helped make the South Korean Netflix series such a success is its universal story of people crushed under the financial weight of capitalism. The story, about a secret game show of sorts that pits 456 strangers against one another in a life-or-death struggle for a massive payout, is ultimately relatable to anyone who’s ever struggled financially. Even if a viewer wouldn’t be willing to put their life on the line for billions of won/millions of dollars, they should be able to understand the characters’ reasons for doing so. It’s incredibly compelling stuff anchored by great performances, especially lead actor Lee Jung-jae, who plays Seong Gi-hun, who in the first season managed to survive the games and defeat more than just the other players. 

There are some things that are distinctly South Korean, however, which can leave international viewers just a tiny bit confused. While some of these things are rooted in South Korean history, like player Kang Sae-byeok’s (Jung Ho-Hyeon) backstory as a North Korean defector, others come from South Korean pop culture, which might not be on someone’s radar unless they’re K-pop music fans or big foreign film buffs. In the show’s second season, we see characters making a hand gesture to one another that looks kind of like they’re snapping their fingers and international fans might be wondering just what it means. Good news — we’ve got you covered. 

The finger heart gesture, sometimes called the “Korean finger heart” gesture in international press because of its popularity among K-pop idols and South Korean actors, is done by putting the thumb and forefinger across one another to make a little tiny heart with the tips of the digits. Since it represents a heart, the sign is one of affection, essentially saying “I love you.” The origin of the sign is a bit of a mystery, with K-pop artists Woohyun and G-Dragon and actor Kim Hye-soo credited for starting the sign by fans, but what’s known for sure is that it absolutely blew up across South Korea. 

Despite seeming like a fairly simple gesture to do, some international stars have had a really difficult time properly doing it. While it’s understandable that the U.S. Olympic team had a hard time during the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang because of their thick gloves, “Doctor Strange” star Benedict Cumberbatch just really cannot seem to get it down, with hilarious results. 

The finger heart has its own emoji (🫰) and will probably gain even more international popularity because of “Squid Game,” just in time for the next K-pop posing trend: cheek-hearts, where someone uses a curved hand to make a heart with the curve of their face. Maybe we’ll see that on “Squid Game” season 3 before the series ends. 

“Squid Game” is now streaming on Netflix.