Tension peaked during the six-legged pentathlon in Squid Game‘s second season. One team couldn’t have survived Episode 5 without fan-favorite character Cho Hyun-ju.

Park Sung-hoon said he really slapped co-star Chae Cook-hee in Squid Game Season 2. Fans know this as the moment Cho Hyun-ju [Park] hit the Shaman Seon-nyeo [Chae] during the six-legged pentathlon, which required five players to take on a gauntlet of children’s games. Hyun-ju led and motivated his team during their turn, which they almost didn’t finish; they were only given five minutes to complete five games of skill, luck, and patience. Seon-nyeo quickly succumbed to the pressure, forcing Hyun-ju to slap her out of her stupor. Speaking to Netflix, K-Content, Park explained why Hyun-ju’s slap looked so believable.

“Actually, the day we filmed that scene, I was under the impression that I wasn’t really going to hit her,” he said. “But on the spot, the director asked me to really hit her once. I felt horrible doing it, but to make matters worse, the director didn’t approve the first take. So I remember having to hit her two or three times. Afterward, I got on my knees and apologized.” That scene became iconic after fans made memes out of Hyun-ju’s slap. That moment also revealed Hyun-ju as a formidable leader; this was confirmed in the season finale when she joined Gi-hun’s revolt.

Park Sung-hoon Addresses Controversy Over His Casting

Hyun-ju proved to be an integral character in Season 2. She stood out in Episode 3 when she risked elimination by helping an injured player. She also has one of the best backstories in Squid Game, which now has transgender representation in its ensemble. Critics called out Park’s casting, however; he’s a cisgender male actor playing a transgender female character. The actor said early on that he was honored by the opportunity. “I never wanted to overdo the voice or exaggerate my gestures, and the director fully agreed with me on that,” he said (per Korea JoongAng Daily). “Since my natural voice is quite deep, I felt that altering it too much would undermine the emotional authenticity.”

Hyun-ju and Seon-nyeo survived the chaos of Season 2, but it’s uncertain how the games will proceed after Gi-hun’s mutiny. A post-credits scene in the season finale teased a variation of “Red Light, Green Light” with two sentry dolls taking post. Series creator Hwang-dong Hyuk confirmed Season 3 completes the story and Gi-hun’s arc, but there’s already speculation over how the series ends, which includes Gi-hun teaming up with Hwang In-ho. One fan theory could prove to be the show’s wildest twist, however; Gi-hun could win the game and replace In-ho as the new Front Man.

Squid Game is streaming on Netflix.