During a recent discussion with Time, Hwang said it was hard not to think of Tesla founder Elon Musk when writing about the show’s VIPs, who act as sinister (and exuberantly rich) spectators for the deadly games.

As Squid Game‘s tense flagship series draws to a close after three seasons, its real-world parallels remain as timely as ever. Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk recently acknowledged similarities between the Netflix series’ villainous masked VIPs and Elon Musk after the third and final season debuted Friday on the streamer,

Squid Game' is ending with season 3. Here's everything to know about why the series is coming to a close, what the cast has said about the finale and plans for a spinoff.