Three elementary schools in upstate New York have banned Halloween costumes from the Netflix smash hit Squid Game, saying they could frighten younger students.

Mott Road, Enders Road, and Fayetteville Elementary Schools—all of which are part of New York’s Fayetteville-Manlius School District—have all banned costumes related to the Korean horror series for Halloween.

“Squid Game” Costumes became the number one searched word for costumes after the series ended.

District Superintendent Dr. Craig J. Tice in a statement released, said that the district’s elementary school principal sends out Halloween costume guidelines — which ban items that can be interpreted as weapons as well as bloody or scary costumes — Parents every year.

This year, the “Squid Game” costume was added to the list of prohibited costumes because some students have started playing their version of the “Squid Game” on the playground.

“Because of this activity, our principal wanted to make sure our families were aware that it would be inappropriate for any student to wear a Halloween costume from the show because potentially violent messages align with the costume.”

Tice said: “They also wanted families to be aware that some of our younger students are talking and imitating aspects of the show/game at school, so parents and guardians should be aware of their There will be an opportunity to talk about it with children and to reinforce the school. The message is that games involving violent behavior are not a good time for leisure.”

Other schools around the country – and the world – are also treating children playing their version of the “squid game” on the playground.

Illya Faircloth, principal of Hilland Park Elementary School in Panama City, Florida, previously revealed that students at her school were hitting and kicking each other as part of the “elimination” of the “squid game”.

She said that after the school authorities found out what was happening, they spoke to the children involved and sent a message to the parents.

The message reads:

“PARENTS/GUARDIANS – SAFETY UPDATE – PLEASE READ
There’s a popular show on Netflix right now called Squid Game that we can all agree isn’t suitable for young children. While parents may think their younger students are not being exposed to this show, it’s become clear to us this week that several gaming applications and video sharing platforms are making some of the content accessible to children without the knowledge of their parents. As a result, some children are trying to replicate show scenes at school but what sounds harmless (who didn’t play Red Light/Green Light as a kid?) is not harmless because the game in the television show includes “elimination” (death) and we are seeing kids trying to hurt each other in the name of this “game.”
Please make sure you’re aware of the content your children are accessing online and that you talk to them about NOT playing violent “games” at school. We don’t want anyone to get hurt and we don’t want to generate discipline referrals for students who don’t understand what they are re-enacting.
Thank you, in advance, for your assistance with this new trend and for making sure you’re aware of what your kids are seeing online.”

None of the children were seriously injured and since school officials spoke to the parents, there were no further problems with the playground.

“Squid Game” debuted on September 17th and has already become a huge hit.

Korean Horror Series – Netflix’s “Biggest series launch ever” – tells the story of 456 people who are in dire financial straits and participate in a series of children’s games such as “Red Light, Green Light” in hopes of winning massive cash prizes. The punishment is a cruel death.

According to Netflix, the show, which has been streamed more than 111 million times since its debut last month, has been rated TV-MA for language, violence, sex, nudity, suicide, and smoking.

Schools in Northern Ireland, the UK, and Australia have also warned parents about the “squid game” costumes.