Anyone with a Netflix subscription (99.99% of college students today) will tell you how addicting some of their original series can be. Whether it’s dramas like House of Cards, sci-fi horror like Stranger Things, dramedies based on true stories like Orange is the New Black or the most buzzed-about adaptations in recent pop culture like A Series of Unfortunate Events or 13 Reasons Why, there’s a show for anyone and everyone to get hooked on. For the audiences that appreciate a more obscure story, Black Mirror is worth all the hype it’s gotten.
An anthology series where no two episodes follow the same storyline or characters, Black Mirror got its start on the British network Channel 4, before Netflix US commissioned it for further seasons. The show explores a multitude of near-future scenarios where the deepest reaches of the human psyche are explored; examining modern society through the lens of where society could end up, with an emphasis on the consequences of our heavy reliance on technology. Some of today’s most popular stars are cast in episodes, like Bryce Dallas Howard and Alice Eve. Episode plots range from concepts that really make you think about how society today functions, to those that seriously blow your mind and leave you wondering for days about concepts that could one day become real. In essence, each episode presents a mini-movie with a plot that examines a different facet of modern society in a way that’s meant to make you question everything.
If the same is to be said about upcoming season 4, the world is in for a serious wakeup call. Creator and writer Charlie Brooker has said that if the concepts in this season come true, “We’re seriously f****d.” In an interview with Radio Times, Brooker acknowledged his somewhat accurate premonitions presented in the show: “Weirdly, there was one news story I read the other day that I thought ‘Oh, how does that reflect on an episode we’ve already finished shooting?’” He had read about a scientific discovery that had been made; one that was eerily similar to a theory presented in an episode of Black Mirror. He hopes the discovery isn’t entirely like the one presented within the episode in question. “When writing them, I never think any of these are going to come true, and then it seems like some of them do. Which is a bit worrisome, generally,” he says. “For this coming season, they’re quite far out there, so I don’t envision that being a problem.” However, Brooker had said this in the past in regards to recent seasons, and was subsequently proven wrong when some eerie similarities arose in the news. One episode in particular bore some satirical similarities to the 2016 US presidential election (“The Waldo Moment”). When the characters of the episode running for election reflected those of the presidential candidates, Brooker commented on their similarities: “I don’t think we really predicted anything so much as reacted to something that was already in the ether.”
The upcoming episode that’s received the most buzz for season 4 will be directed by Jodie Foster. The actress and Silence of the Lambs star is no stranger to sci-fi and horror. Her episode is set to star Rosemarie Dewitt, who horror fans will recognize as the lead from the recent Poltergeist remake, and feature more of an indie movie vibe; centered around a mother-daughter relationship. Whether Brooker can predict the future or not is best left to skeptics, but who knows what might happen between now and the premiere of the next season this fall?