Last year Netflix announced that the Twilight Zone-on-acid, sci-fi anthology series Black Mirror would debut a six-episode third season exclusively on the streaming service; and word got out that installments will arrive as early as this fall. Not much has been known about what kind of cautionary tale madness showrunner Charlie Brooker will bring to the newest season, but Netflix just debuted brand new images to give fans an idea as to where the show will go next. The initial answer, it seems, is the 1980s.
Possibly taking hints from style icon Barb in Netflix’s recent throwback summer hit Stranger Things, the initial photos for Black Mirror Season 3 show actresses Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Mackenzie Davis sporting some serious ‘80s fashions (those glasses, that frizzy hair!) from the premiere episode mysteriously titled “San Junipero.”
The episode was directed by Owen Harris, who also helmed the Season 2 episode “Be Right Back.” The setting is surprising, considering the previous Black Mirror episodes have mostly taken place in a twisted near-future setting. This time, Brooker and his team are turning back the clock.
So '80s.
Unfortunately, Davis, who also stars in the 1980s-set TV show Halt and Catch Fire, doesn’t look too happy in this new photo:
So much neon.
The other photos offer peeks at actress Bryce Dallas Howard from the third episode, entitled “Nosedive,” which was written by Parks and Recreation creator Michael Schur and actress Rashida Jones, and directed by Atonement and Hanna filmmaker Joe Wright. Instead of the 1980s vibe in “San Junipero,” this episode looks a bit more appropriately dystopian. The episode also stars Alice Eve and James Norton.
Bryce Dallas Howard is very concerned about her phone.
The next photo resembles a disconcerting United Colors of Benetton ad:
The future is literally, not figuratively, bright.
Unfortunately Netflix hasn’t released any information about the plots of each episode, or what tragic truths they’ll force viewers to confront. Either way, Brooker and Netflix have rounded up some top talent like everyone above, as well as people like 10 Cloverfield Lane director Dan Trachtenberg who did the sixth episode called “Playtest.”
Here’s the synopsis for Season 3 straight from Netflix:
“Black Mirror is an anthology series that taps into our collective unease with the modern world, with each stand-alone episode a sharp, suspenseful tale exploring themes of contemporary techno-paranoia. Without questioning it, technology has transformed all aspects of our lives; in every home; on every desk; in every palm - a plasma screen; a monitor; a Smartphone – a Black Mirror reflecting our 21st Century existence back at us. The series is created and written by Charlie Brooker, and executive produced by Brooker and Annabel Jones.”
All six new episodes premiere on Netflix on October 21.
