What is 'Red Mirror'? 'Black Mirror' Season 6 hints at shift to true horror genre with 'Demon 79'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Netflix's 'Black Mirror' Season 6 is all set to come back after 4-year hiatus with five interesting episodes. The hit series, which premiered in 2011, often dealt with the negative effects of technological and scientific progress on society.
While Season 6 offers a similar look at the dystopian future, there are two episodes that take a look at the past. The episode 'Beyond the Sea' is set in the alternate year of 1969 and the final episode of the season 'Demon 79' is set in 1979. The episode 'Demon 79' generated more interest due to the existence of 'Red Mirror,' which gave the impression that this season might venture into horror territory as well.
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What is the 'Red Mirror' in 'Demon 79' episode?
After the first four episodes introduced a familiar format, 'Black Mirror' turns to horror in the final episode. The trailer for Season 6 at the end immediately flickers like a film reel and with the sound of a projector driving the title card, 'And Red Mirror presents' is mentioned, which seems like a trailer for a horror movie.
Although series creator Charlie Brooker was extremely tight-lipped, the teaser only follows Anjana Vasan and her murderous adventure, which looks like a horror comedy from the '70s. While the most common explanation for 'Red Mirror' is that it is a fake movie production, there is also speculation that alternate universe concepts are involved. There is also a possibility that the banner of 'Red Mirror' indicates that the series is no longer limited to the sci-fi label and is exploring horror dimensions, Slash Film reports. However, this banner completely differentiates this episode from the others. The banner, the title of the episode, and the premise all point to one hell of a horror episode overall.
Charlie Brooker used ChatGPT while filming 'Black Mirror'
Brooker also mentioned that he tried to take the help of AI software ChatGPT in writing an episode for 'Black Mirror' but he was left extremely disappointed reports New York Post. "I’ve toyed around with ChatGPT a bit," he said. He went on to say, "The first thing I did was type ‘generate ‘Black Mirror’ episode,’ and it comes up with something that, at first glance, reads plausibly, but on second glance, is s**t." It has not been confirmed whether 'Red Mirror' is actually a reference to ChatGPT because Brooker has chosen to remain quiet and not reveal any further details.
Brooker further went ahead to explain how ChatGPT actually works and added, "Because all it’s done is look up all the synopses of ‘Black Mirror’ episodes, and sort of mush them together. Then if you dig a bit more deeply you go, ‘Oh, there’s not actually any real original thought here". The Season 6 of 'Black Mirror' starts streaming on June 15, 2023, on Netflix.