Since its launch, Black Mirror has been a magnet for big names. The show has seen performances from the likes of Miley Cyrus, Jon Hamm, Salma Hayek, Jodie Whittaker, and Michael Cera, all stepping into Charlie Brooker’s chilling tech-centric tales.
Now, fresh famous faces are joining the cast for the Netflix hit’s season seven. Chris O’Dowd couldn’t be happier to dive into the Black Mirror world for the eagerly awaited new episodes.
Doctor Who legend Peter Capaldi and The Crown star Emma Corrin are also among the established actors set to make waves in the anthology series’ seventh season.
Chris, who shot to fame in the IT Crowd actor, has been a fan of Charlie Brooker’s dark and twisted stories for some time – their careers having previously intertwined. “I’ve known Charlie, just to say hello to, since we were both working at Channel 4,” shared Chris.
He even got a sneak peek at the show’s previous season before getting his role. “I watched a few of the episodes from last season before I knew it was going to come my way. I’d seen ‘Joan is Awful’ a few weeks before and it was so clever and funny.”
Chris is set to shine in Common People, the premiere episode of the upcoming season. He’ll portray Mike, a construction worker pushed to the edge as his wife Amanda (played by Rashida Jones) faces a grave illness.
In a bid to save her, they turn to a revolutionary but risky subscription-based life-extension implant. “It all goes wrong from there,” teases Chris. And true to Black Mirror form, we can expect a harrowing journey.
Tracee Ellis Ross dazzles in her guest appearance as Gaynor, a captivating yet ethically dubious character pushing the tech that could keep a couple together. Tracee shares, “She is selling this from a very personal experience that she’s had,” adding, “But in this story, she is the bad guy.”
Charlie Brooker, the mastermind behind the series, praises his cast: “A great actor always makes the writing seem better,” he remarks. “It elevates it. In this season, we’ve got lots of people you know like Issa Rae, Paul Giamatti and Cristin Milioti.”
Delving into his own character, Peter Capaldi reveals, “I play a computer scientist named Cameron who gets a little too involved in his work,” speaking about his role in the episode titled Plaything.
With his 67th birthday just around the corner, Peter expresses his enthusiasm for the show: “I like Black Mirror, so I’m thrilled to be involved in it,” he shares. “I’m a big fan of Charlie’s. We’ve met before on other occasions, and I was very happy that they asked me to be in this.”
The episode Plaything introduces us to Cameron, portrayed by Peter as a dishevelled, long-haired man in trainers, caught pinching booze from an off-licence. Once in custody, he confesses to being engrossed in a game he can’t quit.
Peter’s portrayal is complemented by Lewis Gribben, a rising star from Glasgow, who plays a younger Cameron in the episode’s flashbacks.
Working together brought an unexpected challenge. “At the readthrough, we were sitting next to each other, and our accents began to harmonise a little, so we started to tune, vocally. I thought, ‘I’ll just lean into Lewis.'”.
He further added: “I’m very lucky that I’ve had Lewis. He started before me, so he did all the work, and he is brilliant. I just leant into trying to be like him. I joined a week after they’d been filming.”
However, season 7 isn’t solely about tech mishaps. One episode, Bête Noire, delves into psychological horror, examining the dynamics of a toxic friendship.
Newbie Siena Kelly stars as Maria, a successful development executive for a sweet company whose life is thrown into chaos when a former school friend, Verity (Rosy McEwen), reappears. “There’s something strange about this newcomer, who was always a misfit at school and Maria can’t quite put her finger on it,” Charlie reveals.
“There’s a gaslighting element at play, it’s about the little details. I’m very intrigued with how it goes down with people because it’s trying to capture the feeling you get when being gaslit. People who have been through that experience will relate.”
Charlie Brooker is renowned for mixing established stars with emerging talent, and this season is no exception. “We have Lewis, Rosy and Siena but also Patsy Ferran – they’re all people who are less known but they’re definitely on the rise,” he shares. “Like when we had Daniel Kaluuya before he did Get Out.”
For the first time in Black Mirror history, season 7 includes a sequel. Creator Charlie Brooker was so captivated by the universe he created in season 4’s USS Callister that he decided to revisit it.
Cristin Milioti returns as Nanette Cole, a coder navigating the consequences of video game genius Robert Daly’s (Jesse Plemons) demise.
Brooker reveals, “Sometimes I’m writing an episode, and I’m disappointed I have to say goodbye to all these characters, and this is definitely one of those,
“We had such a great ensemble cast, and from the moment the credits rolled on the first one, I was like, I want to do it again, I want to keep telling that story.”
With its characteristic blend of high-profile talent, newcomers, and innovative storytelling, Black Mirror season 7 promises to be another gripping exploration of technology’s darker side and human nature.