Fans of "Black Mirror" were thrilled when Netflix came out with "Bandersnatch" last Friday, Dec. 28. Many viewers thought that this was the single episode for the show's fifth season but "Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker confirmed more episodes are still coming in 2019.
Speaking with New York Times, Brooker said that the show known for its dystopian and bleak themes will have a different flavor in the upcoming installment. There will be more optimistic episodes for "Black Mirror" season 5 after the fantastic response to its award-winning episode "San Junipero" from season 3 and "USS Callister" from season 4.
Netflix also confirmed in an email to Ars Technica that "Black Mirror" season 5 is still coming in the later part of 2019. Though the streaming platform confirmed the show's renewal more than a year ago, its production was delayed because "Bandersnatch" took Brooker and his team the entire 2018 to finish.
"Bandersnatch" is the very first "Black Mirror" feature that incorporates a choose-your-own-adventure format. Viewers not only get to watch the story unfold but they also get to pick its outcome based on different scenarios.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Bandersnatch" has five definitive conclusions. However, Brooker said there could be 10 to 12 endings, especially if the viewers were able to spot and unlock some golden eggs in the story.
Creating "Bandersnatch" was such a complicated process that Brooker said they had heated debates during production. The creativity of this particular production consumed so much time and energy because they needed to splice together different video contents. They also had to use a different approach from various departments involved in putting a show together, which necessitated setting aside work for "Black Mirror" season 5 until "Bandersnatch" was done.
Watching "Bandersnatch" is actually like a playing a role-playing video game. There is no right or wrong path to the end of this story since it is the interactive experience that matters more, whatever viewers decide to pick as they watch the program. As such, Brooker said they will not be releasing a linear version of this episode because this would imply that it's the "right" ending when it really all depends on who is watching the series.
Meanwhile, Brooker also confirmed that "Black Mirror" season 5 will no longer contain any interactive episodes as complicated as "Bandersnatch." Not much is known about the upcoming season but Miley Cyrus revealed that she shot scenes for one of the episodes.
