Charlie Brooker is back on deck.

By David Craig

Published: Friday, 15 March 2024 at 10:28 AM


Black Mirror has officially been renewed for a seventh season on Netflix, which will include the anthology drama’s first ever sequel episode – continuing the story of one of its most celebrated entries.

The Star Trek-inspired USS Callister took place inside a multiplayer online game (or MMO), where its co-founder and top programmer Robert Daly (Jesse Plemons) imagines himself as the captain of an adventuring starship.

This being Black Mirror, it should be no surprise to mention that things take a dark turn, with Daly’s behaviour becoming increasingly abusive as the episode progresses.

Without going into excessive detail, let’s just say that things don’t end well for him.

The announcement of a USS Callister sequel came last night as part of the Next on Netflix event, with the synopsis seeming to suggest that Plemons won’t be returning.

It read: “Robert Daly is dead, but for the crew of the USS Callister, their problems are just beginning.”

Other notable guest stars from USS Callister who could well reprise their roles include Cristin Milioti (Palm Springs), Michaela Coel (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Billy Magnussen (Road House) and Aaron Paul (Westworld).

Breaking Bad alum Paul had only a voice role in USS Callister, playing the unseen Gamer691, but went on to appear in the flesh as a different character for Black Mirror’s season 6 episode Beyond the Sea.

That chapter was deemed one of the brighter spots of the latest run, along with the highly publicised Joan Is Awful, but overall the reception was lukewarm – as was the case for the three-part fifth season.

Jesse Plemons in USS Callister
USS Callister.
Netflix

While it could very well continue attracting big name stars, Black Mirror needs to deliver the compelling stories that audience fell in love with in order to secure its future in the long-term.

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Here’s hoping that creator Charlie Brooker and his team can pull it out of the bag this time.

Six new episodes of Black Mirror will be streaming on Netflix sometime in 2025 – check out the announcement teaser below, which features the USS Callister theme song.