Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker is making a four-part detective crime series for Netflix; it’s currently in production.
The untitled project is “a profoundly serious, stunningly original crime thriller in which a tormented detective from the Northern city of Bleakford ventures down to London on a mission to catch a ritualistic serial killer before they run out of people to kill,” the logline reads.
It then warns: “Contains blood and frowning.” Those two often go together.
The series stars Paddy Considine (House of the Dragon, MobLand), Georgina Campbell (Barbarian, Watchers) and Lena Headey (Game of Thrones, The Abandons). Probably no dragons in this one.
“I’m beyond thrilled to be saying these words for the press release,” Brooker said in a statement. “I’ve dreamt of providing a quote ever since I was a young foetus, and now here I am doing it. I’d pinch myself, but like all of us, I’m terrified that if I do that, I might wake up and discover 2025 has all been a magical dream. Please watch my show. I am begging you.”
Brooker wrote the series with Ben Caudell, Jason Hazeley, Emer Kenny, Daniel Maier and Joel Morris; additional material by Victoria Asare Archer. He executive produces it with Jessica Rhoades and Annabel Jones. Mark Kinsella is co-executive producer and Richard Webb is producer. Al Campbell directs the miniseries.
Brooker had recently teased the project in an interview, as he was working on the yet-unannounced series when he chatted with The Hollywood Reporter about the Emmy nominations for the latest season of Black Mirror, and also weighed in on his recent exit from his and Jones’ Netflix-owned banner Broke & Bones.
“I am doing something at the moment that we haven’t announced yet. It is not Black Mirror. It’s very different; it’s using my other skill set. My other hat I sometimes wear,” he said when discussing the challenge of pumping out more Black Mirror stories amid the fast-changing tech landscape. “The thing about Black Mirror now is there is definitely a shorter gap between conceptualizing a Black Mirror story and the real world, unfortunately, serving up something quite similar. I’m in a bit of an arms race with reality.”
As for season eight, he assured fans that Black Mirror’s future on the streamer still remains bright. “Well, it’s Black Mirror, so the future is looking bleak. But yes, bleakly bright.”