Season seven of 'Black Mirror' is now streaming on Netflix. Issa Rae and Awkwafina spoke to The Hollywood Reporter all about their episode, "Hotel Reverie," while Jimmi Simpson opened up about returning to the show for the "USS Callister" sequel episode. "Hotel Reverie" is incredibly timely, as it deals with the use of A.I. in movie making. Rae and Awkwafina opened up about their fears surrounding the use of A.I. in Hollywood. Plus, all three stars weighed in on why they think 'Black Mirror' continues to connect with viewers.
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00:00In some ways this feels like a preview of what's to come or what is now.
00:03People are constantly saying it feels like we're living in a Black Mirror episode and we are in so many ways.
00:10Season 7 of Black Mirror just hit Netflix.
00:13We spoke to a few stars from the new season of the sci-fi anthology series all about their episodes.
00:19Issa Rae and Awkwafina star in the episode titled Hotel Reverie.
00:25Ark ready? Feedback ready?
00:27Supervision ready?
00:29Forecasting ready?
00:30Prep titles.
00:31Titles prepped. Simulation running.
00:35The two actresses revealed what drew them to the story and the world of Black Mirror.
00:39I'm a huge fan of Black Mirror and have my favorite episodes and honestly once I got the call I was excited before reading the script.
00:48And then when I got the script I was even more excited because it reminded me.
00:53I have elements of some of my favorite episodes.
00:55Nosedive and I also love San Junipero which this episode reminded me of and Star King Vipers as well.
01:05I felt like it was a perfect, not blend, but it called back to both of those for me.
01:13I love Black Mirror.
01:16There are certain episodes that have deeply stayed with me that, you know, I am a huge fan of it.
01:22So when the call came and I was even able to meet Charlie, I was so, I was just like, I just, anything.
01:29Like literally anything, anything you want.
01:32And then hearing like what the episode was about, its relevancy to like right now, I absolutely fell in love with it.
01:39And I think that it's always great to have a piece of like content that kind of has really fully realized female characters that you can kind of relate to universally.
01:50The episode imagines how AI could be used in moviemaking, a hot topic in the industry in recent years.
01:57The stars weighed in on their concerns about the use of AI in Hollywood.
02:00I think the issue is when things are used without our consent and when it's used to exclude writers, actors, whatever it is throughout, from the process.
02:16You know, this industry is already like hanging on a string just in terms of its viability here.
02:23And so in some ways AI gives an excuse for people to, for corporations to cut corners.
02:29It is kind of, kind of scary.
02:31And I think that it needs to be done responsibly.
02:34You know, I think it's all about who's, who's helming it and, and, and, you know, who are they kind of jeopardizing, you know what I mean?
02:40Like with, with, with their use of it.
02:42Elsewhere this season, Jimmy Simpson returns for the USS Callister sequel episode USS Callister Into Infinity.
02:49Like DNA samples that he kept in these little Ziploc baggies in his fridge.
02:53And they all have our names on them.
02:55Look, that's my name.
02:55Jesus Christ.
02:56There was Nate's name.
02:57There was a whole bunch of us from the office.
03:00Even you.
03:01Wait, I was in there.
03:02He opened up about revisiting that world and how the new episode builds on what we saw back in season four.
03:07It was like being able to go back to one of your favorite memories in school and do it all over again.
03:16Except now you have even more experience, more perspective, and more gratitude for the fun that you're having.
03:23So, yeah, it was, and it's something that Charlie Brooker had been thinking about for years, sending ideas and scripts.
03:32And, and, and when this one came together, it just felt right.
03:37It was just one of those things where all the, all the questions that, that needed to be answered were answered.
03:42And then some, whereas most sequels are kind of an extension of a story, you know.
03:48And it's, oh, it was popular.
03:49People like it.
03:50Let's spend more time with these characters because we love them.
03:52This was more of like a, they found a way to unpack the center of the initial piece and find the question we all didn't know we needed to know the answer to.
04:02Black Mirror is set in a dystopian near future and known for exploring how technology affects our lives.
04:07The stars revealed why they think viewers are so drawn to the series.
04:11I think they see a lot of themselves in the characters.
04:16They see a lot of our, our own futures in these high concepts, especially with Black Mirror, whereas, you know, Twilight Zone was like, what, what could have been?
04:27Charlie is like, don't you guys see what's coming?
04:30We're all addicted to technology.
04:33We, we see what it makes us do.
04:38And in some ways, this feels like a preview of what's to come or what is now.
04:43People are constantly saying, it feels like we're living in a Black Mirror episode.
04:46And we are in so many ways.
04:49Black Mirror does something so unique where it forces you to confront things that are a part of our reality
04:57and brings it to a place where we, where we have never even thought we can ask these questions.
05:03I like, I, I'm fascinated with like this sense of like this quiet doom after every episode.
05:09But then also there are certain episodes that really are deeply emotional and, and really like explore the human condition in a way that I really haven't seen a lot.
05:18For more on the new season of Black Mirror, go to THR.com.
05:22This is the Hollywood Reporter News.