Black Mirror's USS Callister sequel 'went through various iterations'

The premiere episode of season 4 aired back in 2017 and went down a storm with fans, not least because of its Star Trek inspiration, chilling performance from Jesse Plemons and stellar casting that included Michaela Coel, Cristin Milioti, Aaron Paul and Billy Magnussen.

Well, it turns out that, actually, despite being the first ever Black Mirror sequel, this season 7 follow-up to USS Callister has been in the works for quite some time now - and in different forms.

Chatting to The Hollywood Reporter, series creator Charlie Brooker revealed: "This has been brewing for actually quite a long time. And it’s partly because of the way that it ends."

He continued: "The first one ends like you could just carry that story on and follow where they go now. So it was always like, 'Hmm, I’m going to do that.' It was something we were looking at for quite a long time.

"There were various iterations it went through, various versions we wanted to do and were discussing on and off for several years. But there are a lot of schedules to sort out, and then the pandemic got in the way."

Brooker added: "It was something that looked like it wasn’t going to happen, and so I was delighted when it did. So, it’s been a minute. But even writing the characters is a luxury I don’t often get.

"I’ve never had it before on Black Mirror, to have a character that survives beyond one episode! So that’s been a lot of fun, and then seeing them all on set has been fantastic."

As for whether all or only some of the cast will be reprising their roles, we'll have to wait and see - as Brooker remained tight-lipped about the possibility of Plemons's Robert Daly making a return, merely saying: "You’ll see."

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However, the initial announcement of a USS Callister sequel didn't seem to signal a return for Plemons's character, with it reading: "Robert Daly is dead, but for the crew of the USS Callister, their problems are just beginning."

As of now, we do know that filming on that Callister sequel has wrapped, and that the six new episodes of Black Mirror will be released sometime in 2025, with Brooker teasing about the range of themes in the upcoming season: "I think we have a really good mix."

Although the reception to the latest season was certainly varied, the episodes nonetheless got everyone talking, and signalled a first for Brooker's Red Mirror label, which saw Anjana Vasan and Paapa Essiedu take on a '70s-set supernatural horror in Demon '79.

Here's to crossing our fingers for more weird, wonderful and head-scratching Black Mirror instalments!

Black Mirror seasons 1-6 are available to stream on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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