Earlier this month, Hugh Grant revealed he had collaborated with Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker on a mockumentary about the past year โ which had otherwise been kept under extremely tight wraps, to the point Brooker himself noted he wasnโt sure what he was allowed to say. Shortly after, Netflix dropped a very brief teaser, hinting that in addition to Grant, such names as Samuel L. Jackson, Joe Keery, and Kumail Nanjiani would be involved. Now, Death To 2020 has its very first trailer.
โ2020. A year so [insert adjective of choice here], even the creators of Black Mirror couldnโt make it up,โ reads the description.
โBut that doesnโt mean they donโt have a little something to add. Death to 2020 is a comedy event that tells the story of the dreadful year that was โ and perhaps still is?โ
โThis landmark documentary-style special weaves together a chorus of narration from some of the worldโs most (fictitious) renowned voices with real-life archival footage spanning the past 12 months.โ
The stacked complete cast of Death To 2020 is as follows:
- Samuel L. Jackson โ โDash Bracketโ (New Yorkerly News Reporter)
- Hugh Grant โ โTennyson Fossโ (Professor of History)
- Kumail Nanjiani โ โBark Multiverseโ (Shreekr CEO)
- Tracey Ullman โ โQueen Elizabeth IIโ (Monarch & Figurehead)
- Samson Kayo โ โPyrex Flaskโ (Scientist)
- Lisa Kudrow โ โJeanetta Grace Susanโ (Non-Official Spokesperson)
- Diane Morgan โ โGemma Nerrickโ (Average Citizen)
- Leslie Jones โ โDr Maggie Gravelโ (Behavioral Psychologist)
- Cristin Milioti โ โKathy Flowersโ (Soccer Mom)
- Joe Keery โ โDuke Gooliesโ (Gig Economy Millennial)
- Laurence Fishburne โ โNarratorโ
For those of you expecting something as bluntly confronting as Black Mirror, you may be in for some disappointment. As Charlie Brooker stated in an interview earlier this year, he believes the world has become far too bleak for entertainment of that variety. Instead, heโs returning to his more comedic-satire roots.
โThose who only know me through Black Mirror may not realize that when not writing speculative sci-fi about people frowning at smartphones, Iโve spent years making comedy shows in the UK โ including many topical comedy specials.โ
โAt the moment, I donโt know what stomach there would be for stories about societies falling apart, so Iโm not working away on any [Black Mirror episodes]โฆ Iโm sort of keen to revisit my comic skill set, so Iโve been writing scripts aimed at making myself laugh.โ
Death To 2020 will be available to stream via Netflix on December 27th.