Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker recently enlisted the help of AI chatbot ChatGPT to create an episode of his popular anthology series. The experiment, however, didn't quite pan out as hoped, with Brooker telling Empire Magazine the AI's efforts were, in his words, "shit." According to him, ChatGPT churned out a seemingly plausible script that, upon closer inspection, felt like a blend of recycled Black Mirror plots, lacking true originality.
"I've toyed around with ChatGPT a bit," Brooker reveals in the new issue of Empire. "The first thing I did was type 'generate Black Mirror episode' and it comes up with something that, at first glance, reads plausibly, but on second glance, is shit. Because all it's done is look up all the synopses of Black Mirror episodes, and sort of mush them together. Then if you dig a bit more deeply you go, 'Oh, there's not actually any real original thought here.' It's [1970s impressionist] Mike Yarwood — there's a topical reference."
On the upside, Brooker found value in the AI's work, claiming it highlighted several recurring tropes in the series, prompting him to shake things up for future episodes. In other news, the highly anticipated sixth season of Black Mirror is on its way, featuring an all-star lineup including Aaron Paul, Kate Mara, and Josh Hartnett. Brooker spilled some beans about an episode titled "Beyond the Sea," a high-stakes, tech-infused adventure set in an alternate 1969.
"[It's] sort of dystopian past, present and future," Brooker told Empire about the installment. "I had the plot idea first and then, at one point, I thought what if I set this in the late '60s? That'd be, like, disruptive and cool! And then when you actually come to write it, you realize, 'Oh, hang on, if this is a different time and everyone in it is from that time, that actually informs how the characters are thinking and behaving.' But I don't think there was a deliberate rejection of nostalgia, so much as it was just a fun thing to do."
The new season will hit Netflix on June 15.
