Black Mirror Predictions That Are Coming True

Black Mirror is creepy at first glance, but how much creepier is it if some of their predictions are coming true?

Black Mirror is a Netflix Original show in a genre of its own. Each episode is its own story, independent of one another. The stories told in Black Mirror are suspenseful, satirical, and provocative. It was created as a contemporary version of The Twilight Zone, a sci-fi classic from the 1950s and '60s. Black Mirror’s predictions and observations about humans are similar to its predecessor, but Black Mirror takes a more technology-centered focus on human life.

Black Mirror has developed a cult following with viewers hanging onto every episode and then, ironically, taking to the internet to discuss thoughts and theories. This show challenges the way we view technology and shows that advancements in technology aren’t always the step forward we see them as. Being that the show is set in the present or very near future, it can be very unsettling to watch because the technology in Black Mirror always backfires on its creators and users. The way Black Mirror showcases technological backfires makes it haunting when their technology predictions come true, which has happened more often than most would like to believe. Here are a few Black Mirror predictions that are coming true.

Everyone Is Always Filming

The Black Mirror episode, "White Bear," tells the story of a woman who wakes up unsure of where she is and confused as to why nobody will look up from their phone and acknowledge her. She is being terrorized throughout the episode and nobody will stop filming to help her. Throughout the course of the episode, it is revealed that she is a convicted child murderer and the episode takes place at White Bear Justice Park, a place where people can visit criminals and watch them be psychologically tortured for their crimes.

The truth of this episode isn’t that America is planning to psychologically torture child murderers, but it’s in the reactions of the people in White Bear Justice Park. No matter what happens today, significant or small, it seems like someone is always recording and stuck behind their phones instead of watching life unfold in real time. There have been so many unbelievable events captured because someone had their phone recording in the right place at the right time, but it shouldn’t really be a surprise that somebody was recording because someone always is these days. This episode also holds a mirror up to the notion that if someone sees something horrific happening, they will likely pull out their phone before instead of interfering, and if they do interfere they are recording it all for the Internet.

Social Media and Rating Systems

"Nosedive" is an episode that felt eerily familiar when it came out in 2016 and has only gotten weirder to watch with time. In this episode, people rate each other between one and five stars based on their interactions. These ratings become almost a form of currency, affecting people’s socioeconomic status anywhere from higher-ranked people getting discounts on apartments all the way to not being eligible for medical treatment if someone is ranked poorly.

The episode’s protagonist Lacie is desperate to advance her rankings and is on her way to a high-status wedding which she is sure will boost her rankings. Some unforeseen issues pop up along the way and she reacts poorly, causing her ranking and her mental stability to nosedive until she eventually dips below one star and is imprisoned. Her eye implants are removed, and she is free to be as rude as she wants now that she doesn’t have to rely on rankings.

The main reality of this episode is that social media comparisons are deteriorating the mental health of young people. Having a post do well on Instagram or going viral on TikTok puts people over the moon, but if it’s ignored it can make people feel horrible. The addiction to comparisons on social media also manifests in seeing others with “perfect” lives and feeling like a failure if you’re not going on brand trips or going without the latest trends.

An even scarier truth from this episode is that China has tested a similar program called the Social Credit System where individuals are rated. Those with low scores will be ineligible for any government assistance like subsidies and loans. Even without a ranking system in place, many people suffer from the effects of status and power getting them further in life. People with higher social status get priority in life and those who don’t often slip through the cracks.

Self-Driving Pizza Delivery

In the episode "Crocodile," there is a technology that allows people to see one’s memory from their point of view, unobstructed by bias or memory. This device reads memories as if their eyes are video cameras, and they can’t lie to override the technology. The widespread requirement of this technology would be immensely helpful for losing your keys and for court cases, but there are no leads on development.

The technology from this episode that came true is far less intense. In the episode, one of the characters sees a self-driving pizza delivery truck hit someone outside her window. In 2021, Domino’s launched a fully autonomous pizza delivery service similar to the Black Mirror episode, sans hitting pedestrians. There have been other developments in self-driving cars in recent years including driverless Ubers, Tesla’s semi-automated highway driving, and self-parking cars.

Power Generation

"Fifteen Million Merits" takes place in a community where humans on stationary bikes power the community and make their wages by doing so. They can buy their way into participating in a talent show where they can win a better life for themselves, but most are stuck peddling away their futures, literally.

At first glance, one might guess that the satirical aspect of this episode is the notion that being gifted in one way or another can sometimes be the only ticket out of a bad situation, and while that’s true, it’s not the only thing this episode hit on the head. At MIT, scientists have been developing wearable technology that allows people to generate their own power. There is also a prison in Brazil that allows some of the inmates to generate power by peddling on stationary bikes. In turn, they received reduced sentences.

Freemium Games

In the same episode, "Fifteen Million Merits," the citizens cycle away to earn their keep and earn a digital currency called merits. They use the merits they generate to pay for their housing, but also for food and entertainment. All of their lives are spent in front of screens, from the moment they wake up until they go to sleep. The merits they earn can allow them to have more autonomy in what they view. Merits can be used to skip ads, buy tickets for the talent show, and are needed to survive.

Freemium gaming is oddly similar. In this kind of gaming, players must essentially have an in-game job that is monotonous and continuous in order to earn game money. This money is essential for players in the games, the same way it is for people in this episode. Shockingly, after their episode came out, freemium gaming has taken off and gotten much more popular.

Cancel Culture

"Hated in the Nation" centers on two detectives as they attempt to solve a mysterious string of deaths. The one thing all the people have in common is how hated they were on social media right before their death. It is revealed that an online Twitter brigade votes on who deserves to die by using the "#Deathto" hashtag. After the most hated victim is chosen, Autonomous Drone Insects (ADIs) carry out the punishment with a fatal sting.

In this episode, ADIs are initially developed to offset the near extinction of bees in order to save the environment from total ruin. However, they are also being used to surveil citizens, so when they are hacked into to be used in this "#Deathto" movement, officials attempt to deactivate them, resulting in a malfunction that causes the ADIs to kill everyone who used the hashtag.

This episode focuses heavily on cancel culture. While nobody is murdering celebrities, influencers, viral celebrities, or public figures for their wrongdoings, they are canceling them, which can kill their career, social life, and at worst possibly cause self-harm. When this episode came out in 2016, cancel culture was taking off and today this episode could not be more topical. Additionally, around the world bees are in danger of extinction, and if they went, so would the ecosystem. As a result, drones have been developed to supplement bees’ pollination efforts. Hopefully, if they are ever necessary they won’t be used for surveillance and murder.

Cybercrimes and Scams

This Black Mirror episode focuses on a teenage boy who is blackmailed into committing strange acts, some even criminal after he is hacked. The blackmailer hacked his computer camera and captured footage of him doing something unsavory to himself. If he doesn’t comply, they have threatened to leak the footage they have.

"Shut Up and Dance" was essentially a window into the future when it comes to online scams. Today, cybercriminals can hack into web cameras and Alexa devices, then use their findings maliciously to blackmail innocent and scared people. Other similar scams today that are similar include voice cloning to call loved ones from what appears to be your contact begging for them to pay someone off for your safety. While it wasn’t a new concept when this episode came out, it’s easy to believe this episode inspired some cybercriminals.

Blocking People From Your Life

The "White Christmas" episode of Black Mirror focuses on two men living in a remote cabin opening up to each other after living together for five years. One of the men, Joe, opens up about how his wife blocked him after they argued about her pregnancy. After he wanted her to get an abortion, she blocks him, literally. From that day forward, he can only see a gray silhouette of her and after the child is born, that silhouette extends to her too. The block is only lifted after his ex-wife dies in a train accident. Then, he can finally see the child that’s been hidden from him for years, only to discover that her birth was the product of an affair. From there, the episode spirals off into Black Mirror insanity.

With the help of social media, you can block people from your life entirely, they won’t see anything you post, and you can mute them so you don’t have to see them either. Google+ took that a step further and a step closed to real-life blocking. Google+ allowed users to virtually erase people from photos and profiles, making them more invisible virtually than a gray silhouette, as if they never existed.

Sentient Robots

"Rachel, Jack, and Ashley Too" tells the story of a shy girl who lost her mother. Instead of getting her a teddy bear, or a therapist, to talk to, they get her Moxie, a robotic toy version of pop star Ashley O (Miley Cyrus). This robotic friend listens to her and engages appropriately unlike a pull-string toy. The only issue is that her Moxie accidentally gets hooked up to a device that the real Ashley O’s brain is trapped in.

A responsive robot has been a dream since The Jetsons, but today developers are closer than ever. Amazon has an Alexa device that is responsive, can follow you around, and perform tasks. The mishap in this episode is a fear that a lot of people have about robot development: when or if they become sentient. In the case of Rachel, Jack, and Ashley Too, the robot was not self-aware, just connected to a real person’s mind. In developing AI-responsive technology, scientists have been able to make the software remember, adapt, and react just like the original Moxie could.

The Ability to Record Every Moment

"The Entire History of You" is about a world where people have a device called a grain implanted, and it records footage from their eyes and ears. This technology can be used to prepare a big test or performance review, but the controversy in this episode is that it can be used to remember and reminisce on entire relationships, including the graphic parts. The memories are visceral and watching them back is almost like reliving them. The device can be removed, but most of the time when it is removed it’s someone gouging another and doing it in a malicious way, which can cause blindness.

After watching this episode, it’s clear that this technology is a blessing and a curse. Regardless of Black Mirror’s warning, Google is developing Google glasses to record one’s sight. There is also the development of a device called a Kapture which is a wristband that records continuously. Samsung has gotten the closest to many any Black Mirror prediction. They have early designs of a contact lens that would perform in the exact same way the grain does in "The Entire History of You" which is almost as exciting as it is terrifying.

Black Mirror is available to stream on Netflix.