Black Mirror’s Charlie Brooker won’t watch Severance

Some have drawn comparisons between the eerie sci-fi worlds of Black Mirror and Severance
Creator Charlie Brooker insists he won’t watch it
Black Mirror’s seventh season is about to drop

Charlie Brooker won’t watch Severance, no matter how many times you ask.

The shows have been compared to each other fairly often, even though their origin stories are rather different. Severance already had a large budget and significant cast, plus the backing of a major streamer. Black Mirror, meanwhile, was a word-of-mouth success beginning on the UK channel Channel 4 before Netflix picked it up.

“The only reason I won’t watch Severance is because people come up to me and say, You should watch Severance, you’ll love it, it’s like Black Mirror., but it’s much better,” he said at a recent panel event. “I don’t want to hear that!”

Brooker did acknowledge that he takes it as a compliment if people make the comparison because Black Mirror may have influenced Severance.

Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker explains why he’ll never watch Severance… 🤣 @blackmirror @NetflixUK pic.twitter.com/tLHtBphT3E
— Metro Entertainment (@Metro_Ents) April 8, 2025

I mean, it’s delightful, you’ve done something that’s influenced people or inspired people, even if the show that they make is apparently better,” he said.

What can we expect from the new season of Black Mirror?

The seventh season of Black Mirror drops on Netflix tomorrow (10 April). It consists of six new episodes.

One of the biggest revelations from season 7 is that it will feature Black Mirror’s first ever sequel episode. Season four’s beloved opener USS Callister is getting a follow-up, entitled USS Callister: Into Infinity.

This hotly-anticipated sequel episode will close out Black Mirror season 7 and see stars like Cristin Milioti, Jimmi Simpson and Billy Magnussen return for the ride.

“Fans of the show will recognize the cast of a certain spaceship from one of our episodes reappearing,” Brooker said when the episode was announced. “We’ve done a sequel for the first time in Black Mirror history. Normally, I kill off all the characters at the end of an episode, and I kept some of ’em alive. I’m growing as a human.”

The other episodes are called Common People, Bête Noire, Hotel Reverie, Plaything and Eulogy.