Charlie Brooker has revealed the inspiration behind new Black Mirror episode, ‘Hang The DJ’.
The episode, which was released on Netflix at the end of 2017 as part of the show’s fourth series, looks at a futuristic dating service that sends people on a series of dates as it learns more about them. Once it has enough information, it claims to pair you up with “the one”.
In a new featurette produced by the streaming service, Brooker said the inspiration came from a popular music streaming platform. “What if there was a service that was a bit like Spotify for dates?” he said. “It could generate a playlist of relationships. It would tell you who you were going to be going out with next and for how long.”
He continued: “The system is learning from your reaction to being paired with all these different types of people. Once its figured its learnt enough about you, it will then pair you up with the ultimate soulmate.
“In a way, it’s a world in which all your romantic worries are kind of taken care of,” Brooker added. “It’s like a codified version of real life.”
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Speaking to NME last year, Brooker described the episode as “the closest we get to a rom-com”, and said it wasn’t overly inspired by the rise of dating apps like Tinder because he doesn’t “really know what it is”.