Black Mirror Every Original Draft Of Playtest (& What Changed) Explained

Black Mirror: Every Original Draft Of “Playtest” (& What Changed) Explained

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The original draft of Black Mirror’s season 3, episode 2, “Playtest” underwent several major changes. Here’s every change they made to the episode.

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Black Mirror Every Original Draft Of Playtest (& What Changed) Explained

Charlie Brooker’s dystopian Netflix series Black Mirror season 3, episode 2, “Playtest” made some drastic changes to its script prior to releasing the final product. Arguably, these alterations assisted in making it better than it could’ve been and made it possible for Bandersnatch to accomplish a feat no other installment of the show has before. Here’s every change that was made to “Playtest,” what they could’ve done to the plot, and why they were modified for the final version.

In 2011, the series premiere on the British broadcasting station Channel 4, but was picked up by Netflix shortly after the conclusion of season 2. Brooker believed that this would be the end of the show, which resulted in its highest rated episode, “White Christmas”, starring Jon Hamm. While it was considered its most disturbing, it was blown out of the water by the unsettling nature of season 3, episode 3, “Shut Up And Dance.” As Black Mirror progressed under a new production company, it added more disturbing storylines, well-known celebrities like Miley Cyrus, and even had the opportunity to expand into long works such as the choose your own adventure movie Bandersnatch. Black Mirror season 3 was the first to appear on Netflix and with it came a plethora of episodes that proved to the world that Black Mirror could become the next great dystopian series that now rivals The Twilight Zone.

The season 3, episode 2, “Playtest”, is the one of the few episodes that features a plot that is overtly influenced by the horror genre. As Cooper (Wyatt Russell) signs up to test a new virtual reality video game, it quickly turns from an exciting experience with realistic Whac-a-Mole gameplay to a horrifying adventure through a haunted house. In the midst of his progression through the game, he comes face to face with all of his greatest fears: aging, loss, and Alzheimer’s. Once his phone rings, the cycle of events that took place shortly after the virtual reality chip was installed are all revealed to be the last sparks of his dying brain. While the episode is impeccable as it is now, it wasn’t actually meant to be this way. In fact, it was almost entirely different.

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An Endless Game Of Whac-a-Mole

Black Mirror Every Original Draft Of Playtest (& What Changed) Explained

The biggest change from the original script is the entire plot. The episode was never supposed to be about Cooper going into a haunted house or even going beyond the game of Whac-a-Mole. When the chip is first implanted into the back of his neck, Katie (Wunmi Mosaku, Lovecraft Country) starts the game off small with Whac-a-Mole. It’s a childhood favorite that most people may recall playing at carnivals, amusement parks, play places, and other kid-oriented locations. As the game gets faster and the movements of the virtual moles quickens, Cooper was meant to go into a state of mental instability that would lead him to a room with other people who’ve experienced the exact same thing. Luckily, this plot was changed to what “Playtest” is today. This is a notable improvement, as it’s virtually impossible to imagine a game of Whac-a-Mole being exciting enough for an almost hour long episode.

Breaking The Fourth Wall

Black Mirror Every Original Draft Of Playtest (& What Changed) Explained

One version of the script broke the fourth wall. Cooper was to be informed that he was a character in the Black Mirror series and would have to work through each location to get to the end of the episode. He was meant to interact with previous characters, which is likely why “Playtest” includes so many references to other episodes, such as season 2, episode 2, “White Bear.”

It is possible that they changed this part of the script due to the difficulties that would’ve come with re-hiring actors from previous seasons and episodes. Considering the fact that many of them went on to have successful careers after their roles in Black Mirror, their filming schedules would’ve likely conflicted with that of season 3’s production timeline. Another major reason is that it wasn’t the right time to break the fourth wall. When shows choose to do this, it’s usually a major moment where they open up the universe and complicate it. In the case of Black Mirror, they saved their fourth wall break for Bandersnatch, which was the perfect opportunity to do so, as it was such a momentous release for Black Mirror, and the story itself ties into nearly every episode. While Saito Gaming does appear in later episodes, the fourth wall break would’ve made it virtually impossible to make any future addition to Black Mirror a believable situation in the show’s universe.

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Cooper’s Tragic Death Wasn’t The Original Ending

As important as Cooper’s death is to “Playtest” and its storyline now, it wasn’t originally written into the script. It is unknown what the ending could’ve been had he not received the phone call from his mother, but the fact that it didn’t exist prior is somewhat peculiar. If this plot had not been featured, could Cooper have lived to see the end of the game? Would he have leaked the information he recorded on his phone? While these questions remain unanswered, they highlight the reason why Cooper’s death had to happen. If it hadn’t, it likely would’ve complicated the entire Black Mirror timeline.

The ending of “Playtest” is one of the greatest twists Black Mirror has featured to date. It brings everything full-circle for Cooper as a character and showcases just how horrified he is of becoming like his mother, who lives with Alzheimer’s. Throughout the entirety of the episode, he is told to call her back or to pick up the phone, but he doesn’t out of fear. The haunted house is his mind and his death is a result of Cooper’s inability to reconcile with the fact that he cannot avoid situations, phone calls, and hereditary illnesses forever. As sad as “Playtest” is, it doesn’t come close to Black Mirror’s saddest episode, “The Entire History Of You”, but that doesn’t make it any less heartbreaking. They created a situation where the viewers would hold out hope that Cooper would return home to his mother and they would reconnect, but that never happens. Ultimately, the changes that were made to Black Mirror’s “Playtest” made it a much more nuanced, heartbreaking, and unsettling episode that takes the audience on a rollercoaster of emotional horrors.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/black-mirror-playtest-episode-original-plan-changes-explained/

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