Netflix Drops Final Interactive Hits: ‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’ & ‘Kimmy Schmidt’

Netflix is set to remove its last two interactive features, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend, from its streaming service. According to updates on the What’s on Netflix website, these specials will no longer be available after May 12.

This move signifies the end of an era for Netflix’s interactive content as the company pivots towards new ventures in mobile and cloud-based gaming, as reported by the source.

Netflix has not issued a statement regarding these changes.

Since the debut of interactive programming with Puss in Book in 2017, the selection has dwindled. By late 2024, only four such specials were left, following the removal of Ranveer vs Wild with Bear Grylls and You vs. Wild in January of that year.

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, released in December 2018, was a pioneering project by Charlie Brooker and directed by David Slade. It features Fionn Whitehead, Will Poulter, and Craig Parkinson in a narrative where viewers make choices for Stefan, a young programmer working on a video game adaptation of a fantasy novel in 1984.

The interactive special Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend came out unexpectedly months after the original series, created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock and starring Ellie Kemper, concluded its four-year run. This special sees the return of the original cast including Kemper, Tituss Burgess, Jane Krakowski, and Carol Kane, where the villainous Reverend, played by Jon Hamm, concocts a nefarious scheme that Kimmy must thwart to reach her wedding on time. The fate of the characters is in the hands of the viewers.

Interestingly, the discontinuation of Bandersnatch follows the recent release of Black Mirror Season 7, which includes an episode that revisits the unique interactive format and features Will Poulter reprising his role as the eccentric game designer.

The future availability of these interactive projects, or their presence in different formats, remains uncertain. Given the specialized technology required for their interactive elements, it seems unlikely they will be adapted in other ways.