Death to 2020: Jackson, Kudrow and more join Netflix mockumentary

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Netflix and the creators of Black Mirror, Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones, have unveiled a spoil of additions to the cast of their upcoming mockumentary Death to 2020. Among those set to join the cast are Samuel L. Jackson (The Long Kiss Goodnight, Deep Blue Sea), Lisa Kudrow (Space Force, Friends), and Leslie Jones (Saturday Night Live, Ghostbusters). Also set to appear in the duo's first project for Netflix are Joe Keery (Stranger Things), Kumail Nanjiani (Silicon Valley, The Eternals), Tracey Ullman (The Tracey Ullman Show, Onward) Cristin Milioti (How I Met Your Mother, Palm Springs), and Diane Morgan (Me Before You, Mandy) Samson Kayo (Truth Seekers).

Here's the official description for Death to 2020, per Netflix:

2020: A year so [insert adjective of choice here], even the creators of Black Mirror couldn’t make it up… but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a little something to add. Death to 2020 is a comedy event that tells the story of the dreadful year that was — and perhaps still is? This landmark documentary-style special weaves together some of the world’s most (fictitious) renowned voices with real-life archival footage spanning the past 12 months.

Created and executive produced by Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones and produced by Alison Marlow, Death to 2020 also stars Hugh Grant, who recently told New York magazine that he will play a “repellent” historian in the special.

It comes as no surprise to me that the creators of Black Mirror would choose to lampoon this past year as a part of their next project. After all, between the ongoing pandemic, failed leadership in some of the most prominent parts of the globe, and solutions to the world's most glaring problems still well out of reach, 2020 feels as if it's ripe for parody. I say this only because laughter can often be the best medicine for a desperate situation and mean no disrespect to those we've lost as a result of the global dumpster fire that is 2020.

While it feels as if we've been living in an episode of Black Mirror since mid-March, I'll be curious to see what Brooker and Jones bring to Netflix with this timely mockumentary. Will you be checking it out, or does this project hit a bit too close to home for you? Let us know your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below.