The Black Mirror casting directors deserve a raise
Netflix
In hindsight, the best part of this episode is when Paul tries to put an end to Lacie’s (Bryce Dallas Howard’s) horrendous wedding toast. Lacie, who is at the end of her rope at this point, panics and pulls a knife on him. The idea of Lacie threatening Jack Reacher with a knife is pretty funny, even if Alan Ritchson wasn’t quite as buff and intimidating at this point in his career.
It seems clear that nobody involved in “Nosedive” had any idea how famous Ritchson would become a few years later, but part of the charm of “Black Mirror” is that the show is filled with largely-unknown actors who would soon make it big. Season 1 featured Daniel Kaluuya before his “Get Out” rise to fame, and season 2 featured Domhnall Gleeson shortly before he starred in “About Time” and “Ex Machina.”
When these episodes first came out, the unknown quality of most of their actors helped to make the stories feel extra immersive, because viewers felt like they were watching regular everyday people deal with these sci-fi problems. In hindsight, however, it’s crazy how star-studded these early low-budget episodes now seem. “The Entire History of You” casually had the future Thirteenth Doctor as a co-lead, while future “Black Panther” star Letitia Wright co-led “Black Museum.” Though the celebrity casting in the more recent “Black Mirror” seasons is fun, it was more interesting when it felt like the show was constantly discovering new talent, not just picking faces people already know.
