Themes and Ending Explained
Black Mirror ‘Hang The DJ’: Story and Ending Explained
The Frank and Amy we know in the Black Mirror episode weren’t just using an app but were part of another app altogether. They are virtual constructs of their real selves that were placed in a situation that would supposedly echo how their romance would turn out in the real world. In order to test more accurate results of their relationship, there had to be more than one version of the couple. Interestingly enough, only 998 versions of Frank and Amy in the Black Mirror episode decided to rebel, implying that there other two versions didn’t push through with their intended relationship. Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker explained to Entertainment Weekly just what exactly happens to those versions of the couple:
Now we do see at the end, [the app] runs it 1,000 times and two didn’t rebel. So I would think they would be matched with a random other person and their world would end. We did have a lot of torturous conversations about what’s really going on. We decided it’s a cloud-based system that’s simulating 1,000 different run-throughs of yourself and a potential partner to see how many times you’d rebel against it. And it deliberately is setting a tight framework. And if they do rebel, that means they’re destined to be together. So if you don’t rebel, the system has served its purpose and your reality ends.
And while the algorithm might have brought them together, Frank and Amy’s real-life relationship is just about to start. There is curiosity, excitement, and hope in the way she looks at him from across the room, and while their compatibility might be high, it certainly isn’t perfect. The system merely found a way for them to find one another, but everything else in their relationship depends on how they will personally treat each other. Simulations can only go so far, but in a world as advanced as Black Mirror, fans can only hope that the results prove true in real life. Brooker also had something to say about the ending in the same interview:
I think it’s a very happy moment and I think Tim did a brilliant job of directing it, and Georgina and Joe did a fantastic part playing that final scene. They know they are destined to have a very serious relationship and they’re each other’s chosen ones and I think they go through a gamut of emotions. You see them finding it exciting and taking on the weight of it, and then you see Georgina quite playfully just steps toward him at the very end. I hope the takeaway is that it’s playful and hopeful. So though there’s an algorithm that brought them together, and now they’re about to take the first step on that journey together.
Unlike other episodes in Black Mirror, Hang the DJ actually ends on a lighter note that heavily implies the two will end up getting together. Dating apps have evolved, providing much more accurate results without the cost of the user. This isn’t the first time Black Mirror decided to take on lighter tones as San Junipero shared similar themes from season three. That said, Black Mirror Season 4 is filled with tons of other stories about how technology can either hurt or help humanity in the long run.
