Netflix’s The Influencer likened to Black Mirror thanks to ‘weird’ electronic neck tags
Netflix’s The Influencer features 77 influencers and streamers from across Korea. When the contestants were introduced, they each wore unusual electronic neck tags and “looked like AI characters”. Korea’s top social media stars compete in challenges designed to test their ability on The Influencer. Influence determines your value and authority, and relevance leads to money, […]
Netflix’s The Influencer features 77 influencers and streamers from across Korea. When the contestants were introduced, they each wore unusual electronic neck tags and “looked like AI characters”.
Korea’s top social media stars compete in challenges designed to test their ability on The Influencer. Influence determines your value and authority, and relevance leads to money, on the Netflix competition.
The Influencer likened to Black Mirror
The Influencer has been likened to creepy drama series, Black Mirror, which is also on Netflix. While The Influencer is completely real, Black Mirror is a drama based on an abstrusely dystopian future.
Individuals grapple with the manipulative effects of cutting edge technology in their personal lives and behaviours in Black Mirror, similarly to the way social media is the main focus of The Influencer cast.
One fan wrote, “I hope I’m not the only who finds this genuinely dehumanizing,” while another penned, “now this is weird , this is a real black mirror show,” with many questioning the “dog tags”.
‘Weird’ electronic neck tags feature
During the introduction of each of The Influencer competitors, they wore an electronic neck tag featuring their amount of social media followers. Juice Seyeon, for example, had ‘159K’ on her tag.
Each of the 77 contestants has to wear an electronic tag around their neck throughout the show. One participant asks, “What is this?â after getting his tag, adding, âI didnât know it was going to be like thisâŚâ
YouTuber BJ Changhyun asks, as he is issued a neck collar, âWhat does the number mean?â A leaderboard that ranks them by follower numbers suddenly transforms that number into a monetary figure.
Contestants ‘look like AI’
Juice Seyeon was described as “looking like an AI character” when she walked in. One viewer wrote, “This is like a black mirror show. Itâs crazy but I still watch it,” while another said it’s a “real-life simulation”.
Even the opening shot has an AI-like voiceover that says: âThere exists a group of people who were born out of your attention who in turn, come to impact your decisions. These people are called Influencers.âÂ
WATCH THE INFLUENCER ON NETFLIX NOW