For viewers who finished Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams and came away thinking the ending felt bigger than a standard anthology twist, that instinct is exactly what Joko Anwar was aiming for. The Netflix series, which premiered originally in June 2024, closes by revealing that Valdya’s search for Dara and the horror behind P.O. Box 888 are not isolated nightmare fuel at all, but part of a much larger mythology tied to Agartha. That final revelation reframes the season’s supposedly separate stories as pieces of a hidden war, with returning characters like Panji (Ario Bayu), Rania (Marissa Anita), Wahyu (Lukman Sardi), Dewi (Sita Nursanti), and Ali (Fachri Albar) emerging not merely as Easter eggs, but as future defenders against a threat that has been building underneath the surface all along.
What makes each episode have a distinct identity from any Black Mirror weekend replacement is that Agartha was never designed as a random sci-fi flourish. Anwar has said his fascination with aliens began in childhood, but the real breakthrough came when he encountered the hollow earth theory and the esoteric belief in Agartha as a hidden world inside the Earth. He also explained that he built a full mythology bible for the show, mapping out what Agartha is, what Earth is, and how the two realms connect. In an interview with The Spool, while talking about pulling inspiration for the show, Anwar further added:
“When I first read about the hollow earth theory, I discovered a belief in Western occultism and esotericism about a place called Agartha, a hidden world inside the Earth with its own inhabitants, government, and energy sources. I’ve always wanted to create a science fiction series, but I find that most existing sci-fi stories are too detached from the audience. Regarding format, I took cues from The Twilight Zone, and regarding the storytelling approach, The X-Files is also a big inspiration.”
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‘Black Mirror’ Is Coming Back for an 8th Installment
Black Mirror was officially confirmed for an eighth season on January 9, 2026, when creator Charlie Brooker announced its return in an interview with Netflix’s Tudum. That means the renewal came about nine months after Season 7 premiered on April 10, 2025. Brooker is returning, and the announcement landed just as Season 7 was picking up extra prestige attention, including Golden Globe nominations for the series plus acting nods for Rashida Jones and Paul Giamatti.
Netflix has confirmed the renewal, but no release date or episode details have been announced yet. Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams is available to stream on Netflix. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
