Charlie Brooker has this weird, almost psychic ability to make us feel terrible about things that don't even exist yet. Or things that sorta exist but we're too scared to name. "Men Against Fire," the fifth episode of Black Mirror’s third season, is basically a punch to the gut about dehumanization and military tech. But honestly? The reason it sticks with you isn't just the "Mass" neural implant twist. It’s the men against fire cast.
These aren't just faces on a screen. The production team managed to pull together a group of actors who, at the time, were either right on the edge of massive stardom or were already established character actors who could carry a heavy, psychological load without breaking a sweat. If you’ve spent the last few years watching The Bear or Marvel movies, you’ve definitely seen these people before.
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The Anchors: Malachi Kirby and Madeline Brewer
At the center of the madness is Stripe. Malachi Kirby plays him with this raw, wide-eyed vulnerability that makes the eventual reveal of the "roaches" even more sickening. Kirby was fresh off the Roots remake when he took this role. He had to play a soldier who believes he’s a hero, only to realize he’s been programmed to be a monster. It’s a physical performance. He’s sweating, he’s shaking, and he’s forced to convey the glitching of a mind that is literally being rewritten by software.
Then you’ve got Madeline Brewer as Raiman. You know her. She’s Janine from The Handmaid’s Tale.
In "Men Against Fire," she is terrifying.
While Stripe is the moral compass that eventually breaks, Raiman represents the terrifying enthusiasm of someone who loves the job too much. Brewer has this specific way of using her eyes—they’re huge, expressive, and in this episode, they are cold as ice. She’s the foil. She doesn't need a glitching implant to justify her violence; she’s leaned into the system. It’s a stark contrast that makes the men against fire cast feel like a real military unit rather than just a bunch of actors in fatigues.
Sarah Snook and the Rise of the Character Actor
Before she was Siobhan "Shiv" Roy in Succession, Sarah Snook was Medina. It’s a relatively small role compared to Kirby’s, but she brings that same steely, calculated energy that made her a household name later on. She’s the squad leader. She’s the one following orders, the middle management of a genocidal war.
It’s actually kinda wild to look back at this episode now. Seeing Snook in tactical gear is a far cry from the high-fashion power suits of Waystar Royco, but the DNA of the performance is the same. She’s authoritative. She’s believable. She makes the world of the episode feel lived-in because she doesn't play it like "sci-fi." She plays it like a Tuesday at the office, which is way scarier.
Michael Kelly: The Man Who Makes Evil Sound Reasonable
If you’re talking about the men against fire cast, you cannot skip Michael Kelly.
The guy is a legend at playing the "guy behind the curtain." Most people recognize him as Doug Stamper from House of Cards. In this episode, he plays Arquette, the military psychologist/handler who eventually explains the "Mass" system to Stripe.
Kelly has this voice. It’s calm. It’s soothing. It’s the voice of a man who is telling you that the sky is green and making it sound like the most logical thing you’ve ever heard. His monologue at the end of the episode—where he explains that humans generally don't want to kill each other, so the government had to "fix" that with technology—is arguably one of the best scenes in the entire series.
He’s the one who delivers the hard data. He’s the one who explains that "roaches" are just people with "genetic predispositions" that the state has decided are unworthy. He makes the horror of eugenics sound like a software patch. Without Kelly’s grounded, almost bored delivery, the episode might have felt too "preachy." Instead, it feels like a chillingly efficient HR meeting.
The Supporting Players and the "Roaches"
The casting extends beyond the soldiers. You have Francis Magee as Parnane, the villager who is helping the soldiers. Magee is one of those "Oh, that guy!" actors—you've seen him in Game of Thrones (Yoren) and The Witcher. He brings a gritty, rural realism to the episode.
Then there are the "roaches" themselves.
Ariane Labed plays Sara, the woman Stripe eventually tries to protect. Labed is an incredible European actress (The Lobster, Assassin's Creed) who has to do a lot of the emotional heavy lifting with very little dialogue. She has to look like a monster to Stripe (and us) initially, but then transition into a terrified human being.
It’s a masterclass in non-verbal acting.
Why the Casting Works for the "Mass" Twist
The brilliance of the men against fire cast is that they don't look like "movie stars." They look like people you’d see in a documentary about a modern conflict. This was a deliberate choice by director Jakob Verbruggen. If you cast someone too famous, the artifice of the sci-fi setting takes over. By using actors like Kirby and Brewer—who were rising talents at the time—the audience connects with them as "everyman" figures.
When Stripe's implant glitches and he sees the roaches for who they really are, the betrayal feels personal to the viewer. We’ve been seeing what he sees. We’ve been "in the system" with him.
Technical Details and Production Context
This episode wasn't just about the actors; it was about how they were framed. The cinematography was handled by Seamus McGarvey, who has worked on everything from Atonement to The Avengers. He used specific color palettes to distinguish between the "Mass" vision and the reality.
- The "Mass" Vision: Sharp, high-contrast, almost like a video game. Everything is clear, and the enemies are distinct.
- The Reality: Drab, grey, muted. The world looks tired and sick.
The actors had to adjust their performances to match these visuals. In the "Mass" scenes, they move with a certain robotic efficiency. When the tech fails, their movements become more human, more fumbling. It’s subtle, but it’s there.
The Real-World Inspiration Behind the Roles
Brooker didn't just pull this out of thin air. The episode and the characters were heavily influenced by David Grossman's book On Killing. The book explores the psychological barrier most humans have against killing their own species. In World War II, a shocking percentage of soldiers intentionally aimed high or didn't fire at all.
The men against fire cast had to portray the "solution" to this "problem."
Arquette (Michael Kelly) even references these statistics in his final confrontation with Stripe. It’s one of those moments where the fiction hits a wall of reality. The "Mass" system is just a digital version of the propaganda used throughout history to make the "other" look less than human. The cast had the difficult task of making that propaganda feel internal rather than external.
Where is the Cast Now?
It’s been years since the episode aired in 2016, and the careers of the primary actors have exploded.
- Malachi Kirby: Continues to be a powerhouse in British drama, recently appearing in Small Axe.
- Madeline Brewer: Became a staple of prestige TV with The Handmaid’s Tale and starred in the cult horror hit Cam.
- Sarah Snook: Basically took over the world with Succession, winning multiple awards for her role as Shiv Roy.
- Michael Kelly: Remained a go-to for high-stakes political and military dramas, including Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan.
Watching "Men Against Fire" today feels different. In 2016, the idea of AR (Augmented Reality) being used to manipulate soldier perception felt like a "maybe one day" scenario. In 2026, with the advancements in neural interfaces and AI-driven combat systems, it feels like a documentary that just hasn't happened yet.
Acknowledging the Limitations of the Narrative
Some critics argued at the time that the episode was a bit "on the nose." The metaphor of "roaches" isn't exactly subtle. However, the nuance provided by the actors—specifically the guilt portrayed by Kirby—saves it from being a simple morality play.
There's a version of this story that is just a generic action flick. But because the men against fire cast focused on the psychological erosion of the soldiers, it stays in the "psychological horror" lane where Black Mirror thrives. They aren't just soldiers; they're victims of their own equipment.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Creators
If you’re revisiting this episode or looking at it from a film-study perspective, there are a few things you should pay close attention to:
- Watch the eyes: Notice how the eye contact changes between the soldiers when their implants are active versus when they are deactivated. There’s a "hollowness" in the early scenes that vanishes later.
- Listen to the sound design: The cast's voices are often layered with subtle electronic hums when they are communicating via the "Mass" system.
- Research the Source Material: If you want to understand Michael Kelly’s character better, read excerpts from On Killing by Dave Grossman. It makes his dialogue ten times more chilling.
- Compare and Contrast: Watch Sarah Snook in this and then watch her in the first season of Succession. The way she commands a room is identical, even if the "room" in this case is a muddy field in Eastern Europe.
The takeaway here is that casting isn't just about finding people who look the part. It's about finding people who can carry the thematic weight of the script. "Men Against Fire" works because the actors didn't treat it like a "sci-fi episode." They treated it like a war drama about the loss of the soul.
The next time you’re scrolling through Netflix and see Kirby or Brewer’s face, remember the "roaches." It puts their newer, shinier roles into a much darker perspective. The "Mass" system might be fictional for now, but the human tendency to look away is very, very real.