Pratik Handore
Netflix’s ‘Bird Box Barcelona’ follows Sebastian, a man trying to survive a catastrophic event caused by the unexplained arrival of the creatures that forced people to kill themselves through sheer eye contact. As a result, people are forced to protect themselves using a blindfold. The post-apocalyptic horror thriller movie directed by Álex and David Pastor is set in the same universe as 2018’s ‘Bird Box,’ which is based on author Josh Malerman’s book of the same name. As a result, viewers must be curious to find out whether the Spanish-language, Barcelona-set film is a direct sequel or a spin-off of the original. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Bird Box Barcelona Is a Companion to the Original
‘Bird Box Barcelona’ is set in the same world as the original film ‘Bird Box,’ released in 2018. The latter film stars Sandra Bullock as Malorie Hayes, a woman trying to cross a river with two children, hoping to arrive at a camp of survivors amid an apocalyptic event. The film introduces viewers to many concepts and ideas in ‘Bird Box Barcelona.’ Primarily, both movies are set in the same fictional universe where the world has come under attack from mysterious forces of evil that overpower a person’s psyche and force them to take their own lives through eye contact, causing mass hysteria across the globe. As a result, it is safe to say that ‘Bird Box’ is the original work that kick-started the franchise.
‘Bird Box Barcelona’ carries forward many of the original film’s concepts and greatly expands upon them. The film follows Sebastian, a father trying to protect his daughter, Anna, from the apocalypse. The father-daughter duo teams up with a group of other survivors in hopes of finding a safe place to dwell. The film’s basic resembles that of the original film, but it dives deeper into the nature of the monsters tormenting the world and the Seers, a group of people who are immune to the powers of the creatures and force others to make eye contact with them. Hence, in terms of narrative growth and world-building ‘Bird Box Barcelona’ can be considered a sequel to ‘Bird Box’ since it carries forward many of the concepts and ideas of the original film.
In contrast, both movies seem to take place around a similar time frame, albeit in different locations. ‘Bird Box Barcelona’ features flashbacks to the creatures first attacking different parts of the Earth, which ‘Bird Box’ establishes as taking place in 2013. Meanwhile, ‘Bird Box’ is set in 2018, as five years have passed since the monsters attacked and caused mass hysteria across the globe. A majority of ‘Bird Box Barcelona’ occurs either before or concurrently with those of ‘Bird Box,’ making it a spin-off, at least in theory. However, ‘Bird Box Barcelona’ is best viewed as a companion piece to the original work since it effectively serves as both a spin-off and a spiritual successor.
