Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘Zero Day’ takes place in the aftermath of a deadly cyberattack and puts former President George Mullen in a very tough position. Due to the reliability of his character, he is tasked to head the Zero Day Commission, which has received unprecedented powers to solve the crime and make the culprits pay. It is an immense pressure to put on someone’s shoulder, and soon, the job starts to take its toll on George. However, that is not the only thing that haunts his mind. He has auditory hallucinations where the song “Who Killed Bambi?” plays out in his ears repeatedly. The song stays with him till the end of the investigation and holds a grave significance for George. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Who Killed Bambi Conjures a Traumatic Event for George
‘Who Killed Bambi?’ is the 1979 song by punk rock band Sex Pistols and also serves as the title of their unfinished film, which was supposed to be released in 1978. For George, the song becomes a haunting memory because it was playing at the time he found his son, Nick, dead in his bedroom. The death happened during George’s first and only term of Presidency. His son had been struggling with drugs for a while, and there is evidence to suggest that he had been struggling mentally, too. He needed help, but his father didn’t see the signs and either ignored or neglected his son’s needs, which came second to George’s responsibility to the nation.
So, when George found Nick, who had overdosed, he was forced to confront his neglect not just towards Nick but also his wife and daughter, whom he had also betrayed by having an affair with his Chief of Staff, Valerie Whitesell. This moment remains lodged in his mind for years to come, and he mostly tries to keep it at bay by focusing on other things. However, by the time the events of the show take place, his mind has started to unravel. He is showing signs of early dementia. This has weakened the barriers he placed in his mind all this time, and as the walls start to crumble, the things that he had tried to bury come to the surface.
The Song and His Son’s Memory Make George Mullen Do the Right Thing
When his son died, George convinced himself that it was an overdose and that no one could have done anything about it. His son was an addict, and he tried everything in his power to change his ways, but in the end, Nick fell to his addiction. His daughter, Alex, however, believes that this is an extremely reductive way to view the situation. Since her brother’s death, she has held a grudge against her father, which deepened when his affair came to light. Nick was struggling and George did nothing to even acknowledge that he needed help. She believes that Nick killed himself, and the responsibility for his death falls on her father.
George, on the other hand, continues to believe that the death was an accident and hence no one’s fault. Or at least, that’s what he tries to tell himself. Deep down, he does heed his daughter’s words and wonders if he had paid more attention to his family rather than his job, perhaps things would have ended up differently. This guilt manifests itself in front of him in the form of the song, “Who Killed Bambi?” and he even writes, “George killed Bambi” to acknowledge the blame. At first, it seems to muddle with his brain, but by the end, it becomes clear that the song is a representation of his guilt. He did the wrong thing by not understanding the extent of his son’s problems and not bearing responsibility for his death as well as the affair. But with the Zero Day Commission investigation, he finally has the chance to do the right thing.
When George discovers that Alex is one of the conspirators involved in the cyberattack, he is faced with an impossible situation. Should he tell the truth and send her daughter to the gallows, or should he save her and hide the truth from the people of his country and break their trust? Everyone tells him to go with the second option. While contemplating his choices, he has a vision of his son, and he is reminded of the guilt that he continues to carry even after all these years and the grief that he will take to his grave. Does he really want the same guilt to weigh on him, this time for the thousands of lives lost in the cyberattack?
At one point, George decides to save Alex and bury the truth, but then the song starts to play again. It pokes at his mind and forces him to come clean because this isn’t something that he can ignore or neglect. He did his son and his family wrong because he told himself he was dedicated to his job and working for the public. How can he continue to justify this argument if he lies to the public now? His conscience could never allow him to rest. The ghost of his son would continue to haunt him. He cannot let thousands of other ghosts rob him of whatever sleep he is getting now.
Why Who Killed Bambi Was the Perfect Choice for George Mullen’s Psychological Breakdown
Because the song plays such an important role in setting up George’s psychological state, it was important to find something that could rightly represent this conflict in his mind. For creators Eric Newman and Noah Oppenheim, this song presented itself during their research for the show. They were watching Adam Curtis’ six-part BBC docuseries, ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head: An Emotional History of the Modern World,’ and the Sex Pistols song played in it.
When they sat down to write ‘Zero Day’ and had to find a song that would perfectly sum up George’s bleak situation, the song played in their heads. The creators couldn’t get it out of their heads, and the more they thought about it, the more the choice made sense. It seemed like the kind of song that Nick would have been listening to. At the same time, the song’s lyrics also appeared to resonate with the themes and tone of the show, bringing more depth to the story. With all this in mind, it was decided to go with “Who Killed Bambi?” as the theme song for George Mullen’s spiral into madness.
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