Netflix to make the phrase ‘What’s in the box?’ a pleasant experience for kids

If you’re old enough to remember a certain film starring Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey, you’ll know the words ‘What’s in the box?’. Netflix has decided that kids need that experience, only with far less trauma.

Instead of Gywneth Paltrow (which is a scary thing to find inside any container), kids using the streaming service on their accounts will find a new show inside a so-called mystery box. Netflix is rolling out the feature as a stand-in for the ‘Play Something’ function for those who have trouble deciding what to watch.

The Netflix mystery

In a bid to get your kid watching something that isn’t musical and repetitive, Netflix’s mystery box conceals something… new. Or perhaps something old. Or maybe it’s just something that’s a different musical and repetitive. The point is, it lives in the centre of the new Favourites Row.

And, if it’s selected, something your little offspring might not have selected is revealed. Years of opening loot boxes in games might make the gamified choice a little more attractive. And that means is you don’t need to spend your entire Saturday rewatching Paw Patrol. Maybe.

This is a slightly more positive change than Netflix’s last few. Instead of more expenses, the service is hoping to offer “…an engaging and tailored experience to connect kids to the stories that shape their world”. Which is a flowery way of saying ‘We’ll hopefully make your digital babysitter less repetitive”, but we’ll take it anyway.