Love, Death + Robots (LDR) has returned with a new collection of mind-bending sci-fi stories and striking animation that embraces popular culture. Volume four of the multi-award-winning anthology series is streaming from today (15 May 2025) on Netflix.
The new episodes span a range of genres, from dark humour and surreal fantasy to wartime horror and epic space battles. Among the tales are a deadly space contest led by MrBeast, a reimagined Red Hot Chili Peppers concert with the band as string puppets, and a disgruntled household gadget voiced by Kevin Hart.
In the episode The Screaming of the Tyrannosaur, genetically engineered gladiators ride vicious dinosaurs in a bloody contest on a space station orbiting Jupiter. The episode, adapted from a short story by Stant Litore, features YouTube star MrBeast – known for his high-stakes challenges and giveaways – as the master of the show’s deadly games.
Photo courtesy Netflix.
Can’t Stop takes a twist on music history, reimagining the American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers’ iconic 2003 Slane Castle concert with the members – Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Chad Smith, and John Frusciante – portrayed as string puppets. Directed by David Fincher, who got his start directing music videos, the episode blends absurdity with nostalgia in a nod to the musicians’ breakout era.
The episode’s title references the band’s hit song Can’t Stop, released as the third single from their 2002 album By the Way. The track topped the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for three weeks and charted internationally, reaching number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Smart Appliances, Stupid Owners follows a group of household gadgets as they vent about their clueless human owners – from a frustrated fridge voiced by Kevin Hart to an overworked showerhead and a sarcastic toilet. Directed by Patrick Osborne, who also helmed Three Robots: Exit Strategies in Volume 3, the episode blends bemusement, scorn, and absurdity as the appliances share their tales.
Photo courtesy Netflix.
Episodes in LDR are created by different animation studios, each bringing a distinct visual style. Blur Studio serves as the primary production company and has also directly animated several episodes throughout the series, including in the new volume. Those familiar with the sci-fi animation Scavengers Reign might notice a similar aesthetic in How Zeke Got Religion, as both are created by Titmouse.
After Netflix acquired Scavengers Reign, it was announced that the series would not be renewed for a second season, despite praise for its atmospheric visuals and haunting narrative. These elements carry through in the similarly styled How Zeke Got Religion.
In this episode, a B-17 bomber crew embarks on a mission to bomb a church in Nazi-occupied France before an ancient evil can be awakened. Directed by Diego Porral, who also led the LDR episode Kill Team Kill, the story blends occult horror and ultraviolence with Titmouse’s recognisable style, reminiscent of the haunting visuals seen in Scavengers Reign.
Photo courtesy Netflix.
The remaining episodes continue the anthology’s mix of surreal sci-fi and striking animation. Close Encounters of the Mini Kind uses tilt-shift techniques to depict a miniature alien invasion that spirals into chaos, directed by Robert Bisi and Andy Lyon. Spider Rose revisits the cyberpunk world of Swarm from Volume 3, following a grieving Mechanist seeking revenge against her husband’s killer on a remote asteroid mining operation.
In 400 Boys, director Robert Valley, who won an Emmy for LDR’s Ice, presents a brutal, post-apocalyptic city where a new gang forces rival factions to unite, blending stylised animation with a bushido-like code of honour. In The Other Large Thing, a cat plots world domination with the help of a robotic butler, voiced by John Oliver, in a quirky, comedic twist from John Scalzi.
For He Can Creep adapts Siobhan Carroll’s period horror story about a poet in a London asylum, whose cat, Jeoffry, must fend off Satan (voiced by Dan Stevens) to prevent the end of the world.
The lone live-action entry, Golgotha, follows a vicar hosting an alien emissary who believes their messiah has been reborn as a dolphin. Rhys Darby (What We Do in the Shadows) stars in this absurdist take directed by Tim Miller, the creator of LDR.
Miller, who directed Deadpool and produced Terminator: Dark Fate, also created Secret Level, a gaming-inspired anthology series that showcases his distinctive style alongside his work on LDR. The fourth volume is executive produced by David Fincher, the director of Seven, Zodiac, Gone Girl, and The Social Network.
Non-spoiler alert: fans of the three robots who made appearances in the first and third seasons will be disappointed that they have not made a return.