'Black Mirror' season 3 release date news 2016: Show's premiere date fixed for Oct. 21

"Black Mirror" has been renewed and will premiere on Netflix this October, but it will now have six episodes instead of three.

The series was meant to have up to 12 episodes this season, but it was later decided that it would be split in half. The first six launching this year and the remaining six episodes will be launched as the show's fourth season in 2017.

Promotional image for "Black Mirror"Netflix

According to Digital Spy, the six episodes of season 3 will retain the same format as before, in which each episode is a self-contained story. This means each episode is not connected to the others and each season is an anthology that is not tied to any other season.

The first episode, titled "San Junipero," will star Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Mackenzie Davis. It will be helmed by "Kill Your Friends" director Owen Harris. Episode 2, titled "Shut Up and Dance," will star "Game of Thrones" veteran Jerome Flynn and Alex Lawther. It will be helmed by "Bastille Day" director James Watkins.

"Nosedive" will be the title for the third episode, and it will star Bryce Dallas Howard, James Norton, and Alive Eve. Joe Wright has been attached as director. The next episode is titled "Men Against Fire," and it will star "House of Cards" actor Michael Kelly, alongside Madeline Brewer and Malachi Kirby. Jakob Verbruggen will direct.

Episode 5, titled "Hated in the Nation," stars Kelly McDonald. and it will be directed by James Hawes, who worked on "Doctor Who." The final episode is titled "Playtest," and it will star Wyatt Russell opposite Hannah John-Kamen. Dan Trachtenberg, who directed "10 Cloverfield Lane," will be helming the episode.

Michaela Coel is also appearing in one of the episodes, but she has not yet revealed which one.

There will be six episodes to follow, but Netflix has yet to announce if they will still be considered as the back-end part of season 3 or if they are now officially labeled as season 4.