Published May 1, 2026, 11:01 AM EDT

Co-directors/writers Mike Rianda and Jeff Rowe look back at one of the only good things to come out of the pandemic

Image: Netflix/Everett Collection

Five years ago, the machines took over.

After 13 months spent navigating the COVID-19 pandemic with breadmaking and sitcom binge-watching, people were ready — starved, even — for some new entertainment that wasn't Tiger King . On April 30, 2021, Netflix delivered with an animated movie that seems shockingly prophetic just five years later.

The Mitchells vs. the Machines was directed by Mike Rianda ( Gravity Falls ) and co-directed by Jeff Rowe ( Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem ).…