MacBook Air Black Screen after macOS Catalina Update

If you're having the black screen issue when you lock your screen/when trying to wake it up, you can do this workaround I figured out: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250719662?answerId=251378320022#251378320022

Had the same problem with my MacMini 2018 and my 24 inch Apple Cinema Display 2008. Disconnecting and connecting the display helped, but I had to to do it every time. This one solved it for me: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/250719662?answerId=251378320022#251378320022. But after plugging in an external dvd-player via USB 2 to the MacMini, the problem returned. Unplugged the dvd-player, restarted, and the problem was gone again. I don't know what this means and it certainly won't help people with an MBA, but maybe it contributes to finding a solution.

I just had this exact problem and I fixed it by following these steps:

1. Disconnect power supply and open bottom of Macbook Air
2. Locate the battery connector and unplug it, leaving it unplugged
3. Put the cover back on and flip the Macbook over, connect it to your power supply like normal, then press the power button
4. Wait for startup, sign in, make sure everything seems fine, then shut off Macbook
5. Remove power supply and reconnect battery connector
6. Screw the cover back on and your Macbook should effectively be reverted to its state before installing Catalina

I'm not sure why Catalina messes everything up, and the same issue occurred after trying to download Catalina again, so I would just refrain from installing Catalina until a solution for the issue is found.

For anyone who is clueless about technology as I was before I researched, a picture of the battery connector can be found by looking up "Grab the clear plastic pull tab attached to the battery connector and pull it toward the front edge of the Air to disconnect the battery from the logic board." on a search engine and going to step 3 on the first result page. Note that this image matched my Macbook Air (2015) and that it could be different from other Macbook models.

Hello Everyone,

This may help everyone.

1. Please connect your Mac to external screen and check if the display is working. If so then immediately take a back up of it ( In my case I could not do this as the great apple tech bar guy had already formatted my laptop)
2. If the step 1 works then you are lucky. Then go and visit apple tech bar
3. Apple Tech Bar if they state that this is an issue with the display and it would cost you money to fix. Please be extra careful and do not agree as the apple support folks have no clue in the first level of diagnosis . This was an issue with Catalina and Apple may/will not agree with that. They have released a patch recently which has fixed the issue.
4. But if you have already encountered the issue, go to apple tech bar and ask about the “Apple Quality Program (E1)” which I personally believe apple is secretly doing to fix this issue. The reason I feel this is because , My laptop was fixed recently under the same program.

Hopefully this helps

I am also getting the black screen of death on my MacBook Air after upgrading to Catalina earlier today. I have to power down / up to use the MacBook. If I press the return key a few times after getting the black screen, I hear a chime (bong) but I get no other response to the keyboard or the trackpad until I restart.

I am getting the same thing with my MacBook Pro. I have to restart everytime when opening it, but it seems I can unlock with Touch ID cause the touch bar changes as if I unlocked the computer. I still have to restart however.

BTW, my MacBook Air is a 13-inch mid-2012 model, with 8GB ram and 512GB SSD. Until this is fixed, I have to power down orderly each time I stop using it. Activity Monitor shows no constraints. If I put the MacBook Air to sleep, I can wake it up after a few seconds, but after a minute: black screen of death.

Same here. 2018 MacBook Pro. Just updated to Catalina this morning. Computer goes to sleep, but when I attempt to wake it up, the monitor does not boot up at all. The computer seems to wake up just fine. The monitor just doesn't seem to turn on. I've been having to restart every time it does this.

I just tried updating my MacBook Pro early 2015 to catina but I’m stuck on a black screen of death all the time! I can’t do anything! My Mac is responding so unbelievable slow to any shortcuts (such as for entering the recovery mode). It even starts up (background light of the screen) 20-30 seconds later after I pressed the On-Button! I can’t even move the mouse in the internet recovery menu or type something on the keyboard. It’s just laggy and frozen all the time!

I never have had such problems like this.

What has Catalina done to my MacBook???

Sound like the Apple genius was just brushing you off. Maybe (s)he was overworked with other problems.

This not an acceptable response.

If I have to revert to Mojave, with Time Machine, will my 32-bit applications be restored?

I went to the App Store and am downloading Mojave (turned off auto install). I am creating a boot disc for the Mojave installer. I have backed up my data.

if there is no Apple response, I will reinstall Mojave tomorrow.

Also, note that I didn’t think twice, but when I used Time Machine under Catalina, it seems to have created a new first backup, and my old backups have disappeared... maybe I messed up somehow, but I should have backed up my TM backup.

I am disappointed with Apple.

So I think I found a fix, at least to my issue with the black screen after waking up.

I had to be escalated to a Level 2 Apple Support specialist to get this done.

Essentially there were some kernel extensions that appear to have disrupted my MacBook's ability to "wake up" properly post-Catalina upgrade.

We found the potential culprits in the extensions directory, and there were five from "Unidentified Authors" that appear to have been loaded on during the manufacturing of my machine back in 2017 (I bought it in winter of 2018, so it wasn't anything I installed).

After we found those extensions and moved them to the Trash, my MacBook appears to be able to properly wake up from Sleep mode with the monitor turning on as well.

Hope this helps!