Blade Runner 2049, Denis Villeneuve’s long-awaited sequel to Ridley Scott’s masterpiece, Blade
Runner, has opened to rave reviews across the board with an 89% ‘fresh’ rating on
the reviews aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have called it “mesmerising to behold”,
a film that is “spectacular enough to win over new generations of viewers” yet “the
rare sequel that truly merits its existence”.
Although the film’s themes can be appreciated by a newcomer, many will wish to watch the
original – either for the first time or as a refresher – before feasting upon the
sequel. However, with multiple versions of Blade Runner available this isn’t as easy
a proposition as it would first seem.
Welcome to final frontier. So, which version of Blade Runner should you see before watching
its sequel?
There are eight different versions of the 1982 cult hit film, including a nearly four-hour
long ‘early cut’ shown only to studio personnel. These versions include two different
director’s cuts and several different endings. For those new to the film the short answer
to the question is: watch The Final Cut. This is Ridley Scott’s definitive vision of the
film, one in which he had complete control, and was also mentioned by Denis Villeneuve
as one of the versions he was inspired by, although he admitted that the original US
theatrical release was the version he first saw and fell in love with.
So what are the other versions of Blade Runner?
The workprint version was shown to audiences as test previews in in the US, in March 1982.
Negative responses to these previews resulted in the studio making various modifications
for its subsequent US theatrical release. This version did not have an opening title
sequence and crawl explaining the backstory of the replicants but instead opened with
a definition for replicants describing them as ‘Synthetic humans with paraphysical capabilities,
having skin/flesh culture’.
There was also no unicorn daydream sequence, which would be a key addition to the Director's
Cut and the Final Cut.
There is also a different shot of the ending as Deckard watches Roy Batty die with alternate
narration: "I watched him die all night. It was a long, slow thing...and he fought it
all the way. He never whimpered, and he never quit. He took all the time he had, as though
he loved life very much. Every second of it... even the pain. Then he was dead."
There is also no ‘happy ending’; the film ends when the lift doors close as Deckard
and Rachael leave. The workprint version would inadvertently
be released in 1990 and 91, marketed as a Director's Cut without the approval of director,
Ridley Scott.
A San Diego Sneak Preview was shown only once in May 1982. This version was nearly identical
to the 1982 US theatrical version, except that it included three additional scenes not
shown before or since.
The US theatrical version, known as the original version or Domestic Cut, added a voiceover
narrative by Harrison Ford after test audience members indicated difficulties in understanding
the film, making the this cut feel more like a neo-noir detective film. The studio also
added a ‘happy ending’ with an additional scene showing Deckard and Rachael happily
driving away from Los Angeles. Perhaps more importantly, the original theatrical release
had no unicorn dream sequence, thus never calling into question whether Deckard is human
or a replicant.
The International Cut also known as the ‘Criterion Edition’ or uncut version is similar to
the US theatrical release but has more violence in three specific scenes, which were later
inserted into the Final Cut.
The US broadcast version was the US theatrical version edited by television company CBS to
tone down violence, profanity and nudity to meet broadcasting restrictions. This version
is preceded by a teaser explaining that Deckard is not a replicant and the initial text crawl
at the start of the film is read by an anonymous announcer with slightly different text.
Following the discovery of a 70mm workprint version of Blade Runner, Warner Bros. decided
to market this as a ‘Director's Cut’ of Blade Runner across America. However, Ridley
Scott publicly disowned this version of the film as a ‘director's cut’ citing its
rough editing, lack of a key scene and the climax not featuring the score composed for
the film by Vangelis.
Warner Bros. eventually pulled theatrical screenings of the workprint version but, noting
the resurgent cult popularity of the film, decided to assemble a definitive director's
cut of the film – with supervision from Scott – for an official theatrical re-release
in 1992.
Four major changes were made to the original theatrical cut:
The removal of Deckard's 13 explanatory voice-overs
The insertion of a dream sequence of a unicorn running through a forest, which would suddenly
call into question whether Deckard is human
The addition of a taunting question by Gaff to Deckard after replicant Roy dies, "But
are you sure you are a man?" This addition is not in any other of the other cuts, including
the Final Cut
The removal of the studio-imposed "happy ending"
However, due to alternative commitments, time and money constraints, Scott was not directly
in charge of the Director’s Cut and he was not entirely comfortable with this version
as his definitive director's cut.
Ridley Scott's Final Cut, or the "25th-Anniversary Edition", is the only version over which Ridley
Scott had complete artistic control. This cut was completely restored from the original
negative and digitally remastered.
The Final Cut contains a longer version of the unicorn dream, which had never been in
any version. Additionally, all of the additional violence and alternate edits from the international
cut were inserted. The film would also remove the happy ending, thus leaving the fate of
Deckard and Rachael ambiguous, as was always intended.
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