Blade Runner Was Almost Someone Else's Film
Grief, a borrowed title, and a last-minute cash rescue helped shape Ridley Scott's dystopia.
An unofficial fan made map of Ridleyville, name by which the exterior sets that were built for Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982) in Warner Bros. Studios (Burbank, California) are known. Filming in Rid — David Luque (mapa) / Luis Argerich (fotografÃa), CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Where to watch Blade Runner ↓A title and a temperament
Ridley Scott joined the project on February 21, 1980, partly to distract himself after his older brother's recent death. The film's name was not invented for it, it came from a William S. Burroughs cinema treatment for a different novel that Scott discovered and liked. The screenplay had already been savaged before he arrived, when Philip K. Dick harshly criticized Robert Jaffe's early draft and told him, 'Shall I beat you up here at the airport, or shall I beat you up back at my apartment?'
Writing the voice
Hampton Fancher originally envisioned Robert Mitchum in the lead role of Deckard and tailored the character's dialogue specifically for him. The script continued to change on set, most visibly when Rutger Hauer personally rewrote his character's famous 'tears in rain' speech and presented the new version to Ridley Scott before filming.
Bradbury Building, 304 S. Broadway Downtown Los Angeles — Lo2013, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Casting by instinct and regret
Director Ridley Scott cast Rutger Hauer as Roy Batty without ever meeting him, basing the decision solely on Hauer's performances in Paul Verhoeven films. Debbie Harry turned down the role of Pris and later described it as her biggest regret. Edward James Olmos created a fictional 'Cityspeak' language for his character Gaff by drawing on diverse ethnic sources, with his opening line to Deckard containing Hungarian profanities.
Money pulled out, money found
When principal photography neared, Filmways withdrew its financial backing after the production had already spent over $2.5 million in pre-production. Producer Michael Deeley secured $21.5 million in replacement financing within ten days through a three-way deal involving Warner Bros., Hong Kong producer Sir Run Run Shaw, and Tandem Productions. The rescue let a film that had nearly died in development finally reach the camera.