Blade Runner Star Harrison Ford Addresses Decades-Old Deckard Debate

More than 40 years after the film landed in theaters, Blade Runner star Harrison Ford might be having a change of heart about his character Rick Deckard, as he recently teased for Esquire that he might not believe the character is a replicant. One of the reasons that Ridley Scott's adaptation of Philip K. Dick's 1968 novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? is in the ambiguity of its themes, with each audience member and even those involved with making the movie having a different interpretation of events. While Ford's return as Deckard for Blade Runner 2049 might have settled the question for some fans, it seems like this might not be the case.

Speaking to Esquire about the role, Ford admitted, "I always knew that I was a replicant. I just wanted to push back against it, though. I think a replicant would want to believe that they're human. At least this one did."

In the film, Deckard was a "blade runner," who was tasked with killing off rogue androids that were meant to be indistinguishable from actual humans. Deckard would not only physically track down the replicants, but would also administer tests that were meant to reveal whether these androids were actual replicants or really human. 

In addition to being a compelling neo-noir filled with sci-fi imagery, the film also delivered ambitious concepts about what it meant to be human. Deckard, for example, always believed that he was a human, though his duties as a blade runner understandably caused him to question if he, too, was a replicant. In the years since the movie was released, Scott would go back in and offer tweaks for new versions of the story that altered some resolutions to the narrative, including making it a bit more overt that Deckard was a replicant. 

A key component of the concept of replicants is that they have a limited lifespan, with the original theatrical version ending in the reveal that the replicant Rachael (Sean Young) didn't have an expiration date and she and Deckard have a "happy" ending together. In 1992, Scott's Director's Cut removed narration from Ford that more explicitly explained the film, as well as cutting out the happy ending of Deckard and Rachael driving into the wilderness together. In 2007, Scott released "The Final Cut," which united various scenes from all previous cuts, including the International and "Uncut" versions. 

Ford's recent remarks reflect how he has previously claimed that Deckard was human while discussing the film, though that was seemingly part of maintaining what his character believed as to what he personally believed.

The TV series Blade Runner 2099 is currently in development at Prime Video.

Do you think Deckard is a replicant? Let us know in the comments!