The Origin of ‘Blade Runner‘ Title Revealed: A Serendipitous Discovery & Modest Payment
LOS ANGELES, CA – The iconic title of Ridley ScottS 1982 neo-noir science fiction masterpiece, Blade Runner, wasn’t a carefully constructed marketing ploy, but a blessed find linked to author William S. Burroughs. Screenwriter Hampton Fancher recounts discovering Burroughs’ novel, also titled Blade Runner, while searching his library the same night he was tasked with naming the film. “I was looking through my books and came across a thin little volume by William Burroughs called Blade Runner. Bingo!”
Initial title considerations included Android and Dangerous Days, but producers felt they lacked the story’s necessary “edge.” Producer Michael Deeley ultimately recognized the solution was “staring us right in the face,” leading to the adoption of Burroughs’ title.
To secure the rights to the term “blade runner,” the production team approached Burroughs and paid him “a nominal fee.” This acquisition proved timely, as Burroughs’ own novel, Taking Tiger Mountain, was published shortly after in 1983. Had the filmmakers waited, the rights to Blade Runner might have been bundled with Burroughs’ later work.
Interestingly, the film itself never explicitly defines what a “blade runner” is, beyond it being the designation for detectives who hunt and “retire” replicants.This intentional ambiguity was intentional. “I think ‘explanations’ are the bug-bears of screenplay writing and I like to stay clear of them,” Fancher stated in 2017.While fan theories abound, including one imagining replicant identification requiring a literal “blade,” the origin of the title remains rooted in a serendipitous literary discovery and a small financial agreement. Blade Runner is currently available for rent on Amazon Prime.
