Original artwork, not a still
I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
— Blade Runner ‧ 1982
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is a villain's elegy and one of the most quoted monologues in cinema: a made man with almost no time left claims the right to be remembered, and in doing so turns the hunted into the one who spares. The speech changes the film from a chase into a question about what a life is worth, and it is often quoted whenever a story gives a machine a death scene.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Blade RunnerShow the scene
The final confrontation of Blade Runner (1982), in the rain on a Los Angeles rooftop in 2019. The replicant leader Roy Batty has chased Deckard across the building and then hauled him up from a fall. Batty's built-in four-year lifespan is ending. He tells Deckard that it is quite an experience to live in fear, then speaks of the things he has seen: ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion, C-beams glittering near the Tannhauser Gate. The speech ends with those moments lost in time, like tears in rain. Rutger Hauer rewrote it himself and gave Ridley Scott his words on set before filming.
Sources (2)
- Blade Runner, WikipediaPlot (ending); Production, pre-production and scriptReference checked
- Blade Runner (1982) script transcript, Springfield! Springfield!Roy Batty's final speechReference checked
Context reviewed
