Why Blade Runner’s Tyrell Lives In A Pyramid Explained By Ridley Scott, And It Fundamentally Changes The Movie


Director Ridley Scott has explained why Eldon Tyrell lived in a pyramid-like building in Blade Runner and revealed a shocking truth about the character. The story follows former police officer Rick Deckard, whose job was to find bioengineered humanoids known as replicants and “retire” them. After it is discovered that four replicants are on Earth illegally, Deckard is sent to find them. The cast of Blade Runner includes Harrison Ford, Sean Young, Rutger Hauer, and Joe Turkel. Blade Runner is one of Ridley Scott’s best movies and currently has a score of 89% on Rotten Tomatoes.

In an interview with GQ, Scott revealed why Eldon Tyrell resides in a pyramid in Blade Runner. The director claimed that the Tyrell seen in the movie is actually a replicant. He revealed that the real Tyrell is actually in a sarcophagus in the middle of the pyramid, and placed himself in stasis years before the events of the movie after having several replicants of himself made. Scott intended to shoot a scene that would have shown that the real Tyrell is now dead in the sarcophagus, but was not able to do it. Read Scott’s full comments below:

The reason for the pyramid, the pyramid was, I think, the true Tyrell was dead inside a sarcophagus in the middle of the pyramid, because he knew he was dying. Whatever the age and the time, there would always be some industrial disease that we haven’t actually dealt with. But he’d also, here’s the trick, does Putin have six clones? So Tyrell had made several lookalikes of himself so he could be anywhere. You wouldn’t know where the real one was. So the Tyrell we were talking to was probably not the real Tyrell, but was a fundamentally replication of himself. So that’s how complex it gets. That’s how we ended up with the pyramid. We never got to do the scene where they go to the sarcophagus and see he’s dead. I think he died in the sarcophagus and then some, I took it from, there’s a massive power breakdown on the East Coast of America. One powerhouse in one of the states. It was crazy. All the three states switched off for 22 hours. So I think I went from that idea, when it went down, Tyrell may have died in the dep freeze.

What Eldon Tyrell Being A Replicant Means For Blade Runner

Tyrell Created Replicants In Blade Runner

Even though Tyrell is only a minor character in Blade Runner, he is extremely important in the movie’s world. In the Blade Runner universe, Eldon Tyrell is the founder of the Tyrell Corporation, which is the company responsible for the design, manufacturing, and selling of replicants. Since Blade Runner’s plot revolves around Deckard hunting replicants, Tyrell is an extremely notable character in the film.

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Before the events of Blade Runner, replicants were declared illegal on Earth following an off-world mutiny. Now knowing that the Tyrell Deckard talks to in Blade Runner is actually a replicant, this scene becomes very ironic. Deckard’s job in Blade Runner is to hunt down replicants, but little does he know he is talking to an extremely influential replicant at this point in the movie.

Our Take On Tyrell Being Replicant In Blade Runner

The Shots Of The Pyramid In Blade Runner Are Stunning


Deckard looking at a screen in Blade Runner

It is very interesting to learn that the real version of Tyrell was meant to be revealed as dead in Blade Runner. This further explains why Tyrell lives in a pyramid, which is a surprising choice in the film. However, leaving the reason why Tyrell lives in a pyramid as ambiguous is just as effective. The shots of the pyramid further ensure that the version of Los Angeles seen in Blade Runner is almost otherwordly. Therefore, even though the reason for the pyramid was never stated in Blade Runner, it is still an effective setting in the classic sci-fi movie.

Source: GQ

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