Ever since it was released back in 1974 Philip K Dick’s Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep has been lauded as one of the seminal pieces of sci-fi literature. Ridley Scott’s haunting and mesmeric adaptation of Dick’s book, “Blade Runner,” has only added to its reputation.
But there is at least one man that has always been left cold and unimpressed by Dick’s work. Rather surprisingly that man, Hampton Fancher, was tasked with turning “Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep” into “Blade Runner,” while he most recently wrote “Blade Runner 2049,” too.
Last month I had the opportunity to speak to Hampton Fancher about “Blade Runner 2049,” which is when he startlingly revealed that he didn’t care for the original’s source material.
“I didn’t like the book that much. Although I loved certain aspects of it narratively; the chase and the ecology and the empathy idea.”
“It is a cold, stupid book to me,” continued Fancher when I pushed him for more details on his hatred of it. “It’s brilliant to a lot of people. There’s a long list of people that I admire that have made a life long work of Philip K Dick. I’m not a big science fiction guy to begin with, in terms of my own background reading and writing.”
“To me, it wasn’t quite self-conscious, but he has a voice that I couldn’t get enveloped in. It was Philip’s writing voice that I didn’t warm to it. It’s not a warm voice. Or a fun voice to me.”
Fancher was clearly able to get over his displeasure with “Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep,” though. Using it to create not one but two of the most respected sci-fi films ever released, considering the critical acclaim that has recently befallen “Blade Runner 2049.”
Fancher even admitted to me that he has plans to do a third installment, too. However “Blade Runner 2049’s” underwhelming box office haul means it might take another 35 years for that to be a reality.
