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Roy Batty, model number N6MAA10816, a Nexus-6 combat model replicant, was the leader of a renegade replicant group that hijacked a shuttle and traveled to Earth to demand a longer lifespan.

Biography[]

Roy was deployed in every Off-world conflict since his inception, including campaigns at the Tannhäuser Gate and Jupiter. He could also withstand extreme hot or cold temperatures, having resisted 1200 degrees Fahrenheit in the Argentine Moons' Plutonium Furnaces and -800 degrees while performing deep space probes "with only a cowboy suit."[1]

Hijacking[]

In October or November of 2019, Roy led a group of replicants in killing twenty-three people in an Off-world colony and hijacking a shuttle with the assistance of other replicants, Leon, Pris, Zhora, and two other unidentified companions. These renegade replicants killed the crew and set a course for Earth.[2]

Hunted[]

Two weeks later, after a failed attempt to break into Tyrell's headquarters (resulting in the deaths of one[3][4][5] or two[6][7] unidentified replicants), Roy and Leon investigated ways that they could reach Eldon Tyrell in the hope of lengthening their lifespans. They first interrogated Hannibal Chew. Under extreme duress, Chew directed them to J.F. Sebastian. Pris was then sent to make contact with Sebastian. Later that day, Zhora was killed by Blade Runner Rick Deckard and Leon was killed by the replicant, Rachael.[2]

Roy arrived the next morning at J.F.'s home, the abandoned Bradbury Apartments. He told Pris about Leon and Zhora's deaths, and was overwhelmed by emotion and barely able to share the news. Learning that J.F. was playing a lengthy game of chess with Eldon Tyrell, Roy shared the winning moves with J.F., who took him to the Tyrell Corporation to meet with the man himself.[2]

BladeRunner Roy Tyrell

Roy meets Tyrell

Roy and Tyrell briefly debated the possibility of extending the lives of replicants, and Tyrell concluded that it was impossible; a deadly virus was produced by all attempts to alter Nexus-6 biology. Roy asked Tyrell for forgiveness of his sins, but Tyrell seemingly did not comply, telling him that he had also done wondrous things. However, it did nothing to comfort Roy. Roy then killed Tyrell, and then killed J.F. before retreating back to the Bradbury Building.[2]

Confrontation with Deckard[]

Roy busting through the wall

Deckard soon arrived at the Bradbury Building and "retired" Pris. Roy, arriving moments later, began to play a cat-and-mouse-game with Deckard, frightening and taunting him until he found Pris' body and broke down into tears. Roy began to taunt Deckard more violently, breaking two of his fingers as vengeance for Zhora and Pris, then encouraged Deckard to join him in fits of violence after Deckard hit him with a pipe. Roy soon shoved a nail through his malfunctioning hand to stabilize his deterioration and forced Deckard to retreat to the roof of the building.[2]

Death[]

Roy batty2

Roy near death

On the roof, Deckard attempted to escape Roy by jumping to another rooftop, but fell short, clinging desperately to a girder extending off the side of the building. Deckard, trapped, spent his perceived last moments hanging onto the roof as his hands slipped, a fatal fall almost certain. Roy made the leap effortlessly and watched Deckard as he struggled to pull himself to safety. Roy mused about the nature of what it was to be a slave, Deckard began to fall, casting a final act of contempt at Roy by spitting at him. In an uncharacteristic display of mercy, Roy grabbed Deckard and dragged his body onto the roof. Moments later, as his four-year lifespan drew to a close, Roy reflected on the moments he had been privileged enough to witness:[2]

"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe: attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain... time to die."

He died shortly afterwards, allowing a dove he carried to fly out of his hand into the sky.[2]

Behind the scenes[]

Screenwriter David Peoples wrote an opening scene to Blade Runner where, on an Off-world colony junkyard, Batty would emerge from a pile of dead replicants. However, this scene was never filmed.

In Hampton Fancher's original version of the script, Batty was killed by Deckard. Peoples changed this and added the speech, which was expanded by actor Rutger Hauer.[8]

Hauer was cast after Katherine Haber screened Katie Tippel, Soldier of Orange, and Turkish Delight for director Ridley Scott. Scott decided to cast Hauer before meeting him.[8] Philip K. Dick approved of Hauer in the role, stating "Seeing Rutger Hauer as Batty just scared me to death, because it was exactly as I had pictured Batty, but more so."[9]

In the continuation novels written by K. W. Jeter, Roy was one of a series of replicants named after its templant, the mercenary Roy Batty.

References[]

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