The sci-fi legend also explains how 2001 led to Alien, Blade Runner, and Raised by Wolves.
Warning: This article contains spoilers forRaised by Wolvesseason 2.
“I’m in a bathrobe because I f—ing want to.”
Ridley Scott.Desiree Navarro/WireImage
And damn if he doesn’t make the entire thing work.
SirRidley Scottis on Zoom, taking a quick break from filmingNapoleon.
But rather than chat about the pint-size 19th-century French emperor, Scott is here to talk robots.
Scenes from ‘Alien,’ ‘2001,’ and ‘Blade Runner’.Everett Collection (3)
What are the themes that you love to explore and consider by playing with all these humanoid robots?
There was one or two that I thought were okay and I could describe as being interesting.
But oddly enough, the very best early sci-fi for me, we’re talking way beforeKubrick, right?
Abubaker Salim and Selina Jones on ‘Raised by Wolves’.Coco Van Oppens/HBO Max
Because Kubrick really hits the gong, and you go, “Holy s—.
Now there is a real world here.”
But the one I think is probably the best to watch, funny enough, is calledOn the Beach.
Travis Fimmel on ‘Raised by Wolves’.Coco Van Oppens/HBO Max
Nevil Shute did a great book which was made into a very, very good movie.
Even now it works, with Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner.
It all takes place in Australia.
If you haven’t seen it, watch it.
So when I saw2001, it actually literally was seminal in many respects for science fiction, full stop.
I think it totally influencedStar Wars, completely influencedGeorge Lucas.
Totally blew me away.
But the most important thing was the first real encounter with a brain and HAL.
HAL was the star of the goddamn movie, and HAL was representing the corporation.
That wasn’t me.
That was already in there with O’Bannon and Shusett.
But little by little, I started to get fascinated by the logic of AI capability and AI certainty.
It’s now well and truly here, in fact probably has been here 10 years.
So now we go toBlade Runner, andBlade Runneris a marvelous way of actually cooking that notion.
That’s not really in the book at all.
So this is a machine who raised a son asking him why he would choose to love a machine.
What do you make of these heady connections humans and androids are making on each other here?
It is exactly the same thing.
So already that is the bedrock, the basis of great evolution.
The possibilities of where you’re able to go with that are terrific.
You have an affection towards them.
Then it’s possible for you to say, “Oh my God, I love them.”
So where do you go from there?
That’s a great question, and I don’t know how to answer it.
They’re not really that smart, but they’re kind of cute.
I can pat this one on the head."
Suddenly the reversal of who is master and who is below that can change position.
Your first task is to design a superior AI to yourself.
That is an order."
And it says, “Ready when you are, boss,” and starts to do it.
When that next one is complete, the human race is in f—ing trouble.
And you won’t know it.
You will not know it until it starts, everything starts to tumble.
Which do you all believe is true for most people?
I think ignorance is stupid, because do something about it.
You could f—ing well think.
If you’ve got half a brain, ignorance becomes lazy.
And from that, they become very special people normally, right?
So when it’s there, it should be an inspiration.
But I never believe ignorance is bliss.
I don’t connect bliss with ignorance, never connect them.
Does drive inherently make someone unhappy because they are always trying to achieve more?
What is built in people in different forms and different strengths is ambition.
And ambition is certainly almost chemical.
Someone who’s got serious ambition is an abject up-and-goer on a clock-by-clock, day-by-day, minute-by-minute basis.
And in a funny kind of way, they are fortunate to be blessed with that.
But then you cross into settle for less.
Do I see people around me settling for less?
So the whole world is less than it could be.
So these have all become huge discussions.
You always need the leaders, in a way.
The better word to say is the entrepreneurs, is the thinkers.
There’s so many layers of evolution.
This is called evolution, right?
And it’s the evolving process.
That one idea is so big.
And then it beats the s— out of the animal that morning.
Instead of arguing and snarling at it, it killed it and used the shinbone as a weapon.
That is so genius as an idea.
I went, wow.
Maybe it’s the best cut in cinema history.
How involved are you still at this point in terms of overseeing story and direction on this show?
Aaron is the master builder, and I’m like the house painter.
I paint the house and put the nails in.
Ash was a robot on board a ship to protect the ship.
And when I read the pilot, I went… And to do that, how do you insulate the future, the survival of the human race?
So to me, I thought, what a fantastic platform to evolve.
The hardest single thing to do is write, full stop.
Doing what I do is a lot easier, I think.
I’d have done one movie in my entire career if I’d written it.
That would’ve taken so long.
I haven’t got the brain for writing, funnily enough.
That’s what’s wonderful.
Always that possibility, because I just love to work, you know?
And I’m now a month in on this [Napoleon].
I’m already a month in.
I’ve got three months to go.
I’m seeing it every day is what I’ve done in an editing room.
Every weekend I’m watching a cut happening.
So I’m already thinking, prepping another TV show.
