“Blade Runner 2049” hits the big screen this weekend, and aside from a couple of exceptions, the largely rave reviews have been kept spoiler free. However, given a culture with quick access to social media, coupled with the desire to be at the front of the line in cultural conversations, its inevitable that spoilers will arrive sooner rather than later. But “Blade Runner 2049” director Denis Villeneuve has been particularly eager to preserve the fan experience, going so far as to provide critics with a list of plot points he’d hoped they’d keep out of their review. Why? For one simple reason: he wants regular moviegoers to have as pure experience as possible.
“I think that it’s great for an audience to experience the movie as [critics] did, which is that you have no preconceived idea. I think that for me, myself as a cinephile, I love to receive a movie being almost a virgin, knowing as little as possible. There’s a hunger among bloggers right now to be the first one to spoil everything, and that’s sad a little bit because it diminishes the pleasure of the audience,” he told The Toronto Star.
READ MORE: Harrison Ford Says He Wasn’t Reluctant To Take On The “F*cking Epic” ‘Blade Runner 2049’
I think we can all get on aboard with that, right? There are some who argue we are in a post-spoiler era, and there’s nothing that can be done about that. But, the solution is very simple — maybe keep major plot points offline, and amongst your friends, for maybe a week or two? Is that really so difficult? We all managed to be cool about Han Solo’s death in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” for a good amount of time, right?
So, don’t ruin it for everyone else when you see “Blade Runner 2049” this weekend. Keep the secrets under your hat for as long as you can. If not for your fellow movie fans, then for Denis Villeneuve.