'Blade Runner' movie trailers should offer spoiler alerts, Dann says

Warner Bros. doesn't want critics to reveal the secrets of "Blade Runner 2049." But if you really want to preserve the surprises, don't watch the trailers. Courtesy of Warner Bros.

At Chicago press screenings for "Blade Runner 2049" last week, a Warner Bros. representative read a request from director Denis Villeneuve asking critics to preserve the movie experience for viewers by not revealing its twists and surprises.

Hey, I'm all for that.

He asked critics not to reveal cameo appearances, divulge characters' fates or identify anyone as human, replicant or hologram.

Villeneuve apparently forgot to send this memo to the studio's marketing department, which practically outted a major character in commercials and theatrical trailers.

Faithful readers of this column know how much I despise most movie trailers because they destroy the surprises and undermine our movie experiences.

The single greatest threat to the movie business today is studio officials who throw the quality of our cinematic experience under the bus if they think they can pack a few more butts in theater seats.

If Villeneuve really wanted cameo appearances to remain surprises, he should have started with Harrison Ford's elongated, 11th-hour cameo as Deckard. Imagine our reaction had we not known he would suddenly appear near the final reel.

For that matter, imagine how much more fun "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" would have been had we not known Colin Firth's Harry Hart was still alive after being shot dead! dead! dead! through the eyeball in "Kingsman: The Secret Service." Yet, there he was in the trailers and commercials. Thanks a lot, 20th Century Fox!

Did Villeneuve really want critics to keep mum about all the character cameos, fates and identities, or just the ones the studio marketing department didn't want to use?

The cold truth is that studios don't want critics to ruin movies.

They want to do that themselves.

• Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire's column runs Friday in Time out! You can follow him on Twitter at @DannGireDHfilm.