(Some minor spoilers for the season 1 finale of “Westworld” are below.)
Late in Sunday’s “Westworld” finale some of our characters wandered through a section of the park’s administration facility we hadn’t seen before. Here we saw hosts dressed as samurai — obviously, these are not Westworld hosts.
The implication here is either that there are other themed parks in existence or Delos, the company that owns Westworld, is preparing to start up a new one with feudal Japan as its theme.
It’s not that much of a surprise — in the film on which the show is, loosely, based, there are a number of similar parks aside from Westworld.
Presumably those other ventures will play a big part later in the series’ run, but “Westworld” co-creator Lisa Joy told TheWrap that no matter where the show goes, or even if, hypothetically, another park becomes the focus of events in the future, they won’t be changing the title. “Westworld” will always be “Westworld” even if it’s no longer set there.
And that’s not just for branding — there’s a thematic reason for the focus on Westworld.
“The West is the perfect template upon which to tell this story because it’s about the rugged frontier, man pushing out against the unknown, and in this case the man is an artificial intelligence,” Joy said. “It’s the way in which, against the stark contrast of nothing that’s on the frontier, you’re better able to define and test yourself. And that’s why Westworld is the perfect setting for this exploration of humanity within both the hosts and the humans.”
Joy made a point of noting that they won’t be abandoning Westworld as a setting, either — at least not in the foreseeable future.
“There’s a lot more to explore in Westworld itself,” Joy said.
There’s also “a lot more people to kill in that park,” co-creator Jonathan Nolan added.
5 'Westworld' Season 2 Fan Theories That Make Perfect Sense (Photos)
"Westworld" concluded its first season on Sunday with an episode chock full of answers, but it also set up plenty more mysteries for viewers to ponder until Season 2. Here are some of the best fan theories about what's next.
1. William/The Man in Black will survive.
At the end of the episode, he took a bullet to the arm, but seemed more amazed than hurt, which leads us to the first theory...
"Ford and the MiB had a mutual respect for each other," says Redditor bachus2015. "He allowed the MiB/William to survive so he could witness the one thing he's wanted to witness all along - the hosts breaking from their programming."
2. Characters will visit new worlds in Season 2
This one seems like a given. The note in this photo, containing the location of Maeve's daughter, suggests there are multiple parks (or prisons, if you side with the hosts) under Delos' control. The other big clue came earlier when Maeve (Thandie Newton) and company passed a room marked with the letters SW, containing samurai warrior hosts, leaving viewers to believe they will see a Samurai World in Season 2.
3. Dr. Ford will return as a host.
A Reddit thread discusses the possibility that Ford built a host of himself who could live on, since a previous episode showed him hard at work creating another host in his secret lab.
4. Or perhaps Dolores killed a host version of Dr. Ford.
Redditor plorraine wrote, "I think that was a host Ford who was shot - his hands looked very odd when he shook hands with Bernard. Weird host hands were a hallmark of the hosts in the 1973 movie."
5. The current timeline takes place in 2052
If you've been wondering how far in the future the show takes place, a piece of web content in the form of security camera footage found on the mock Delos Inc. site seems to have revealed that Maeve's attempt to break out of the park occurred on 6/15/2052.
Assuming Season 2 picks up right where the finale left off, the year in which the story takes place may become more relevant.
When will we know more? HBO has renewed the critically acclaimed drama for Season 2, but has not offered a premiere date yet.
If you enjoyed this gallery, you may enjoy this: Who Was the Real Villain of "Westworld" Season 1?
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The best theories about everything from Samurai World to when the show takes place
"Westworld" concluded its first season on Sunday with an episode chock full of answers, but it also set up plenty more mysteries for viewers to ponder until Season 2. Here are some of the best fan theories about what's next.
