All versions of Blade Runner feature the scene at the end where Deckard finds the origami unicorn, but there is a major difference in meaning from the Initial Release (IR) and Director's Cut (DC). The scene itself plays out rather plainly. As Rachael heads to the elevator she knocks something on the floor, which Deckard picks up and sees is a unicorn made by Gaff. He shows recognition of the origami model, crushes it and runs to the elevator. In the IR this can either be read as Gaff letting the duo escape (as the narrative version shows) or pushing it a little further, as Gaff telling Deckard that the Blade Runners are aware of what he's doing. We know that the police chief is expecting Deckard to hunt Rachael down, so to have others do it when he fails is to be expected. Either way it's a rather simple ending. In the DC, however, things get a lot more interesting. You can read it the same as in the IR, although the ambiguous ending could suggest that Gaff is actually telling Deckard that if he runs he will hunt him, making the final shot an act of defiance. However, an added scene earlier in the film makes all that a secondary concern; earlier on Deckard had a dream where he saw a unicorn. We know it's possible to insert memories into a replicant, as seen with Deckard learning some of Rachael's most cherished 'memories', which provides central evidence to the most captivating of theories; Deckard is a replicant. Head to the next page and we'll run through the mystery in full.
