Once Hollywood got the idea of robots that look like humans, they never really quite let it go. They’ve been throwing them in our faces ever since, and we’ve all considered them to be a normal part of sci-fi entertainment.
As the world has been flooded with androids on the big or small screen, we’ve seen some pretty bad ones. And I’m not talking about “these look humanoid”, because most androids are played by actual humans – it’d be quite easy to make them look human. I’m talking about androids that show the right amount of mechanical robotic-ness in their performance, as well as some human elements.
Let’s take a look at some human-like androids in our visual entertainment. Because we can.
T-800 Terminator (Terminator series)
I can see how an AI that wants to eradicate humanity would build a robot that looks like Arnold Schwarzenegger. I mean, why wouldn’t you? I’m down with that idea.
Data (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Perhaps the most popular android most sci-fi nerds grew up with, Data was the first android we came to appreciate like a fellow human being.
Ava (Ex Machina)
Considering how the entire movie is about an android taking the Turing test, Ava had to be realistic and human-like. And she was!
David (Prometheus)
Played by the always brilliant Michael Fassbender, David was just the right amount of cold and calculated to make the audience aware of his android nature, without it ever becoming too obvious.
Roy Batty (Blade Runner)
Still a sci-fi classic until this day, Blade Runner was all about androids trying to fit into society. And of all the androids (well, replicants), Roy Batty had a certain robotic creepiness to him – as well as lots of soul and character.
Bernard (Westworld)
When it comes to androids in general, Westworld pretty much nails it. Bernard’s realisation of his true android nature and how he deals with this is truly a haunting performance.
