WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for the Season 3 premiere of Westworld, "Parce Domine," which premiered Sunday on HBO.
After spending most of its time in theme parks, Westworld’s Season 3 premiere took viewers on a trip to the outside world, where viewers saw what the future looks like in this particular world. The window into this prosperous, technologically-driven future comes in the form of Aaron Paul’s Caleb, a military veteran who's suffering from PTSD. He’s clearly been through a lot and now that he’s no longer in service, he’s working as a construction worker in a society that advantages only a select few.
In order to make more money and help his ailing mother, Caleb has turned to small-time crime. This is an individual pushed to his limits, who lives on the fringes of society. At the end of the episode, his chance encounter with Dolores hints at a special bond between the two --man and android. But could there actually be more to it than that?
When fans meet Caleb, they go through his day-to-day life: he wakes up, goes to work and, if he can, interviews for another job he probably can’t get because of the shackles of society’s privileged. Then, he logs onto RICO, the digital app that allows one to perform all manner of crimes to earn points and money. Then, he does it all over again -- much like the loops the robotic hosts were programmed to go through repeatedly in the Westworld park. With this, the series seems to be telling that humans and hosts are alike in that way.
But what if Caleb is a host himself? In fact, there are a few clues dropped in the episode that may hint at this potential twist. When Caleb visits his ailing mother in the hospital, he kisses her goodbye. But in reply, she blankly stares at him and answers “You’re not my son.” Caleb’s mother is mentally ill, which means her not recognizing him could simply be a symptom of her illness. But there is also the possibility that her illness has given her a sort of blank clarity, one which allows her to notice her son isn’t her son at all.
The plot thickens later in the episode when Caleb finds himself at gunpoint. Staring down the barrel of the gun, he defies the guard to shoot, telling him it wouldn’t be the first time he is shot in the head. Sure, there are a few ways to interpret this, the most logical being that Caleb miraculously survived a gunshot to the head. But given the fatal probability of such a wound, it’s also possible Caleb was shot and killed during his service and he was later replaced by a host.
Westworld has often challenged its viewers with secrets, hints and big twists, whether it’s the identity of the Man in Black or the specific timeline of events. For Season 3, the big twist could be set around Caleb.
The Season 3 premiere showcased heavy influences from Blade Runner, from its themes and depictions of technology to the score. And given that at the heart of the original Blade Runner lies the long-running theory that Harrison Ford’s Deckard was a replicant all along, it’s possible Westworld is pushing us to ask the same type of question. Caleb looks human and feels like a human, but maybe he's more than that.
Airing Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO, Westworld stars returning cast members Evan Rachel Wood, Thandie Newton, Ed Harris, Jeffrey Wright, Tessa Thompson, Luke Hemsworth, Simon Quarterman and Rodrigo Santoro, joined by series newcomers Aaron Paul, Vincent Cassel, Lena Waithe, Scott Mescudi, Marshawn Lynch, John Gallagher Jr., Michael Ealy and Tommy Flanagan.