Company Motives Yet to Be Uncovered

Published October 28, 2016 · Updated July 6, 2022

I am really enjoying your podcast! Thank you for your theories, even the crackpot ones, and for allowing the listeners to participate in this world with their own questions and ideas.

For me, Westworld has been a pretty complicated story to follow. I am by no means stupid. Instead, I am simply unfamiliar with the world, having never seen the original movie, and unlike other shows, we are rapidly presented with many events and several characters within 15 minutes of the first episode. This last episode added even further complexity.

Having re-watched the episodes a few times, I am developing a theory that the hosts were real people at one time. I am not sure if it is all the hosts or just a few of them, like Delores and Maeve, maybe Teddy as well.

First, the characters see and experience a multitude of memories, both in the conscious world and in their dream state. Along the same lines as your general theory of us seeing several timelines, could we also theorize that they are remembering past lives? These past lives could be their original human life, the many incarnations of them as robots, or a combination thereof.

Second, an important point made by Dr. Ford in this previous episode is the fact that he and Arnold started this park by themselves, for different reasons than we see today, and without the support and interference of others. Is it possible that they, particularly Arnold, sought to create a world of immortality – not simply to live forever but to be surrounded by loved ones for eternity? This could help explain Dr. Ford’s mission to keep the staff and hosts on certain paths, while adding “back-story” or events to control the narrative. It doesn’t explain why Arnold died (who knows if he even did) or why Dr. Ford let the park slip from his original design.

Third, the company’s motives are yet to be uncovered. The term “the company” is such an abstract description of this business that it elicits the notion of an evil corporation bent on control and monopoly. However, what if the company’s motive is altruistic? As society progresses, healthcare has grown rapidly as one of the premiere industries of our world. Couple that with our view of this being a futuristic society and you could have the possibility of immortality and/or the ability to interact with deceased loved ones as the ultimate goal of the company, much like other sci-fi/fantasy has focused on cryogenics. People are living longer, healthier lives that it’s possible that we will eventually hope to completely conquer death and even test the possibilities of resurrection.

Let me state that I am NOT sold on this theory nor do I believe that it is a solid concept backed with specific evidence. I am just interested in hearing your thoughts and speculations on the matter.

Best, – Travis

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