When (in which year) is Robocop set?

Is there any indication in Robocop of which year it is set in? It looks like the near future but is there any more specific clue?

Answer

The closest I could find to an official answer from the author was from a 2009 interview with co-writer Ed Neumeier who said:

Ed Neumeier: There was never a year on that picture and that was actually a big fight at the time because people kept asking me, “What year is this set in?” And I kept saying, “I’m not going to tell you.” That was because I always thought well, we’d pass it, but we haven’t passed it except in our imaginations anyway.

Robocop is set from November 2043 to February 2044, +/- one month.

This based based on a number of references:

1. The duration of the events in the movie is four months.

On the first day of the movie (when Murphy is transferred to a new police department - Metro West), there is a board meeting at OCP. During this meeting, the Old Man says:

In six months we begin construction... of Delta City.

Then, in one of the final scenes, Dick Jones says to Clarence Boddicker:

Suit yourself. But Delta City begins construction in two months.

Conclusion: based on time to complete Delta City, the events of the film take four months.

2. Robocop's creation takes approximately three months.

This is based on Bob Morton's statement in that same meeting:

I'm confident we can go to prototype within 90 days.

Due to the interchanging of scenes between Murphy's first day at the Metro West department and the board room scene, we can conclude that the 90 days starts from Murphy's first day. This means the scenes involving Robocop (crimefighting, visiting a school, going to Murphy's home, etc) take place over about a month, since this in total makes the four months of the film.

3. Robocop's reconstruction takes place over New Year.

During the reconstruction:

Hey, hey. Look, he's watching us!

This is for you. Happy New Year.

This is the final scene of the reconstruction, implying it is near the end.

4. Based on the above, the events take place from November of one year to February of the next (plus or minus one month).

• Robocop's reconstruction could not have started before October to be finished by the New Year.



• Nor could it have been started later than December for the same reason. Hence, the start of Robocop must have been in the October - December range and four months later implies ending in January to March. This is therefore November to February +/- one month.

5. Robocop is set in the years 2043 and 2044.

There is no indication in the film of which year Robocop is set. However, the book provides the answer. From page 148:

"Good morning." Casey smiled, his teeth nearly reaching his ear lobes. "I'm Casey Wong with Jess Perkins and these are today's top stories. It was revealed today by doctors at the Texas Clone Institute that Hollywood immortal Sylvester Stallone died yesterday during an unsuccessful brain transplant. A longtime supporter of bio-engineering, Stallone was ninety-seven. His last film, Rambo 38: Old Blood, will be released posthumously next month."

Sylvester Stallone was born on 6 July 1946, so he would be 97 in the second half of the year 2043 and first half of 2044.

Conclusion: Robocop is set from November 2043 to February 2044, plus or minus one month.