Why did this bomb in 1982?

Maybe cause it’s such a slow movie?

I liked it, but it was too dark and dreary for the time when all the popular sci-fi was bright and colorful. Not to mention Han Solo/Indiana Jones drops the “n” word in the movie.

They weren't prepared for it, it was too from a different time.

I wouldn't call this a bomb, it finished #24 in box office rankings for 1982.

Fast Times at Ridgemont High was #25

The Thing, could be considered a bomb, finished #55 in rankings for 1982.

Sci-fi fans expect a Star Wars mega hit type of revenue for every good sci-fi...this generally not the case for more cerebral types of sci-fi movies like Blade Runner.

Not entirely sure but my impression at the time was that it wasn't marketed very well. There was little attention for this movie in a year when a lot of very big films were released. And the way it was advertised probably also wasn't very good. It was a very dark film in an era when films were in general a lot more upbeat. The timing for a release of this film wasn't great in that sense.

Because it's boring and ponderous. The plot is kinda confusing. The lead character is grumpy and sort of passive most of the time. It is dark and wet all the time. The detective does very little detecting and his main contribution to the plot is killing the two female replicants while very awkwardly romancing another one.

Blade Runner is a great film but it's no mystery why it wasn't a more successful one.