The announcement of a Blade Runner prequel/sequel earlier this year stirred some people up, myself included. Those fears can be put aside as Deadline reports that Ridley Scott himself will helm this update. The director who is currently prepping his Alien-inspired sci-fi epic Prometheus, will be returning to another one of his sci-fi classics with this update. There is no word on whether this is a prequel or a sequel, but Scott has officially signed on to direct and produce the feature for Alcon Entertainment.
We also don’t know if the project will look for a new actor or if Harrison Ford will return in his iconic role as Rick Deckard, in the 1982 sci-fi based on Philip K. Dick‘s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? They are spare details, but as the development process proceeds it will be interesting to see if this one becomes more like his upcoming Prometheus, which is just loosely inspired on Alien, based on Damon Lindelof‘s script. For now, I’m excited at the potential for this property with Scott at the helm. Blade Runner‘s 5-disc Blu-ray remains one of my most watched and even if Scott takes a wrong turn, we’ll always have the original. Check out a synopsis of the original below if you’ve forgotten.
In 2019, humans have genetically engineered Replicants, which are essentially humans who are designed for labor and entertainment purposes. They are illegal on earth, and if they make it to our planet they are to be hunted down and killed.
Rick Deckard is a blade runner, or a hunter of replicants. A group of replicants make it to Los Angeles to seek out a way to extend their life span. Replicants have a built in 4 year life span, and this group is at the end. Although he hunts them to the end, the replicants end up teaching the detached Deckard what it really means to be human.
We’ll likely get a stronger idea at what Scott has in store for these pseudo-remakes, come June 8th, 2012 when Prometheus hits theaters with Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace, Patrick Wilson, Idris Elba and Guy Pearce.
Does Ridley Scott’s involvement generate interest for a Blade Runner update?