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Ridley Scott Has An Idea For Another Blade Runner Sequel
It may have taken Hollywood 25 years to bring Blade Runner 2049 to our screens, but Ridley Scott confirms that he already has plans for a third movie in the Blade Runner franchise.
Scott helmed the original movie way back in 1982, but passed the directorial baton over to Denis Villeneuve for last year’s 2049. Featuring a melding of the old and the new with Harrison Ford reprising his role as Rick Deckard, 2049 sadly saw Scott step away from his duties to serve only as an executive producer. The box office reception to Blade Runner 2049 was mixed, and Scott himself was among its critics, calling it “too long.” So, can the man who first brought the series to our screens resurrect the imagination of Philip K. Dick?
Speaking to Digital Spy, Scott emphasized that there is more of a story out there to tell for humans vs. replicants. He said, “I hope so, I think there is another story. I’ve got another one ready to evolve and be developed, so there is certainly one to be done for sure.”
It is an interesting comment to make, especially given the fact that 2049 underperformed quite spectacularly at the box office. Talking of failing franchises, Scott’s hopes of an ever-expanding Alien universe appear to have been scuppered thanks to the cancellation of an Alien Covenant sequel, so he certainly seems to have the time on his hands to craft a third Blade Runner.
There is no denying that Scott has a talent for bringing sci-fi to our screens, and Villeneuve even asked him to leave the set of 2049 for being too much of an intimidating presence. However, there is one major question on everyone’s lips, “Do we really need Blade Runner 3?” The ending to the 1982 classic may have been left open to its own interpretation, but one of the biggest criticisms of 2049 was that it technically never needed to happen. Villeneuve’s movie was equally open-ended, but it could be a case of once bitten, twice shy for Warner Bros.
Even if Scott was struggling for ideas, the source material is out there. With Blade Runner being based on Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the dystopian world that the author created back in 1968 has since seen another three novels by K.W. Jeter – ending with 2000’s Blade Runner 4: Eye and Talon. Admittedly, a 2049 sequel probably won’t follow Jeter’s storyline, but with the child of Rachel from Blade Runner revealed toward the climax of 2049, expect a Deckard and Stelline adventure to be the focus of a continuing trilogy. Even with 2049 resting on the shoulders of Ryan Gosling, the technology of the era also offers a whole host of ways that K could return after his seeming death before the credits rolled.
Whether or not Blade Runner 3 ever comes to be, Scott is definitely the man with the vision to make it happen. Just like with Prometheus, it seems that time only helps to serve the director’s end goal, so expect a third Blade Runner to be more of a when and not an if. How fans will react to the possibility of another round with Deckard and co. remains to be seen, but it sounds like this cash cow isn’t out of milk just yet!
Source: Digital Spy
