Almost 35 years ago to the day, Ridley Scott, Hampton Fancher, and David Peoples dreamed up a neo-noir masterpiece in the form of Blade Runner, one that was loosely inspired by Philip K. Dick’s cult classic, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
The film released on June 25th, 1982 to a relatively modest $6.1 million, before going on to score $27.5 million throughout the course of its theatrical run – a total that practically equaled its original production budget of $28 million. Hardly a success story for the ages. But Scott’s brooding, wildly imaginative sci-fi yarn still cemented its place in popular culture with a narrative so complex – so intricate, so thought-provoking – that it eventually earned its status as a modern classic. The big question left facing Arrival and soon-to-be Dune director Denis Villeneuve is whether a cult hit can spawn a blockbuster sequel.
Villeneuve is at the helm of Blade Runner 2049, a follow-up more than three decades in the making. It’s set to arrive in October of this year, and at least so far, 2049‘s trailers and neon-drenched screenshots have left moviegoers suitably impressed. To coincide with the oncoming anniversary, that media blowout continues today via Entertainment Weekly, after the outlet rolled out an all-new featurette for Denis Villeneuve’s long-awaited sequel.
Embedded above, the video features a brief interview with Harrison Ford, who recalled the moment when he first stepped back into Rick Deckard’s boots after all these years.
I think it’s kind of fun to play a character 30 years later. The story, the themes, the stunning visual environments — it was a pleasure to get back in the world of Blade Runner again.
Ford is, of course, referring to Star Wars: The Force Awakens and his upcoming role in Indiana Jones 5. In 2049, though, his Deckard is very much the old guard to Ryan Gosling’s newbie, K, and the latter had nothing but praise for the sequel’s award-winning DP, Roger Deakins.
Roger is a master storyteller. You realize once you are in one of his shots, half your work has already been done.
Will Blade Runner 2049 spawn a similar legacy that we’ll be talking about in years to come? We’ll find out on October 6th, when Robin Wright, Dave Bautista, Ana de Armas, Mackenzie Davis, Sylvia Hoeks, and Barkhad Abdi will be rubbing shoulders with that aforementioned duo.
Published: Jun 21, 2017 02:52 pm