Ridley Scott reveals his plans for a third Blade Runner movie

Is a Blade Runner sequel coming sooner than expected?

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When Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner hit theaters in 1982, the movie was shrugged off by critics and ended up being a financial flop. Although academicians gave the movie its cult status, it took 35 years for fans to get a sequel. Now, despite Blade Runner 2049‘s disappointing box-office success, Scott has ensured that fans of the franchise don’t have to wait that long again.

Instead of directly following Rick Deckard’s (Harrison Ford) story, Blade Runner 2049 unfolded the mysteries of a futuristic LA through the eyes of Officer K (Ryan Gosling). The movie explored humanity and identity in Roger Deakins’ richly colored sets and made us feel for an android. Additionally, as Denis Villeneuve has left some riddles of his own making, Scott told Digital Spy that he has plans to resolve them.

"“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.”"

Although the thought of a sequel to Blade Runner 2049 is exciting, Scott’s promise is contradictory to his schedule. The auteur has already signed up for Disney’s Merlin saga and is simultaneously working on a new Alien film. While that is bound to occupy Scott’s attention, his approach towards Villeneuve’s work might be the franchise’s undoing. So, the question we should be asking is whether Scott is the right person for Blade Runner 3.

Should Ridley Scott helm the sequel to Blade Runner 2049?

Ridley Scott has made some of the greatest films in the history of cinema while conquering a variety of genres. However, after 2008’s Body of Lies, Scott’s direction has been quite erratic. In 2017 itself, Scott managed to intrigue audiences with All the Money in the World but also created Alien: Covenant, which lacked the artistic flair he had shown in Alien.

There is no doubt that Scott deserves all the praise he got for Blade Runner. However, his pessimistic outlook towards Blade Runner 2049 is worrisome. While calling out today’s audience for not seeing Villeneuve’s masterpiece might be understandable, dismissing the massive effort that was put in to create 2049 just for its length, is in bad taste.

"“I have to be careful what I say. I have to be careful what I say. It was f*cking way too long. F*ck me! And most of that script’s mine,” Scott tells Vulture in an interview."

Blade Runner 2049 was picking up 30 years after the events of Blade Runner. That’s why it needed to explain the massive time-jump while creating its own story, and the movie’s length and pacing managed to do both. And considering how Scott has made a 171 minute-long film (Gladiator), he should be the last person to complain about length.

While Blade Runner took years and multiple revisions to please critics, Denis Villeneuve has done it in his first attempt. And with a series of hits like Sicario, Incendies, Enemy, Prisoners and Arrival, it’s obvious that Villeneuve is on his A-game. In addition to that, despite all the negativity, since he’s interested to revisit the dystopian world of Blade Runner, Villeneuve is undoubtedly the perfect choice for Blade Runner 3. In an interview with Screen Daily, Villeneuve says:

"“The door is not closed. I know, to my great admiration and excitement, that for Alcon the journey goes on. They’re proud of the movie and they’re not closing the door.”"

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Blade Runner 2049 was much more expansive than its predecessor, both in terms of philosophy and world-building, and Villeneuve captured both aspects immaculately. However, as Scott is more inclined to make something fast-paced and shorter in length, he might damage the trilogy despite having the best of intentions. As Villeneuve’s filmography proves that he understands the neo-noir recipe that the 21st-century audience needs, it’ll be best for Scott and the studios to let him bring Deckard’s story to a close.

Blade Runner 2049 is currently available on digital download, Blu-ray, and DVD.

Who do you think should be in charge of Blade Runner 3? Let me know in the comments.