‘Blade Runner 2′ Officially Seeking Harrison Ford’s Return
After years of development, 'Blade Runner 2' finally appears to be happening. Well, by "happening," we mean that director Ridley Scott and the Alcon production company are officially seeking to bring original star Harrison Ford back into the fold.
Officially announced by Alcon (via The Hollywood Reporter), this news manages to simultaneously feel great and dreadful. It's great because the android-hunting Rick Deckard is one of Ford's greatest roles; if he plays a major role in the sequel, it could be fun to see Ford put on that iconic coat and strap on that even more iconic pistol. It's dreadful because the original 'Blade Runner' concludes with Deckard's identity in flux and his life in chaos, creating one of the greatest ongoing movie mysteries/debates in history. It'll be a shame to solve that and end the conversation.
And then there's the fact that Ford returned to a beloved character with 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,' and we all know how that turned out.
Another weird note worth addressing is that Ford hasn't officially signed on and he's apparently not even in official talks. Alcon, who holds the rights to the 'Blade Runner' name, is simply announcing that it's currently seeking to bring the legendary movie star back. Here's the official statement from Alcon co-founders Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove:
We believe that [screenwriters] Hampton Fancher and Michael Green have crafted with Ridley Scott an extraordinary sequel to one of the greatest films of all time. We would be honored, and we are hopeful, that Harrison will be part of our project.
We're going to stay positive about this one. Bringing on original screenwriter Hampton Fancher and director Ridley Scott feels like a step in the right direction, but that doesn't change the fact that 'Blade Runner' feels perfect and complete as is. Heck, we'd rather see a sequel that takes place in the same world but without any connections to the previous film in any way.
And then there's the fact that Scott returned to a beloved franchise with 'Prometheus,' and we all know how that turned out. With Scott planning to make 'The Martian' with Matt Damon and Ford about to start shooting 'Star Wars: Episode 7,' we imagine it'll be a little while before we hear anything concrete.