New 'Blade Runner' film to be a sequel

Entertainment Tonight, Thursday, May 17, 2012, 4:41pm (PDT)

Entertainment Tonight

Back in August, news broke that director Ridley Scott had signed on to direct and produce a new installment of his iconic sci-fi film "Blade Runner," but no further details were revealed. Now it can be told that the project will be a sequel, and the original film's screenwriter, Hampton Fancher, has been recruited to develop the film.

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"He still speaks the speak. He's right there," Scott told Entertainment Weekly back in February about "Blade Runner" discussions with Fancher, who is in talks to develop the idea for the original screenplay.

The announcement comes from Alcon Entertainment, which acquired the rights to the film franchise in March of 2011. The filmmakers would reveal only that the new story will take place some years after the first film concluded.

Based on Philip K. Dick's 1968 novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?," Scott's 1982 film starred Harrison Ford as a retired Los Angeles detective in 2019 tasked with tracking down a quartet of Replicants -- perfect androids practically indistinguishable from humans -- who are illegally on Earth seeking to meet their maker and extend their expiration date.

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Scott and Fancher originally conceived of their 1982 classic as the first in a series of films incorporating the themes and characters featured in Dick's groundbreaking novel.

No word yet as to when the new "Blade Runner" film will hit theaters. Could be 2019. Until then, like tears in rain, we'll all just have to work on our unicorn origami at a noodle bar.  

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