Blade Runner fans, fear not: You have every right to be protective of the legendary 1982 sci-fi film’s legacy, but know that its sequel is in very good hands. And the first trailer for the follow-up, released yesterday, proves it will feature an aesthetic much like the Ridley Scott original.
Directed by Denis Villeneuve, whose credits include Prisoners, Sicario, and this year’s brilliant sci-fi thriller Arrival, Blade Runner 2049 looks extremely promising, despite the understandable concern of fans of the original. Working with Villeneuve is composer Jóhann Jóhannsson (who scored all three of the films above), illustrious cinematographer Roger Deakins (who also shot Prisoners and Sicario), and editor Joe Walker (who edited Sicario and Arrival).
Each frame of the trailer belongs in an art gallery. Watch below:
The original film followed an LAPD bounty hunter (called blade runners) searching for illegal androids (called replicants). Its sequel takes place 30 years later, and follows a new blade runner, played by Ryan Gosling, who makes a startling discovery that leads him to Rick Deckard—the blade runner from the original film played once again by Harrison Ford.
If you’re wondering why the trailer looks so orange, it’s probably because of climate change. ”The climate has gone berserk,” Villeneuve told Entertainment Weekly in July. “The ocean, the rain, the snow is all toxic.”
In addition to Ford, two other key players from the original film returned to work on the sequel: Ridley Scott helped produce the film, and Hampton Fancher, who wrote the original, returned to co-write the script.
For decades, Hollywood had tried to develop a sequel to Scott’s film. Blade Runner received only lukewarm reviews when it first came out, but it has since become a science fiction staple, renowned for infusing film noir concepts into its dystopian sci-fi setting. Still, no sequel ever materialized—until now.
Blade Runner doesn’t need a sequel, especially given that much of its strength was in its unapologetically ambiguous ending. But we’re getting one, and we should be thrilled with who’s making it. The film comes out in October 2017, perfect timing for those of us disappointed that HBO’s android drama Westworld won’t return until 2018.