Blade Runner 2099 Show Filming Start Month Reportedly Revealed

Summary Blade Runner 2099 will reportedly begin filming in June 2024 and run through the end of the year.

Michelle Yeoh will star in the show, replacing iconic characters like Deckard, signaling a departure from previous movie story arcs.

The TV adaptation offers the opportunity to expand the Blade Runner universe, potentially leading to a renewed future on the big screen.

Prime Video's upcoming TV show Blade Runner 2099 has been given a new filming start month. The show will serve as a sequel to 2017's Blade Runner 2049, which was itself a sequel to Ridley Scott's 1982 sci-fi masterpiece starring Harrison Ford. Academy Award-winning actor Michelle Yeoh will star in the show, which will be produced by Scott. Plot details are currently a mystery, but it will act as an extension of the Blade Runner universe, seemingly set 50 years after the events of the previous movie.

After being greenlit in 2022, the show will finally get underway with filming two years later. According to Collider, Blade Runner 2099 will start filming in June. It's said that production will likely run through the end of the year, and it will take place in both Prague and Spain. Silka Luisa, who is best known for the Apple TV+ show Shining Girls, will take the role of showrunner, while Shogun director Jonathan van Tulleken is also attached to helm the early episodes.

How Blade Runner 2099 Can Provide A Breath Of Fresh Air For The Franchise

Blade Runner 2099 Will Have A Wide Scope

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A franchise like Blade Runner is one of the strongest in cinema, and Blade Runner 2099 represents another chance to take it in a fresh direction. Though Yeoh's character has been kept largely a secret, reports have said she will play a replicant named Olwen. The series will explore themes of identity and mortality, and from there, it can delve into newer topics for the franchise. Episodic storytelling is typically a great way of being able to explore a story in greater detail, and the epic, sprawling narrative of the Blade Runner franchise certainly lends itself to a TV adaptation.

While it is unclear which direction Blade Runner 2099 might take, the casting of Yeoh adds some star power and serves as a replacement for Ford's Deckard. Ford starred in the original movie and also appeared in Blade Runner 2049, providing symbiosis between the two films. However, it feels highly improbable that he will appear on the show, and the same is true of Ryan Gosling, who starred in 2049. It feels far more likely that Blade Runner 2099 will depart from the movies' story arcs, and instead try to carve its own narrative that will help enrich the universe.

With this, there is certainly an opportunity to expand the mythology of Blade Runner and create a program that is going to elevate the franchise to new heights. There is no definitive answer yet for how many seasons Blade Runner 2099 might run for, and a lot will depend on the availability of Yeoh, and the rest of the cast. There is also the question of how the story might evolve, and whether that will lead to a renewed future on the big screen as well.

The original Blade Runner is available to rent on various streaming platforms, while Blade Runner 2049 can be streamed on Apple TV+.

Source: Collider