Amazon's Blade Runner Series Gets New Director

The world of Blade Runner is set to continue with an upcoming TV series on Prime Video, with Jonathan van Tulleken set to take over as director of the limited series Blade Runner 2099. Van Tulleken will helm the first two episodes of the series, with Jeremy Podeswa previously on board to bring the project to life, though Podeswa had to exit the project due to scheduling conflicts. The series was originally set to head into production last year, though the writers' and actors' strikes saw production pushed. Silka Luisa wrote the limited series and also serves as its showrunner.

Blade Runner 2099 will serve as a sequel to both Ridley Scott's 1982 Blade Runner and Denis Villeneuve's 2017 Blade Runner 2049. The original movie was inspired by the Philip K. Dick novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and starred Harrison Ford, Sean Young, and Rutger Hauer. The sequel starred Ryan Gosling and Ana de Armas, while also bringing back Ford. Given the nature of the concept and these actors having played humanoid replicants, it's currently unknown if any former stars will be returning for the experience.

"The original Blade Runner, directed by Ridley Scott, is considered one of the greatest and most influential science-fiction movies of all time, and we're excited to introduce Blade Runner 2099 to our global Prime Video customers," Vernon Sanders, head of global television, Amazon Studios, said when Blade Runner 2099 was initially announced. "We are honored to be able to present this continuation of the Blade Runner franchise, and are confident that by teaming up with Ridley, Alcon Entertainment, Scott Free Productions, and the remarkably talented Silka Luisa, Blade Runner 2099 will uphold the intellect, themes, and spirit of its film predecessors."  

Back in 2021, fans were given the anime series Blade Runner: Black Lotus, which took place in the distinct world but wasn't a direct continuation of the events of either live-action film.

"We are delighted to continue our working relationship with our friends at Amazon," Alcon Entertainment co-CEOs and co-founders Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson, added of Blade Runner 2099. "And we are beyond excited to continue to extend the Blade Runner canon into a new realm with the provocative storyline that Silka has created. Audiences first discovered Ridley Scott's brilliant vision for Blade Runner 40 years ago, and since then, it has become one of the most influential science-fiction films of all time. Denis Villeneuve's follow-up sequel, Blade Runner 2049, then became one of the best-reviewed sequels of all time. So, we recognize that we have a very high bar to meet with this next installment. Together with Silka and our partners at Amazon, and Scott Free Productions, we hope that we can live up to that standard and delight audiences with the next generation of Blade Runner."  

Stay tuned for updates on Blade Runner 2099.

Are you looking forward to the project? Let us know in the comments!