I have no opinion yet, but I'm concerned that the question of Deckard's humanity will be answered. Besides whether or not he and Rachel could have a future together, It was the most tantalizing question left unanswered by the first film. Despite how amazing the film's visuals were, I'm not necessarily a fan of the story itself.

What saved the narrative for me was a terrific performance by Rutger Hauer, with his last (improvised) speech giving the film a deep humanity. (The other memorable moment was Zhora's desperate attempt to escape from Deckard, accompanied by Vangelis's sad, mournful score.)

I'm sure we'll find out that Rachael has died, though my mind has to wonder if they'd have included her if Sean Young wasn't completely bonkers. In the end, though, the film will live or die on its screenplay.

I'm on the edge between excitement and fear of disappointment. Blade Runner is one of my favorite movies ever. It is a perfect example of how well sci fi goes with a film noir ambience, and I'm afraid that you just can't pull that off in the 21st century. I mean, there's a whole 80s vibe to Blade Runner that I just adore. But on the other hand, I would love to see more of Deckard :') Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep does clear up the question regarding Deckard's humanity, so that's not an issue for me, following what @AlienFanatic mentioned. And I do agree that Villeneuve proved himself capable of handling sci fi, so I will definitely give this one a try :)

I think Blade Runner is a great film, and I'm going to check out its sequel. But I am prepared to be disappointed, and to discard it if necessary and just enjoy the original without thought to the sequel (as I have done with the 1999 - 2005 Star Wars prequels).

Let's face it, it's been 35 years between the original Blade Runner and when Blade Runner 2049 is to be released, and a long gap between sequels or prequels almost never works.

But . . . maybe it will be good. I'm hoping for the best.

Oh, and I do think it will be mentioned that Rachael has died. In every version of Blade Runner EXCEPT the theatrical release-- which is the version Ridley Scott did not want --it was implied that Rachael had a short lifespan like the other Replicants. So, no Rachael in Blade Runner 2049.

Do you guys think a remake would have been more appropriate than a sequel?

I usually prefer remakes, but I have to admit I'm excited about this one

@Renovatio said:

Do you guys think a remake would have been more appropriate than a sequel?

I usually prefer remakes, but I have to admit I'm excited about this one

Definitely not. I don't see what added value a remake could bring to Blade Runner (or to any given film really).

I think they can be useful sometimes if it is a reinterpretation of the movie. Maybe a different take on the source material, or to do a similar story in a different setting, like Scarface for example.

I think with Blade Runner there is a lot of discussion on Ridley Scott's adaptation of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and a different director could explore it from another angle both philosophically and aesthetically/visually. I think we'll get that anyway with this sequel because it's been so long since the original and Villeneuve seems interested in complex, nuanced ideas if we look at his other movies that were adaptations (e.g. Enemy & Arrival)

But yeah if you're justing going to reshoot the same movie, there really is no point.

The problem is most remakes are just reshoots :/ It could be interesting to see a different take on PKD story, yes, but personally I'm glad with Ridley Scott's version :)

I'm with acf here, both in expectations and in the remake/sequel discussion.

Expecting the worst but encouraged by the talents involved. My main concern is that they will just copy the same story from the first and rely on diehard fans for any success. It's really hard to imagine a legitimate reason for a sequel but maybe they can do it. I think remaking blade runner would be a horrible idea! Scarface was a pretty good remake but it's a pretty basic gangster movie so they trend towards overlapping eachother anyway in so many aspects. Remaking BR would be a disaster. It was some very talented people at the top of their game making something were unlikely to ever see again.

Regardless of whether it's a remake or sequel I'm dreading a nauseating trend: fan service. I don't really need to know what happened to Gaff or Rachel; I don't care about seeing the grandkids of the guy at the noodle bar; I don't need Jared Leto making a secret inside reference to Roy Battys speech. They better be making the sequel for more interesting ideas than that.

@illnagas said: I don't need Jared Leto making a secret inside reference to Roy Battys speech.

Please no, god help us.

@illnagas said:

Regardless of whether it's a remake or sequel I'm dreading a nauseating trend: fan service. ...

I shudder!