Ridley Scott to reboot 'Blade Runner'

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The director of 1982's Blade Runner, Ridley Scott, has agreed to create a new version of his iconic sci-fi film, it was announced by Alcon Entertainment on August 18.

It is not determined yet if the new film will be a prequel or a sequel to Blade Runner. The production company, Alcon ( The Blind Side, The Book of Eli), could also produce television and interactive properties in addition to a new film.

Adapted from Philip K. Dick's story Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, Scott's original noir vision of the dystopian future was named the second most visually influential film of all time, after Star Wars, by the Visual Effects Society.

Blade Runner was also selected for preservation by the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

The classic starred Harrison Ford as a "blade runner" who tracked replicants who hijacked a spaceship to return to earth to seek their creator, the shadowy head of a corporation. Rutger Hauer, Sean Young and Daryl Hannah played replicants.

In response to casting the new film, Collider.com reported that Alcon's co-founder/CEO Andrew Kosgrove said, "In no way do I speak for Ridley Scott, but if you're asking me will this movie have anything to do with Harrison Ford, the answer is no. This is a total reinvention, and in my mind that means doing everything fresh, including casting."

Scott is currently shooting Prometheus, considered the origin story of his 1979 landmark film Alien with entirely new characters and a new cast, including Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace and Idris Elba, to be released June 2012.

RC