'Blade Runner 2099': Amazon Cyberpunk Spinoff Series Adds 'Civil War' & 'Annihilation' Cinematographer Rob Hardy

‘Blade Runner 2099’: Amazon Cyberpunk Spinoff Series Adds ‘Civil War’ & ‘Annihilation’ Cinematographer Rob Hardy

Amazon Prime Video and Alcon are behind a new spinoff streaming series set within the world of “Blade Runner” (50 years after the events of “Blade Runner 2049”) that has Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All At Once”) attached to star in an undisclosed role and has “Shōgun” director Jonathan van Tulleken involved on “Blade Runner 2099” as well.

The Ronin can confirm that Rob Hardy (“Mission: Impossible – Fallout”) has joined the crew of “Blade Runner 2099” as a director of photography. Hardy is likely best known as the cinematographer of a bunch of Alex Garland movies such as “Ex Machina,” “Annihilation,” the FX series “DEVS,” the folklore horror pic “Men,” and his most recent film, “Civil War.”

Based on the Philip K. Dick novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?,” the original 1982 film focused on a group of replicants who have escaped the off-world colonies to Earth, where their presence is considered illegal. Authorities have sanctioned their termination by hiring a retired Blade Runner, Deckard, to quickly silence the situation by killing them on sight once they’ve been confirmed as replicants and not the humans they’re pretending to be. After being introduced to a non-violent replicant who isn’t aware they are one, Deckard decides to whisk off with her toward the end, leading the hunter to become the hunted.

We haven’t seen the nine off-world colonies in the main two movies (they have been teased/shown in tie-in shorts), and it would be quite the jump for the franchise for events to transpire in a non-Earthbound setting.

Alex Garland’s Next Film ‘Men’ Heads To A24 With Jessie Buckley & Rory Kinnear Tapped To Star

Deadline is reporting that Alex Garland is moving forward with his next writing/directing effort titled Men at A24. Irish actress Jessie Buckley (Fargo, Wild Rose) and Bond franchise actor Rory Kinnear are being in the mix for the lead roles.

Scott Rudin and DNA Films will produce.

The film follows a young woman who goes on a solo vacation to the English countryside after the death of her ex-husband. A24 will finance and distribute.

While the synopsis doesn’t really give us much in the way of plot details, Garland is known for genre projects and likely has a little more to it than a straight drama. Speaking with Empire Magazine a few months ago, Alex Garland gave the impression his next movie would be a low-budget horror movie filming in the United Kingdom sometime during the spring/summer of 2021.

GARLAND: “I wrote a low-budget horror movie, set in the UK… I don’t know if it’s unrealistic or not. Always at this particular moment, a film always feels unrealistic, but then somehow it works out.”

Garland is best known for his work on films such as Ex Machina, Annihilation, his recent limited series DEVS, and is said to ultimately directed Dredd uncredited according to star Karl Urban.

Buckley recently worked with Charlie Kaufman on his drama I’m Thinking of Ending Things and Kinnear will be seen next in Daniel Craig’s final outing as James Bond for No Time To Die.

We’ll be hopeful that more casting and plot details will be revealed in the coming weeks or months.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Alex Garland’s Next Feature Will Be A Low-Budget Horror Movie Set In The UK – Might Begin Shooting Spring/Summer 2021

Writer/director Alex Garland is moving back into feature films as he tells Empire Magazine he abandoned a new series he was developing to focus on a low-budget horror film he plans to begin shooting in spring or summer of next year. Although, we don’t really get any preliminary details or teases concerning the project’s plot.

GARLAND: “I wrote a low-budget horror movie, set in the UK… I don’t know if it’s unrealistic or not. Always at this particular moment, a film always feels unrealistic, but then somehow it works out.”

You might remember that Garland wrote the screenplay for Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later which spawned a sequel titled 28 Weeks Later. Body horror was a huge part of Annihilation and there are plenty of horror/thriller elements in pretty much everything he’s done including his recent series DEVS.

SOURCE: EMPIRE MAGAZINE