‘Blade Runner 2099’ Amazon Series Adds Michelle Yeoh, Filming To Begin Soon If It Hasn’t Already
The Blade Runner 2099 series that’s been in the works for years now continues to build momentum. Shooting was pushed back last year in light of the strikes, but production is now set to begin soon, if it hasn’t already, and the press is starting to reflect that.
According to Variety, Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh is in talks to play one of the lead characters, Olwen, a replicant at the end of her life. She is the first in-camera talent to join the series since rumors of Jodie Comer last year, which ultimately didn’t pan out. Reports from earlier this year said filming was to begin in April in Prague, though it’s unknown if it’s started already.
Jonathan van Tulleken, of Shōgun fame, is directing the first two episodes. Insider Daniel Richtman also had some news to share in recent days. He posted on his Patreon page that the series may have been planned for multiple seasons, and added the first – unconfirmed – synopsis:
In Los Angeles 2099, Cora lived her entire life on the run, a chameleon forced to adopt numerous identities. To secure a stable future for her brother, she assumes one final identity and is forced to partner with Olwen, a Blade Runner who’s confronting the end of her life. The two are pulled into a widening conspiracy that poses an existential threat to a city that’s fighting to be reborn.
It should be noted that this was posted before Variety learned about Yeoh and the character Olwen, which would add credence to Richtman’s plot details. The story is set in the same continuity, but 50 years later, as Denis Villeneuve’s 2017 opus.
This is the latest high-profile series in development at Amazon, joining the recently-released Fallout, which is currently developing a season 2, and The Rings of Power, whose second season should arrive later this year. Blade Runner 2099 will not debut before Q4 2025, most likely.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
