Full disclosure: this is not news. This is just the reporting of an off-hand remark Ridley Scott made about a film that's not even written yet. But hey, it's a quiet morning because it's Memorial Day in the States, and anything we hear about this particular project is exciting. So here we go: Scott has told The Independent that there may be a place in his new Blade Runner for Harrison Ford.
This is categorically not to say that the film will be the further adventures of Deckard, meaning that, if Ford were even willing to return to a role that, shall we say, isn't one of his favourites, he wouldn't be the centre of attention. "I don't think it'll be Harrison starring," says Sir Ridders, "but I've got to have him in it somewhere. That'd be amusing..."
That's it. Full quote. Warned you it wasn't much. What's interesting is that it doesn't actually contradict what seemed previously to be a flat denial of any potential Ford presence. When asked last year whether the film would be about Deckard, Scott's response was, "Not really." That's still more-or-less the answer, but doesn't now seem to preclude Ford's involvement, though it may be small.
Alcon Entertainment's Andrew Kosove meanwhile, said in February that he thought Ford's return was "extremely unlikely". But he also said, "In advance of knowing what we’re going to do, I suppose you could say yes, [Ford] could [return]..."
Original Blade Runner co-writer Hampton Fancher (re-christened Happen Faster in 1982 by an impatient Scott) is currently at work on the new film, which is expected to be a Prometheus-like expansion of the Blade Runner universe, rather than a straight-up sequel. We'll have some proper news stories for you when they start arriving. And probably a few more like this one...