Ridley Scott Regrets Not Directing ‘Blade Runner 2049’

Ridley Scott, who is directing “Gladiator II,” told Vanity Fair that he was “never asked” to return to direct any of the first three ‘Alien’ sequels, and that he really wanted to helm “Blade Runner 2049.”

“I’m the author of two franchises,” Scott said. “Most directors in Hollywood — certainly, let’s say, at my level — don’t let that stuff go. But I did ‘Alien’ as my second movie, so I didn’t have much choice. And ‘Blade Runner‘ was my third movie. So, I had no choice because I had very tough partners.”

Decades after its initial release, Scott very much intended to direct “Blade Runner 2049,” but when the opportunity to helm “Alien: Covenant” came about, he appointed Denis Villeneuve to direct the ‘Blade Runner’ sequel instead: “I was regretful, although he did a good job,” Scott says.

In a recent interview with Empire Magazine, Scott had also expressed regret about this decision, especially since ‘Covenant’ wasn’t as well received as he thought it would be:

I shouldn’t have made this decision […] I should have done Blade Runner 2049.

Scott refers to Warner Bros, having told him that both films had specific release windows, and colliding production dates, which tied his hands up, and forced him to choose between one or the other. These time constraints played a major role in Scott not being able to direct both projects.

The two films ended up being released five months apart, with “Alien: Covenant” in May 2017 and “Blade Runner 2049” in October 2017. Scott only ended up with a producing credit on Villeneuve’s film.

The result is that “Alien: Covenant” received lukewarm reviews and “Blade Runner 2049” glowing ones. I honestly don’t know if Scott could have done a better job on BR49 than Villeneuve, who was aided by ace cinematographer Roger Deakins and a vision that I don’t believe Scott, a populist entertainer, could have matched on his own.