Despite near-universal stellar reviews, the acclaimed sci-fi sequel Blade Runner 2049 failed to set the box office alight, with the $155 million-budgeted blockbuster having grossed just $194 million globally since it opened at the start of October.
While it still has China to come this Friday, it’s looking likely that the sequel to Ridley Scott’s sci-fi masterpiece is going to go down as one of the year’s biggest box office disappointments, and director Denis Villeneuve has been reflecting on its performance during an interview with Vulture.
“As a filmmaker, I’m not arrogant,” said Villeneuve. “People put a lot of money in the movie to allow me to make something like Blade Runner. They trusted me, and they gave me a lot of freedom, and they are friends. So of course I want the movie to be a success at the end of the day. It’s a long journey, but I want them not to lose money.”
Asked whether he felt the intense secrecy surrounding the movie contributed to its underperformance, Villeneuve stated that: “I liked the idea that you were supposed to learn it as the movie goes on… As a cinephile, one of my best experiences was when I was on a film festival jury. I had to watch 20 movies without knowing anything about them. You don’t know the genre, you don’t know the country, you don’t know the story. You don’t know if you’re about to look at a comedy or a horror movie!
SEE ALSO: 4 Standout Blade Runner 2049 Moments
Why do you think Blade Runner 2049 struggled at the box office? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K (Ryan Gosling), unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos. K’s discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former LAPD blade runner who has been missing for 30 years.
Blade Runner 2049 sees Harrison Ford reprising the role of Rick Deckard alongside Ryan Gosling, Ana de Armas, Sylvia Hoeks, Robin Wright, Mackenzie Davis, Carla Juri, Lennie James, Dave Bautista, Jared Leto and Edward James Olmos.
