Comic-Con: Scott says Blade Runner sequel possible

Also, news of Stargate, Babylon 5, Robotech DVD premieres

By Ned Randolph -- Video Business, 7/30/2007

JULY 30 | COMIC-CON: SAN DIEGO—With the "Final Cut" of Blade Runner being released Dec. 18 on standard DVD and both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc, director Ridley Scott told fans at Comic-Con here that he'd like to shoot a sequel.

"If you have any scripts, you know where to send them," he said.

The remastered Blade Runner: The Final Cut will be released by Warner Home Video in a two-disc special edition, a four-disc collector's edition and a five-disc ultimate collector's edition, the latter in limited "Deckard Briefcase" packaging.

Scott said the DVD includes newly released footage, commentary and extended scenes.

He even re-shot the death scene of replicant Zhora, played by Joanna Cassidy, 25 years after the initial release of the movie.

Stargate SG-1

At a panel on Friday, actors from Stargate SG-1, the longest running science-fiction series for TV, were greeted to about 4,000 screaming fans hungry to hear more about Stargate’s two straight-to-DVD movies being released this fall.

A trailer for the first, Stargate: Ark of Truth, produced by MGM Home Entertainment and distribution partner 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, preceded a question and answer session with stars Ben Browder, Amanda Tapping, Michael Shanks, Martin Wood, Christopher Judge and executive producer and director Robert Cooper.

"You will not believe the high quality of the movie compared to the series," said Wood, who is directing Ark of Truth.

Babylon 5

Another TV show-turned-DVD premiere movie showcased at Comic-Con was Babylon 5.

Ten years after the cancellation of the TV series, the producers are releasing a straight-to-DVD feature film this week called Babylon 5: The Lost Tales. Shooting took all of two weeks and includes the same cast and crew.

The show's creator, Joe Michael Straczynski, said he agreed to shoot the new movie because he "wanted to set the tone" for future films he expects Warner to produce.

"The Lost Tales is a big deal [in] that the studio is producing something specific to the video market," said executive producer Douglas Netter. "I’ve never made a project direct to TV. The running time and budget is smaller. That’s why Joe had to direct, because there's no other way to show that this was the model. It's a sign of the future for certain types of projects.”

Robotech

The ’80s-era Robotech comics, an early anime style cartoon revived under the stewardship of Harmony Gold USA, is returning in November in a two-disc set through a partnership with Funimation. And at Comic-Con, Harmony Gold creative director Tommy Yune dropped hints of another feature film, to be entitled Robotech: Shadow Rising, which will likely come out in two years.

"We've got the title; now hopefully a story will follow," said Ford Reilly, the group’s screenwriter.

In February, Harmony Gold released the DVD premiere film Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles, of which Rising would be a sequel.

Shadow Chronicles won best animation science-fiction feature at the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival last year.

When asked why the products are going straight to DVD, Harmony Gold representatives said it allows the company to maintain creative control and requires a smaller initial investment.

"While everybody really wants to see another 20 episodes, I think direct to video is another way to keep the story real," said Reilly.

Yune added, "When you get a TV project involved, they know how important they are. And they try to gain equity and creative control of the project."

Asked if the group would welcome a third feature film, Yune replied: "The word trilogy was brought up, and an executive said if the third one makes money, don't you dare stop."

The remastered November release will include deleted scenes, commentary and a split screen comparing finished product to sketch scenes.