Michelle Yeoh to Appear in ‘Blade Runner 2099’

She’s scored a mystery role in the TV show follow-up to the 1982 original and 2017’s ‘Blade Runner 2049’, which has ‘Shogun’s Jonathan van Tulleken directing.

(Left) Michelle Yeoh at the 95th Oscars on Sunday, March 12, 2023. The 95th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC at 8 p.m. EDT/5 p.m. PDT. (Right) 1982's 'Blade Runner'. Photo: Warner Bros.

Preview:

Michelle Yeoh is set to star in ‘Blade Runner 2099’.
She’s the first announced cast member for the series.
Ridley Scott is producing the show, though won’t be actively involved.

Is there a competition going on between Giancarlo Esposito and Michelle Yeoh as to who can appear in the most pop culture universes? Yeoh, who already has the likes of Bond, the modern ‘Star Trek’ series, ‘Transformers’ and the MCU under her belt, is adding one more.

She’s now on to star in the new ‘Blade Runner’ series.

Blade Runner 2099

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A live-action series follow-up of the neo-noir sci-fi franchise that will be set 50 years after Blade Runner 2049. Read the Plot

What’s the story of ‘Blade Runner 2099’?

1982's 'Blade Runner'. Photo: Warner Bros.

‘Blade Runner 2099’ follows on from 1982’s ‘Blade Runner’, the Ridley Scott movie that introduced us to the world of rogue artificial lifeforms known as Replicants, and the enforcers who track them down (Harrison Ford played the most notable example, Rick Deckard). It meditated on existence and reality, and though it didn’t launch well at the box office, it has long since become a cult classic.

In 2017, Warner Bros. gave Denis Villeneuve the opportunity to create a sequel, ‘Blade Runner 2049’, with Ford returning as Deckard and Ryan Gosling starring as ‘K’, a replicant who works as a Blade Runner. It explored some of the mysteries of Deckard’s story and some new angles, but also didn’t really soar at the box office.

Since then, we’ve had video games and an anime take, but ‘Blade Runner 2099’ is the first new live-action attempt.

Prime Video has revealed zero official plot details about the show, but scooper Daniel Richtman has tracked down what is reportedly the basic synopsis for the show.

Given that this is from an unofficial source, prepare a grain of salt, but otherwise, read on:

“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 (our best guess for Yeoh’s character), 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.”

Who is making ‘Blade Runner 2099’

1982's 'Blade Runner'. Photo: Warner Bros.

While Ridley Scott has an executive producer credit, he won’t be directly involved. Instead, Silka Luisa of ‘Shining Girls’ is showrunner and ‘Shogun’s Jonathan van Tulleken as its primary director.

The show, once planned to film in Belfast, Ireland, has since relocated to Prague.

Where else will we see Michelle Yeoh?

Michelle Yeoh as Philippa Georgiou on Paramount+'s 'Star Trek: Discovery.'

As we mentioned at the beginning of the story, Oscar winner Yeoh has lined up yet more genre work in the future –– she’ll be Madame Morrible in the two ‘Wicked’ movies (the first is due on November 27th this year), has a role in the next couple of ‘Avatar’ films (‘Avatar 3’ will be with us on December 19th, 2025) and, continuing her association with ‘Star Trek’, has been working on spin-off movie ‘Star Trek: Section 31’.