The sequel to the sci-fi masterpiece has Harrison Ford and Ridley Scott on board as producer, so what magic might we look forward to?

It’s official: Blade Runner 2 is on, and the boys are back together again. Original director Ridley Scott is producing, Harrison Ford is back as detective Deckard, and the screenplay is co-written by the original’s Hampton Fancher, based on an idea by him and Scott. Prisoners/Enemy director Denis Villeneuve is due to direct it next summer, and Ford says the script is “the best thing he’s ever read”. Is it too good to be true? Here’s our wishlist.

1) Pioneer, yet pay tribute

The producers promise this will be “a uniquely potent and faithful sequel.” What we want is something as fresh and innovative as the original, while also feeling that we’re back in familiar territory. The combination of the old guard (Scott) and the visionary upstart (Villeneuve) bodes well.

2) Give us a new future

Blade Runner set the standard for futuristic cityscapes, its heaving metropolis and flying cars influencing everything (Minority Report, The Fifth Element, Attack Of The Clones, etc). Can they do it again? Villeneuve did some superbly surreal stuff with Toronto in Enemy (shout-out to the giant spider), so here’s hoping.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Flying cars and giant video billboards in Blade Runner. Photograph: Allstar/Warner Bros

3) Pretend like it’s the first time

One hopes that serial role-repriser Harrison Ford can channel Deckard as broodily as he did in 1982. His Han Solo looked tired in Return of the Jedi and his Indy seemed bored The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull; hopefully Star Wars: The Force Awakens has greased him up nicely.

4) Make that Deckard replicant idea pay off

Blade Runner’s director’s cut suggested that Deckard was a replicant, and Scott has since confirmed that. Replicants, though, have four-year lifespans, so one hopes the sequel’s explanation for Deckard’s old age is a good one. He’ll undoubtedly be suffering a hell of an existential crisis.

5) Ambiguity over logic

Plot reasoning aside, it would be nice if the new film retained the original’s sense of enigma, providing philosophical questions rather than supplying answers. Villeneuve is great at headscratching thematic weirdness – Enemy effectively threw up a lot of craziness, left gapingly open for interpretation. More please.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Blade Runner’s futuristic city scenes were achieved through mastery of special effects. Photograph: Allstar Picture Library

6) Go old school

Blade Runner was pre-CGI, but still looks more beautiful and more convincing than today’s pixelfests. It was put together by the kings of the pre-CGI era, concept artist Syd Mead and visual effects supervisor Douglas Trumbull; it would be lovely to have them back to inject reality.

7) Embrace the product placement

Much has been made of the effect in-camera advertising has had on films since Blade Runner, but that humongous digital Coca-Cola billboard is one of the original’s iconic images. Ridley: go for it unashamedly. Take that Coke coinage and use the wonga to build some sprawling sets.

8) Bring back Vangelis

Blade Runner wouldn’t be Blade Runner without him: it feels like it feels because of the Greek composer’s soothing synth stylings, an essential part of the film’s fabric. He hasn’t been so prolific of late, but is 71 and still working – please come back to play, Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou.

9) Don’t be a hero, Harrison

Vic Armstrong is more of a director today, but back then he stunt-doubled for Harrison’s hairiest moments, taking the fall on Blade Runner, the Indiana Jones films, Return of the Jedi and more – he’s Ford’s second skin. Let’s get him back and avoid any Millenium Falcon-style trip-over whoopsies.

10) Get it right the first time

Ridley has been forever fiddling with the original – thanks to studio interference, CGI developments and DVD reissues there have been a whopping FIVE official versions of Blade Runner. Maybe this time we’ll get just the one, perfect out of the box. One can dream.