Art Show Imagines Blade Runner 2054 And Other Sequels That Never Were
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Science fiction film history is filled with fascinating projects that never quite came together, a steady stream of “what if?” projects in a genre fixated and propelled along by that very question. We’re talking about Steven Spielberg’s Night Skies, the batshit-crazy project that evolved into E.T.; or Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Dune, or a William Gibson-scripted Alien 3. Those daydream speculations about movies we wish were real is at the heart of Los Angeles art gallery iam8bit’s new show “Sequel.” Described as “part tribute and part cultural commentary,” the show opens this week at the gallery on Sunset Boulevard, and features a ton of artists creating poster art for films that never were, such as Blade Runner 2054 (art by Cory Schmitz).
Most of the art from the show (courtesy of Flavorwire) imagines projects that are pulled solely from the artist’s imaginations and our fondest wishes, such as the Last Starfighter 2 poster, which is currently giving my inner eight-year-old joy seizures. Massive props to the folks at Doaly Design Services for the clever way they’ve brought the very ’80s core concept of The Last Starfighter into the console gamer age. And the unmistakable shadow being cast by the controller: pure genius.
Also in the mix is this poster below for a movie that was, at least at one point, planned to be a real thing. Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League was teased in the end credits of the cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, but it sadly never came together. This poster for the Buckaroo sequel fans have been dreaming of for decades was created by Robert Sammelin.
And I know I’m in the majority as loving Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain, but I think that’s a film that neither needs nor lends itself to the notion of a sequel. Still, I can’t help but be fascinated by this gorgeous poster for The Fountain: Wake, created by artist Inus Pretorius.
You can see more of our favorites below, but if you’re going to be in the Los Angeles area in the next couple of weeks, you can catch the “Sequel” show at the iam8bit gallery at 2147 W. Sunset Blvd. The show opens this Thursday, November 13 at 7pm PST and will run through Sunday, November 23. You can RSVP right here.
