Blade Runner 2049 to be bigger when presented using a special IMAX format

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

If you're one of the many people who is excited for the release of BLADE RUNNER 2049, you might want to start planning ahead, as it's been announced that IMAX will release a 2D version of the film that will allow you to experience more of the action than on any other format available. That's right, only in IMAX will the film be specifically formatted and presented using an expanded 1.9:1 aspect ratio. This means that the film will appear bigger on the IMAX screen, 26% bigger to be exact! Mmm, sounds to me like there's a lot of Gosling and Ford oogling to be done. You're welcome, ladies and gentlemen.

The IMAX release of BLADE RUNNER 2049 will be digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality synonymous with the IMAX Experience, complete with proprietary IMAX DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX's customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, will serve to create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are traversing the dangerous landscapes of the year 2049.

BLADE RUNNER 2049 takes place thirty years after the events of the first film, when 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.

As someone who'd just come from seeing an IMAX presentation Andy Muschietti's IT, this past weekend, I would imagine that this is welcomed news to fans of the BLADE RUNNER franchise. Say what you will about paying a few additional bucks for the special screening, but with a film that promises to be as visually spectacular as BLADE RUNNER 2049, I'm sure that parting with the extra scratch will be well worth it.

The 2D IMAX presentation of Denis Villeneuve's BLADE RUNNER 2049 will arrive on October 6th. Be sure to book your tickets in advance as this is sure to be a tough one to get into, and you certainly don't want to be stuck sitting at the front of the theater for this one. 

Source: JoBlo

About the Author

Born and raised in New York, then immigrated to Canada, Steve Seigh has been a JoBlo.com editor, columnist, and critic since 2012. He started with Ink & Pixel, a column celebrating the magic and evolution of animation, before launching the companion YouTube series Animation Movies Revisited. He's also the host of the Talking Comics Podcast, a personality-driven audio show focusing on comic books, film, music, and more. You'll rarely catch him without headphones on his head and pancakes on his breath.