It has been 35 years since Ridley Scott unleashed his classic sci-fi flick Blade Runner onto the world, and it clearly wasn't easy to lure Harrison Ford back to reprise his role as Deckerd in Denis Villeneuve's sequel, entitled Blade Runner 2049. But at least it appealed to him as an actor. 

Ryan Gosling in 'Blade Runner 2049'Ryan Gosling in 'Blade Runner 2049'

"This is not a running, jumping and falling down movie," Ford says. "This is not a light comedy, this is not a bromance or a car chase movie. This is about what it means to be a human. What are our opportunities, what are our responsibilities, do they really exist?"

Joining him in the cast is Ryan Gosling, who was also drawn to the project by the strength of the story. "And we had a great filmmaker manning the helm who had a vision for this," he adds. "Working with Denis, it was very clear from the beginning that he had a kind of thousand-yard stare. He was looking at something on the horizon that we couldn't quite see, but he saw it."

Gosling also says that he liked the way the film centres so tightly on the characters. "As massive as it is, as provocative conceptually as it is, it is still very intimate," he says. "The original itself is such an experience. Part of the reason I think it became such a cult classic is you couldn't shake it. It was painting this nightmarish vision of the future that felt possible."

Watch the trailer for 'Blade Runner 2049' here:

To which Ford quickly adds: "But this is not a message film! There are a lot of questions left unanswered in the film. It's kind of like life. Although to me, I can clearly see that unless we revert to a respect for science and a love of nature and our progeny, the planet is under dire stress."

Of course, for Gosling part of the attraction to make the movie was the chance to work with Ford. "I was working with a 40-foot holographic woman and it was raining and it really felt like we were making Blade Runner in that moment," he laughs. "And then Harrison arrived! We had often talked about what Harrison would think. And it was just a relief because he's such a great collaborator."

The meeting between their characters involves a long fight scene, during which Ford actually punched Gosling in the jaw. "I threw 80 punches, I hit him one time, that's a pretty good average," Ford laughs.

More: Read our review of 'Blade Runner 2049'

"I saw it written in the margins of his script: 'Make contact,'" Gosling adds.