What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedBlade Runner 2049
Denis Villeneuve · Film · 2017
If you loved Blade Runner 2049, start with 2036: Nexus Dawn (Luke Scott, 2017) — a film from the same story. Below: 4 books, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to Blade Runner 2049 across media.
What hooked you in Blade Runner 2049 was the haunting exploration of how artificial consciousness and fragmented memories redefine personal identity.
Start with the source
Adaptation
2036: Nexus Dawn
Luke Scott · Film · 2017
Adaptation
2048: Nowhere to Run
Luke Scott · Film · 2017
Adaptation
Blade Runner: Black Out 2022
Shinichiro Watanabe · Film · 2017
Books on the same thread
Ready Player One: A Novel
Ernest Cline · Book · 2017
Shares 2 threads with Blade Runner 2049: Dystopian Fiction, Cyberpunk.
If you appreciated the immersive, high-stakes atmosphere of Blade Runner 2049, you will find a similar obsession with escapism and digital reality in this fast-paced dystopian hunt.
The Maze Runner (Book 1)
James Dashner · Book · 2014
Shares a thread with Blade Runner 2049: Artificial Intelligence.
Much like the search for truth in Blade Runner 2049, this narrative centers on protagonists grappling with erased memories and a mysterious, trapped existence within a harsh environment.
Recursion
Blake Crouch · Book · 2019
Explores: Memory manipulation, Existential dread, Butterfly effect.
This thriller mirrors the existential dread of Blade Runner 2049 by diving deep into the fragility of human identity and the dangerous ways memory can be manipulated or rewritten.
Klara and the Sun
Kazuo Ishiguro · Book · 2021
Shares a thread with Blade Runner 2049: dystopian fiction.
This novel provides a poignant, intimate look at artificial consciousness that echoes the philosophical inquiries into what it truly means to be human found in Blade Runner 2049.
Series on the same thread
Altered Carbon
Laeta Kalogridis · Series · 2018
Shares 3 threads with Blade Runner 2049: Artificial Intelligence, Cyberpunk, Neo-noir.
Fans of the neo-noir aesthetic in Blade Runner 2049 will recognize the same corporate conspiracy and identity-shifting themes as a consciousness is placed into a new physical body.
Westworld
Jonathan Nolan · Series · 2016
Shares 2 threads with Blade Runner 2049: Artificial Intelligence, Existentialism.
This series serves as a perfect companion to Blade Runner 2049, focusing on the evolution of artificial consciousness and the moral ambiguity inherent in creating life from code.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Rafał Jaki · Series · 2022
Explores: Cybernetic augmentation, Dystopian society, Mercenary life.
The visceral, neon-soaked depiction of a crumbling society in this animation captures the same sense of lost humanity and technological decay present throughout Blade Runner 2049.
Severance
Dan Erickson · Series · 2022
Shares 3 threads with Blade Runner 2049: Existentialism, Corporate Control, Dystopian Fiction.
This workplace drama explores the psychological toll of memory manipulation and corporate control, mirroring the central identity crisis that drives the protagonist of Blade Runner 2049.
Podcasts on the same thread
Lex Fridman Podcast
Lex Fridman · Podcast · 2026
Explores: human condition, technological ethics, deep thinking.
If the philosophical questions about AI and the human condition in Blade Runner 2049 resonated with you, these deep-dive interviews offer a rigorous intellectual expansion of those same topics.
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Gimlet · Podcast · 2026
Explores: internet subcultures, modern connectivity, technological ethics.
This podcast explores the intersection of human lives and digital connectivity, mirroring the way Blade Runner 2049 examines our evolving relationship with technology and the fragility of modern life.
Keep exploring
Common questions
What order should I watch the Blade Runner 2049 prequel shorts in?
To follow the timeline leading into Blade Runner 2049, you should watch the short films in the order of Blade Runner: Black Out 2022, 2048: Nowhere to Run, and finally 2036: Nexus Dawn. These releases from 2017 provide essential context for the events depicted in the main film.
Is Blade Runner 2049 a direct sequel to the original film?
Yes, Blade Runner 2049 is a direct sequel set thirty years after the events of the original film. It follows a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K, who unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what is left of society into chaos.
Should I watch Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 before Blade Runner 2049?
Watching Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 is recommended for fans who want to understand the backstory of the world before starting Blade Runner 2049. This 2017 short film establishes critical narrative elements that occur in the decades between the two main feature films.
Are 2036: Nexus Dawn and 2048: Nowhere to Run required viewing for Blade Runner 2049?
While not strictly required to understand the plot of Blade Runner 2049, these 2017 short films offer deeper insight into the universe. They serve as narrative bridges that expand upon the world and the specific challenges faced by blade runners in the years preceding the main story.