It’s been nearly fifteen years since Harrison Ford last donned Indiana Jones’ iconic fedora in “Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.” And that film left the character on a high note, with Jones happily married to Karen Allen‘s Marion Ravenwood. So, do audiences really need to another ending for their favorite archeologist adventurer in “Indiana Jones 5“? Of course, fans arguably didn’t even need “Crystal Skull” either, with the original “Indiana Jones” trilogy being pretty much perfect.
Like it or not, a new finale for Jones is what moviegoers get next summer, and Empire has a first look at the blockbuster. And despite no official title yet, Ford promises the film’s a winner. “It’s full of adventure, full of laughs, full of real emotion,” Ford told Empire, “and it’s complex and it’s sneaky.“ Ford, now 80, had to gruel it out on the film’s shoot, but backs what director James Mangold came up with for “Indy 5.” “The shooting of it was tough and long and arduous,” Ford continued. “But I’m very happy with the film that we have.” Ford also believes the film appropriately extends the Jones arc. “I just thought it would be nice to see one where Indiana Jones was at the end of his journey,” Ford explained. “If a script came along that I felt gave me a way to extend the character.”
As for Mangold, he directs “Indy 5” from a script he co-penned with Jez and John-Henry Butterworth, who also co-wrote Mangold’s last film, 2019’s “Ford V. Ferrari.” Mangold has huge shoes to fill after Steven Spielberg directed the past four “Indiana Jones” films, but he’s confident in his vision for the cinematic hero. It became really important to me to figure out how to make this a movie about a hero at sunset,” Mangold said about his conception of “Indy 5.” “The issues I brought up about Indy’s age were not things I thought were being addressed in the material being developed at the time. There were ‘old’ jokes, but the material itself wasn’t about it. To me, whatever you greatest liability, you should fly straight towards that. If you try to pretend it’s not there, you end up getting slings and arrows the whole way.”
So, expect “Indiana Jones 5” to depict a beloved hero at twilight, possibly even looking back on his past exploits more than pursuing new ones. And don’t expect many familiar faces either. Outside of John Rhys-Davies reprising his role as Sallah, the “Indiana Jones 5” cast is full of all-new faces. Phoebe Waller-Bridge co-stars with Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Kretschmann, Boyd Holbrook, and Shaunette Renée Wilson. Toby Jones and Antonio Banderas are also on board. But some things never change: John Williams composes music for the upcoming film, his final film score (and Spielberg remains on board, too, as a producer).
Empire has the full scoop on “Indiana Jones 5” coming at the end of the month, but in the meantime, check out a brand new image from the upcoming film below. The film hits theaters everywhere on June 30, 2023.
