When Disney first announced a new Indiana Jones movie coming soon to theaters in 2016, I got excited. The fan inside of me can never say no to more Dr. Jones adventures but even then, I questioned the viability of it. I wondered if Harrison could still pull off this character at his age or if Steven Spielberg is still interested in this forgotten franchise. I only hoped everything would happen smoothly and that they would deliver a proper send off after a controversial fourth film.
Things have been anything but smooth ever since that announcement. Disney originally slated the film to open on July 19, 2019. It was then pushed back a year to July 10, 2020, and then yet again it was delayed until July 9, 2021 after a change of screenwriters.
David Koepp is no longer attached to pen the script after writing the 4th installment of the franchise (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) and the keys were handed over to none other than Jonathan Kasdan who is the son of “Raiders of the lost Ark” writer Lawrence Kasdan. Then came the recent news.
For the first time in the franchise’s 39-year history, an Indiana Jones movie is set to be directed by somebody other than Steven Spielberg. James Mangold is reportedly now in talks for the job, but we have gotten no official announcement since this article was first released. Spielberg is still set to executive produce the film though George Lucas is not involved with the project.
This all leads to the same sort of question. Is this movie even worth making at this point? Although “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” was a global hit making $790.7 million dollars worldwide, it was a classic example of a bad movie leaning on nostalgia in the eyes of many.
I did not hate the film personally but making the decision to have Shia Labeouf be Indiana’s son was a questionable decision before he talked poorly about multiple people involved with the film. He is now reportedly not returning for the 5th film and I hope they have a good plan set in place for explaining why his character is not around.
Despite all these reasons though, I still believe this film must be made. Lucasfilm has always been known for Star Wars and the Indiana Jones franchise has taken a back seat for that reason. Disney has more than given Star Wars it’s shot since the acquisition of the company back in 2012 but we have yet to see what they can do with Indiana Jones. They have all the money and resources to make this movie an acceptable entry into the franchise and at the very least, give us a better ending then the last one did.
This brings me to my next point. If you can fix the mistakes that the last film presented, you do it. Star Wars can no longer do that. Disney has pressed that “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” was the last film in the saga and can no longer go back and change anything that they did. Indiana Jones 5 can give people a final good taste in their mouths after a controversial film. These films are an iconic part of many people’s childhoods and this franchise deserves a good ending.
James Mangold is a fantastic director who delivered to us one of the best comic book films of all time with “Logan” just a few years back. Combining him with Kasdan, Ford and a practically unlimited budget has the workings of a great movie.
Fans like myself want to see Indiana Jones one last time. They want to see Harrison Ford don the fedora one last time and properly send off a character that has impacted millions of peoples lives. No matter the cost or bumps in the road, I hope to see it happen.