Harrison Ford is Excited About Indiana Jones 5

At last night’s BAFTA event, Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy confirmed that the studio is still working on the fifth Indiana Jones movie. Kennedy confirmed to BBC News that the film will be a continuation of Indiana Jones’ adventures, picking up some time after the events of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and not a reboot of the franchise. She also confirmed that “Harrison Ford will be involved,” saying that “he can’t wait.” Ford’s involvement was back when plans for the film came to light. Steven Spielberg is also returning, and he’s stated previously, “There is only going to be one actor playing Indiana Jones and that’s Harrison Ford.”

Ford has made similar statements, indicated that he expects Indiana Jones to die with him. “Nobody is going to be Indiana Jones,” Ford replied when asked about a successor to the role. “Don’t you get it? I’m Indiana Jones. When I’m gone, he’s gone. It’s easy.”

David Koepp is working on the film’s script, but no details about the story of the new Indiana Jones movie are known at this point. Spielberg will direct and Ford will return to his iconic role as the archeologist and adventurer from Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, The Last Crusade, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Jones’ son Mutt Williams, played by Shia LaBeouf in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, will not be returning.

Indiana Jones 5 was originally scheduled for release in May 2020. It has since been pushed back on Disney’s schedule until July 10, 2021. Production is expected to begin in April, but with no casting announcements beyond Ford’s return as Jones, its unclear whether that promise will come to fruition.

Lucasfilm reportedly abandoned a script written by Jon Kasdan that would have tied the film’s story to the Wałbrzych Gold Train, a Nazi train stocked with artifacts and heirlooms that went missing in a series of tunnels in Poland.

“Indiana Jones is one of the greatest heroes in cinematic history, and we can’t wait to bring him back to the screen in 2019,” said Alan Horn, Chairman, The Walt Disney Studios in a press release when plans for the new film were announced. “It’s rare to have such a perfect combination of director, producers, actor and role, and we couldn’t be more excited to embark on this adventure with Harrison and Steven.”

Indiana Jones 5 is scheduled for release on July 10th, 2021.