Disney and Lucasfilm are whipping up the Indiana Jones sequel that’s “everything everybody wants,” says franchise producer Frank Marshall. Harrison Ford, who has played the archaeologist adventurer since the original Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981, returns for the fifth and final installment of the pulpy, historic franchise created by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. In an interview with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ digital magazine A.frame, Marshall teased the long-awaited followup to 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull:
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“It’s a great story, it’s a great character, and I think you’re going to be very happy with this movie,” Marshall said. “It’s everything I think that everybody wants out of an Indiana Jones movie.”
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, however, was not quite what everybody wanted from an Indiana Jones movie. Arriving nearly two decades after Indiana Jones rode off into the sunset in 1989’s The Last Crusade, the divisive sequel dug up box office gold — despite its mixed reception from audiences.
“It’s really up to the creative forces that are behind this one, so I leave that to Jim Mangold. As a producer, I always look at my role in these movies as supporting the vision of the director,” the Jurassic World producer said, adding it was “wonderful” to return to the set of Indiana Jones after nearly 15 years. “It’s like going back home. It’s relaxed and fun and very comfortable. Like a home-cooked meal.”
Joining Ford in the sequel from director James Mangold (Logan, Ford v. Ferrari) — taking the reins from four-time Indy filmmaker Spielberg — are franchise newcomers Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, Solo: A Star Wars Story), Antonio Banderas (Pain and Glory, Uncharted), Toby Jones (Harry Potter, Captain America: The First Avenger), and Mads Mikkelsen (Doctor Strange, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore).
Plot details remain as guarded as the Ark of the Covenant. Appearing on stage at the official Star Wars Celebration convention to reveal a first look in May, Ford said of the still-untitled finale Indy 5, “I had a wonderful experience working with James Mangold, with [producers] Kathy [Kennedy] and Frank [Marshall] again. I’m really proud of the movie that we made.”
Indiana Jones 5 marches into theaters on June 30, 2023.
