Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford announced a new Indiana Jones film

Indiana Jones
Indiana Jones

Lucasfilm just got the boulder rolling again …

Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford will be reteaming for another Indiana Jones movie, set for release in summer of 2019.

Here’s the announcement:

Indiana Jones will return to the big screen on July 19, 2019, for a fifth epic adventure in the blockbuster series. Steven Spielberg, who directed all four previous films, will helm the as-yet-untitled project with star Harrison Ford reprising his iconic role. Franchise veterans Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall will produce.

“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. “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.”

Famed archaeologist and explorer Indiana Jones was introduced in 1981’s Raiders of the Lost Ark – one of AFI’s 100 Greatest American Films of All Time – and later thrilled audiences in 1984’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, 1989’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The four films have brought in nearly $2 billion at the global box office.

The announcement didn’t indicate who might be writing the screenplay for the film, although they surely have top men (or women) working on it right now.

Just a few months ago, Ford discussed the enduring legacy of both Han Solo and his equally iconic archaeologist. “I must say that I think the luck of my career is that, between Star Wars and Indiana Jones, I had the opportunity to bank a bunch of films that are reintroduced to succeeding generations, which basically have kept me… at least they’ve kept [audiences] acquainted with me,” Ford told EW. “And that’s been good for me.”

Asked specifically if he wanted to play Jones again, Ford gave an unequivocal yes. “Oh, yeah. Yeah, I’d love to do another Indiana Jones,” he said. “You know, an audience being there that has enjoyed the films, a character that has a history and a potential, kind of a rollicking good movie ride for the audience, Steven Spielberg as a director — what’s not to like?”

What’s. Not. To. Like.

Spielberg has also consistently kept the door open for another Indiana Jones movie. In a 2011 interview, the director told EW: “It’s up to George. We already have agreed on the genre of the fifth movie, we already have a concept in mind. I don’t know where George is at with the story. When George writes the story that he’s happy with and can defend, he’ll call me and say, ‘I’m ready to send this to you.’ But until the phone rings on that subject, because we talk all the time about every other subject, until the phone rings on the Indy 5 subject, there is no Indy 5 until George says there is.”

It’s unclear whether Lucas will have a hand in this one, however. The big thing that changed between then and now is Lucas sold his company to the Walt Disney Co., with Kennedy taking over as Lucasfilm president. Until now, they’ve been occupied bringing the Star Wars films back to theaters, and Lucas himself has had no involvement in their creation.

Although there had been rumors that Indiana Jones would be rebooted with a new actor, such as Jurassic World and Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt, Marshall made clear last year in an interview with Total Film magazine that those were false, saying Lucasfilm was “not doing the Bond thing where we’re going to call somebody else Indiana Jones.”

There is one Indiana Jones. And now we know he’ll be back for a fifth time.

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