Harrison Ford is reprising his role as Indiana Jones for a fifth and final film, nearly 15 years after the archaeologist adventurer's last on-screen appearance in 2008's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. According to longtime franchise producer Frank Marshall, it will be worth the wait.
"It's a great story, it's a great character, and I think you're going to be very happy with this movie," Marshall tells A.frame. "It's everything I think that everybody wants out of an Indiana Jones movie."
Aside from who is sharing the screen with Ford this time — Antonio Banderas, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Mads Mikkelsen — little is known about what Indiana Jones 5 has in store for the titular hero. Filming is currently underway with two-time Oscar nominee James Mangold (Best Adapted Screenplay for 2017's Logan and Best Picture for 2019's Ford v Ferrari) at the helm, making this the first time that someone other than Steven Spielberg is directing an Indiana Jones film.
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a particularly polarizing installment — introducing into the franchise aliens and Shia LaBeouf as Jones' son — but proved itself a box office hit nonetheless. How that affected the team's approach to this next entry remains to be determined.
"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," Marshall says, though he says being back on an Indiana Jones set has been "wonderful." "It's like going back home. It's relaxed and fun and very comfortable. Like a home-cooked meal."
Marshall earned his first Oscar nomination for Best Picture (he has since received four more nominations for Best Picture) with the very first Indiana Jones film, 1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark, and has remained on as a producer for every sequel released over the ensuing 40 years. Marshall says it's Indiana Jones himself that keeps him coming back all these years later.
"Making Raiders was really, I'd say, my favorite experience of making a movie. There was a whole lot of firsts on that movie," he reflects. "And staying with Indy all these years has just made it a real pleasure. To be able to now do another one has just been fantastic."
Indiana Jones 5 is slated to hit theaters on June 30, 2023.
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