In the waning weeks of 2013, Disney made a surprising announcement: they had reached a deal with Paramount to release new installments of the celebrated
Indiana Jones franchise, and to handle the multimedia that goes along with it (because this is Disney, folks).
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| Gonna see a lot more of these on the shelves. |
Obviously, the
Indiana Jones franchise was one of a few high-power franchises under the Lucasfilm banner when Disney bought the company a year ago, but the priority at the time seemed to be the announcement and early development of a new
Star Wars trilogy. At the time of the deal, Disney CEO Bob Iger reported that while the Mouse House had plans for the Indy franchise, some roadblocks remained before anything new could be done with the character. The first four
Indiana Jones films were released by Paramount, and that studio will continue to profit from those first four films and retain some percentage of future
Indiana Jones films, as they have with several Marvel properties. With the announcement of this deal, more Indy is all but sure to come. It's even rumored that part of what brought Harrison Ford back for more Star Wars is a provision in his contract for more Indiana Jones.
The question now is what Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and perhaps most importantly, Ford feel like they can do with the character. Of particular concern, sad enough to say, is Ford's age.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Indy's last adventure from 2008, maintained the real-world time between itself and the prior film, 1989's
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade—nineteen years. Harrison Ford was sixty-four at the time of production on
Crystal Skull. Alongside Disney's news that they would churn out one
Star Wars sequel or spinoff every year beginning in 2015, reportedly bumping Indy 5 back two or three more years, we could be looking at a 72-or-73-year-old Dr. Jones.
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| "It's not the years, honey…" |
Admittedly, Harrison Ford keeps himself in good shape, and some news was made about the fitness regimen the actor maintained while filming
Crystal Skull. Ford still did the majority of his own stunts. But with possibly another decade away from the character, could he bring the same physicality we've come to know and love from Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford both? It could mean the studio is preparing for a reboot of the franchise. Or perhaps it could eye the prequel route, using an older Ford to anchor the series, as in
Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. It could be that younger versions of both Han Solo and Indiana Jones are on their way in the next several years—but one way or another, more Indy, at least, is on the way.
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