It was huge news when Disney/Lucasfilm announced that a fifth Indiana Jones movie was in the works. Not only will we be getting more of the iconic character but Harrison Ford and director Steven Spielberg are also returning for the project. Since the film is not set to hit theaters until 2019, Lucasfilm is only teasing details at the moment. But during the exciting Star Wars Celebration Europe event, it was revealed that we may be getting even more of Indy in the near future.
Lucasfilm is currently preoccupied with handling their upcoming Star Wars films. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is opening later this year, followed by Episode VIII in December 2017. Nevertheless, Hollywood seems to have the mindset of looking way, way into the future. It’s crazy enough to think about what awaits us in Indiana Jones 5, not to mention a recently teased cinematic universe surrounding the beloved franchise. Collider was at Star Wars Celebration Europe, where a panel called “The Art of Storytelling” teased a few details about how the Lucasfilm Story Group is trying to keep continuity through their movies, television shows, games, and comics. While Star Wars was their main focus at the panel, Indiana Jones also came up during the exciting conversations.
Kiri [Hart] and her group have mapped out a story and timeline across multiple platforms many years in advance, many exhausting years in advance. … We have a great honor to have responsibility for, so we want to be really careful with that. Not only for Star Wars but with Indiana Jones, which we’re all really excited about as well.
It’s hard to think about what an Indiana Jones universe could look like, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t work. Star Wars is doing spinoffs, so Indiana Jones could definitely go down the same path. But considering that Ford will be 77 when Indiana Jones 5 hits, there may need to be a lot of planning about where the franchise will go after he retires.
Indiana Jones 5 hits theaters on July 19, 2019.