Indiana Jones 5's release date has been delayed yet again.
The action/adventure sequel, which sees Harrison Ford donning his iconic fedora for the fifth and last time, was most recently scheduled to arrive on July 29, 2022, but will now hit theaters on June 30, 2023, reported Deadline. Disney has also claimed new release dates for Marvel Studios' 2022-2023 film slate, beginning with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
After acquiring the full rights to the franchise from Paramount (which released the first four Indiana Jones movies) in December 2013, Disney announced Indiana Jones 5 in 2016. The film initially had Steven Spielberg returning as director, with his frequent collaborator David Koepp -- who also wrote Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds (2005), and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull -- handling the script and Ford reprising his role as Indiana. However, the movie struggled to move forward and saw its release date shift back from 2019 to 2020 and then again to 2021.
Finally, in February 2020, Spielberg stepped down as the film's director while remaining involved as an executive producer. He was officially replaced by Logan and Ford v. Ferrari writer/director James Mangold the following May, although news of the latter's involvement had already leaked around the time Spielberg stepped back. What's more, during the period between Spielberg's departure and Mangold's confirmation, Disney pushed Indiana Jones 5 back to 2022 after overhauling its film slate in response to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Rumor has it Indiana Jones 5 picks up in the late 1960s and revolves around the Space Race between the U.S. and Soviet Union. Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Mads Mikkelsen are co-starring as, reportedly, Indy's assistant and a former Nazi scientist working for NASA, with Shaunette Renee Wilson playing a CIA handler tasked with keeping a close eye on Mikkelsen's villain. Photos leaked from the film's set earlier this year also showed Ford shooting a scene with dots on his face, suggesting the actor will be digitally de-aged for what's presumed to be a flashback.
While production on Indiana Jones 5 hit a snag when Ford injured his shoulder in June, filming was able to continue in his absence. As such, it doesn't appear that Ford's injury is directly responsible for the movie's latest delay.
Indiana Jones 5 opens in theaters June 30, 2023.
Source: Deadline