Steven Spielberg breaks his silence about his involvement in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Speaking to Deadline following his recently announced Oscar nomination for Best Director for his semi-autobiographical drama The Fablemans, the legendary filmmaker confirmed he is "peripherally involved" in the popular adventure series' final installment. "I advocated the fifth movie in favor of hiring James Mangold," Spielberg said. "I’m going to let him make most of those decisions."
Since 1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark, Spielberg, as director, was one of the three individuals heavily involved in the direction of the Indiana Jones film alongside co-creator George Lucas and star Harrison Ford. The three men were known to never move forward on a new installment unless they agreed on a script. Lucas ultimately retired from the industry following the divided reaction to 2008's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012.
Indiana Jones 5 Is Finally Coming to Theaters
After eight years of script rewrites and production delays, Spielberg opted not to helm the fifth installment in 2020 and turn his attention to The Fablemans instead. Wanting to see a new director bring a fresh perspective to the 43-year-old franchise, Spielberg and Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy chose Mangold on the strength of his work on 2017's Logan. Like the aforementioned Marvel movie, Mangold's Dial of Destiny would conclude the legendary archeologist's journey and Spielberg gave his blessing to the new director with a piece of advice: "Steven said to me, 'It’s a movie that’s a trailer from beginning to end — always be moving,'" Mangold said.
Unlike past Indiana Jones adventures driven by a MacGuffin chosen by Spielberg and Lucas in the writing process, Mangold chose to examine the character's journey at sunset similar to Logan. "What does the hero do when the world no longer has a place for him," Mangold said. "I find it really interesting to try to look at classical heroes through the prism of our jaundiced contemporary attitudes."
Since production on Dial of Destiny began in June 2021, the sequel has encountered multiple on-set issues, including 79-year-old star Harrison Ford suffering a shoulder injury that forced a release date change. Mangold has been pushed back against online reports about the sequel's story details, including Indy getting erased from time by co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge via time travel. "No one is 'taking over' or replacing Indy or donning his hat nor is he being 'erased' thru some contrivance— and he never was, not not in any cut or script — but trolls will troll — that's how they get their clicks," Mangold said.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is scheduled to release on June 30.
Source: Deadline