Here comes another legacyquel for your nostalgia fix. Fourteen years after an alien adventure in which Our Indy was basically already on a walking frame, Harrison Ford is back in Indiana Jones 5, now officially titled Dial of Destiny. Unlike other Hollywood rewinds of recent — think: Ghostbusters: Afterlife — Ford looks to be very much front and centre of the ensemble, with a story melding the past and present, Nazis and Soviets. And what does that mean? Ford is getting the tried and tested de-aging treatment, of course. Very Scorsese of you, Disney.
To be fair, it's a pretty grand example of the effect in action: with Indy in German officer uniform a la the oldies, you'd be forgiven for thinking it's archive footage from The Last Crusade or Raiders. But no, apropos of a quick Google search, that's not the case — this is 80-year-old Ford with a lick of time-reverse paint on him. Elsewhere, we see an older Indiana rushing in-and-around the streets of New York, fighting off bad guys with that classic score, cut through with little piano plinks that say “remember this!?”
After the first official trailer debuted in December, a new TV spot dropped the following February during the Super Bowl, giving us another glimpse at the big action-y set pieces we can expect from the new Indy.
The latest comes in April, with Steven Spielberg describing his reaction to the James Mangold-directed Indy (the first instalment of the franchise that the renowned filmmaker wasn't behind the camera for). Have no fear, Indy fans — Spielberg, something of an authority on the adventures of Indiana Jones, loved it.
Here's everything else we know about Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Steven Spielberg has seen, and loved, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Any fears that a Spielberg-less Indiana Jones sequel might not match the magic of its predecessors can be quashed. The big dog himself has seen James Mangold's fifth Indy, as he revealed at the Time 100 Summit this week, and the Ford v Ferrari and Logan director passed with flying colours. “I just had that experience two nights ago,” Spielberg said, asked what it was like to see an Indiana Jones movie he didn't helm. “Bob Iger had a screening for a lot of the Disney executives, and I came to the screening along with the director James Mangold.”
He continued: “Everybody loved the movie. It's really, really a good Indiana Jones film. I'm really proud of what Jim has done with it.” You'd hope Mangold is proud — imagine having to watch your take on a beloved franchise with its creator sat right next to you.
“When the lights came up I just turned to the group and said, 'Damn! I thought I was the only one who knew how to make one of these,” Spielberg added, humble as ever. You can unclench now, Jim.
Audiences who are not Steven Spielberg and/or Disney executives will first see Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where it'll have its world premiere out of competition. (Last year's big Hollywood bow was Top Gun: Maverick, so no pressure, Mangold and Co.). Harrison Ford has confirmed that it'll be his last time with the fedora and bullwhip — so expect an atypically emotional affair, especially if you're an '80s kid.
Yes, that's Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge falling out of a plane in the Dial of Destiny TV spot
The words “I'm rescuing you” do tend to forebode disaster — no surprises here, then, that they come out of Phoebe Waller-Bridge's mouth just before she falls out of a crashing plane in the latest Dial of Destiny teaser. The 30-second TV spot, which aired alongside the Super Bowl (that American thing where they chuck an egg about) offered another look at Ford's reacquaintance with the bullwhip and fedora after 15 years away from his most famous role.
It packs in quite a lot for such a small package: another glimpse at Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who portrays Indy's granddaughter, plus oodles of action for the popcorn-munching escapists. The de-ageing tech is on display anew, too, with a fresh second or two of new footage showcasing the effect. We can't lie, it's pretty uncanny.
What does Harrison Ford think of all the de-aging stuff in Dial of Destiny?
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter for a recent cover story, Ford revealed his initial hesitation around the new Indy following the en vogue trend to digitally de-age older stars — this isn't Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth, after all. He was only won over by seeing the effect in action.
“I never loved the idea until I saw how it was accomplished in this case — which is very different than the way it's been done in other films I've seen. They've got every frame of film, either printed or unprinted, of me during 40 years of working with Lucasfilm on various stuff,” he said. “I can act the scene and they sort through with AI every fucking foot of film to find me in that same angle and light. It's bizarre and it works and it is my face.” Sometimes you need a little more than botox.
As for the film's tone, Ford added: “What I love is that we're meeting him at a different point in his life to where we've seen him in these other films. It's a logical place for him to be in at this stage, considering his behaviour and what he spent his time doing. It's a very interesting script [James Mangold] came up with.”
Who stars in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny?
Of course, it wouldn't be a callback in the present mould without an old sidekick turning up for one last hurrah. In this case, John Rhys-Davies returns as Sallah, Indy's jovial Egyptian archaeologist pal best known for his love of a fez. “I miss the desert,” he says in a trailer voiceover. “I miss the sea. I miss waking up every morning wondering what wonderful adventure the new day will bring to us.” Those days have come and gone, Indy says. “Perhaps. Perhaps not.” Chills! Elsewhere, we get first glances at Mads Mikkelsen and Antonio Banderas as our villains, plus Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Indy's goddaughter.
Will George Lucas and Steven Spielberg be back behind-the-scenes?
This is the first Indiana Jones movie not to be written by George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg did not direct, with both duties being placed in more than capable hands: James Mangold, the filmmaker behind Logan, Ford vs. Ferrari and 3:10 to Yuma. Looks like he's done a bang-up job, to be fair, of blending the heady nostalgia one would want from the last Indy flick with just enough refreshing novelty. Little is known about the story to date, but it's set in the 1960s during the Space Race between the U.S. and Soviet Russia — not too unlike the '50s-set Crystal Skull.
Watch the trailer below. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is set to be released in cinemas on 30 June next year.
