Indiana Jones became one of the most famous characters in American movies soon after Raiders of the Lost Ark was released in 1981. The future of the movie franchise has been up in the air for years now, and Steven Spielberg has some pretty definite ideas about how the series should continue.
I don’t think anyone could replace Harrison as Indy, I don’t think that’s ever going to happen. … It’s certainly not my intention to ever have another actor step into his shoes in the way there have been many actors that have played Spider-Man or Batman. There is only going to be one actor playing Indiana Jones and that’s Harrison Ford.
Steven Spielberg told Screen International his thoughts, and I’m certain a lot of people echo his sentiments. The very idea of someone else playing the adventuring archeologist just feels wrong to many of us who grew up watching the character through a series of fun and trying times. And, while many of us love Chris Pratt and think he would be good in the role, Doctor Jones and Harrison Ford are inexorably linked. That’s probably the way it should stay.
The main thing I admire about Steven Spielberg’s thoughts on the whole Harrison Ford is Indiana Jones issue is that there have been so many reboots and ill-planned continuations of popular series’ lately, it can be hard to get attached to any actor in a particular role. The Spider-Man series is a really good example of this. We will soon see our third Spidey in less than ten years. It would be fair to say that new Spidey fatigue has hit many fans pretty hard, so it’s good to know that we won’t come any where near that with our favorite archeology professor.
Of course, we haven’t had as many movies that feature Indiana Jones in the decades since the character debuted. But, it’s good to know that the original character we love so much will never change. I do wonder what a new adventure with Jonesy would look like. Obviously, before Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was released in 2008, the idea was for the character’s son, Henry "Mutt" Williams, to take over the artifact finding missions Indy was known for. And while that film didn’t exactly land in theaters with a thud, the mixed critical and audience response was not the type to launch the series in a new direction.
Which begs the question, even if they do find a new character to pass the torch to, will it feel like Indiana Jones? My guess is no. If we have an Indiana Jones movie where Harrison Ford sends some newbie off on a quest then shows back up for the last five minutes of the movie, I think we’ll all feel cheated. With that in mind, it might be better to remember the character as he’s been, instead of letting him go out with a whimper that only leads us to some probably-not-as-cool character.
