The fifth installment in the Indiana Jones franchise is set to be released soon, and while some elements of the plot have been revealed, much of the story is still a mystery. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is the first film not to be directed by Steven Spielberg, and it will likely be the last in the series, at least with Harrison Ford as the title character. Ford has spoken on how his older age will play a large part in the theme of the story, which is something he himself wants to emphasize. The titular Dial of Destiny appears to have some type of connection to time travel, as it could alter the history of the world.
With a cast full of well-known actors like Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, and Antonio Banderas, anticipation for the film is high. With a setting of 1969, Indiana Jones is now far removed from the 1930s serials that inspired the franchise in the beginning. Now Indiana Jones will be playing in the time frame that fellow cinema hero James Bond was at his most popular. Indiana Jones might like a relic in his own movie.
Updated June 8, 2023: In honor of the upcoming release of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, this article has been updated with more information regarding the upcoming film.
In many ways, Indiana Jones is returning to a cinematic landscape that is more unfriendly to him when he returned in 2008 for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. That was the return of a great cinematic hero, and Indiana Jones as a franchise still had a powerful hold on Gen-X viewers and young millennials. Yet it has been fifteen years since his last cinematic adventure and even longer that he might not be as relevant to Gen-Z filmgoers who have grown up with the MCU, Fast & Furious films, and John Wick films as their main cinematic action franchise. Perhaps it is fitting the film should explore the notions of reclaimed youth and time travel in an era where such romanticized pondering couldn't be more palpable.
As the digital age continues to erase the pre-internet era, we see the unifying fields of pop culture beginning to collapse in place of popular YouTube celebrities, Twitch streamers, and TikTok videos accompanied by A.I. narration. While the format of narrative feature films is unlikely to disappear forever, we are seeing a democratization of art, segmenting what once would have been a harmonious movie-going audience hungry for the next Indian Jones installment into something entirely different. Here is how Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny could be the end of more than just the beloved franchise.
Raiders of the Lost Era
Indiana Jones captures the adventurous spirit of moviegoers. A desire to experience exotic lands and discover new ideas, wildlife, and different cultures. Unfortunately, a major part of our imagination and desire for worldly stimuli has been hijacked by hyper-evolved digital algorithms and easily accessible virtual worlds. While anyone born before the mid-90s has the luxury to trivialize the bombardment of mobile games and social media our species has been mutated by, there are now multiple generations who have been robbed of the pre-internet experience and know only a world where social exploration and adventure happen in Roblox, Fortnite, and eventually, dating apps.
Even adventure cinema has changed. Indiana Jones created a new template for adventure movies that inspired plenty of major film franchises, including The Mummy, Pirates of the Caribbean, and National Treasure. Yet all of those franchises have stalled, with no major new entries planned to be released anytime soon. The most recent classic adventure film that has the Indiana Jones fusion were The Jungle Cruise in 2021 and Uncharted in 2022, and there is no word on sequels for either movie. Now the action movie landscape is dominated by superheroes. Even spy movies that typically highlight exotic locations do so more for set dressing, like in the Mission: Impossible or James Bond series, as opposed to a sense of discovery. As Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny approach, relish the time before an era comes to a close.
Can Disney and Lucasfilm Actually Let Indiana Jones Go?
There has been much hype that Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will be the last Indiana Jones film. Harrison Ford has said this many times. It is hard to imagine the franchise going on without Harrison Ford in the titular role. When George Lucas first pitched Indiana Jones to Steven Speilberg back in the 1970s, he said he wanted to do five movies, even though he never had a plan. So it is fitting for The Dial of Destiny to end the series.
But can it truly be the end? Will Indiana Jones truly rest, or will they wait a couple of years before they decide to reboot the franchise with a new actor playing Indiana Jones? How long until they announce a spin-off series based around a character to keep the franchise going? It may never happen, but given the state of blockbuster cinema, it feels impossible to imagine anything ever truly ending. Even though Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kenney originally said no one could be Indiana Jones but Harrison Ford, recently, that perspective has shifted, hinting that the franchise could go on. The IP will always find a way to live on.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has provided a large massive story that, theoretically, is never-ending. Even stories like Avengers: Endgame and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which act as endings, also leave the door open for stories to continue. Despite Fast X being hyped up as the beginning of the end, not only is Fast and Furious 11 on the way but now a Dwayne Johnson-led Fast & Furious spin-off film. John Wick: Chapter 4 seemed to mark the end of that character, but there is already talk about John Wick: Chapter 5.
One need only look at Star Wars and see what the future might hold for Indiana Jones. After Solo: A Star Wars Story bombed at the box office, Lucasfilm learned the wrong lesson and decided not to recast iconic characters. The Mandalorian uses CGI deep fake to digitally de-age Mark Hamill to play Luke Skywalker, and that same technology is being used to de-age Harrison Ford for an opening sequence in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Indiana Jones is a valuable brand for Disney, and one can imagine they won't let rest for too long. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny certainly marks the end of an era, and like any era ending, it leaves many questions about what the future holds.