Writer David Koepp Talks Indiana Jones 5
I am sure that many of our readers that enjoy the Star Wars news that we report daily are equally excited about the announcement earlier this year that a new Indiana Jones movie is coming in 2019, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Harrison Ford. Back in March David Koepp was announced as the writer of the highly anticipated sequel, who recently spoke with Collider and revealed a few tidbits about Indy 5…
From Collider.
On George Lucas’ involvement with Indy 5:
Koepp said he’s hard at work on writing the script for Indiana Jones 5, but one big question that loomed over the film was whether Lucas would be involved. The way the franchise worked in that past was that Lucas would come up with the idea for the movie and Spielberg would execute it. When Indy 5 was announced, Lucas’ name was nowhere to be found. Spielberg subsequently said Lucas would serve as an executive producer on the film, but in speaking with Koepp, the screenwriter revealed that Lucas is not involved in the story of Indiana Jones 5:
“He’s not, to my knowledge. I’ve had no contact with him.”
On the lessons they’ve learned from Crystal Skull:
“I think that what [Indy] looks for and when he looks for it dictates what the movie’s gonna be. So the selection of the MacGuffin is everything. I think Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, being set in 1957 there was a conscious desire to say, ‘Much like two of the other ones were World War II movies set in the 30s and early 40s, this is ’57 so a lot of our influences are gonna be science-fiction movies.’ You got that with the original [script], Jeb Stuart took the first shot at it with Indiana Jones and the Saucer Men from Mars. That was a really conscious decision that dictated a lot about what the story would be and what the movie would be like, and I think that was followed through on really nicely. I thought Steve did a really good job with that. I don’t know that the idea was most suited to an Indiana Jones movie, but that was what we did. So we tried to be very careful with the selection of the MacGuffin and the eras to give ourselves as much latitude to make the best kind of Indiana Jones movie that we most want to see. Learning how that’s the importance of the choice of the MacGuffin is a big deal.”
On the progress of Indy 5:
It’s going really well. I really like our idea; I think it’s clean and simple and makes a lot of sense, and I feel like the writing is going really well.”
Koepp declined to reveal the origin of this particular story idea, only saying that it was hatched by he and Spielberg. With regards to when filming might begin, Koepp is hopeful for 2017 but is also aware that Spielberg’s a busy guy:“That’s a tough one, I hope so. It’s certainly OK for me and I’ll be ready, but my schedule isn’t the tough one. So I think October—I hope, I hope so. We’ll see. That’s a hard one to answer.”
Indiana Jones 5 is expected to hit theaters in July 2019. Are you excited for the new chapter of the franchise?
Founder of SWNN, MNN and The Cantina forums.
Born on April 24, 1980.
no lucas?
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Yeah we don’t want George. He’ll have Indy with another terrible Teen sidekick. George is obsessed with Teens.
You do realize that we’ve got the same director as Crystal Skull?
you mean the legendary, incomparable steven speilberg? why, yes i do. and that’s fantastic.
They did not really say anything other than the film will have a great Macguffin.
mch tch mch pch…It needs more Lucas.
First step to creating a great Indiana Jones 5 script?
Retconning Crystal Skull straight out of existence.
Second step? Profit.
Movie opens with Ford waking from a bad dream. 😉
Next to Suzanne Pleshette.
I certainly didn’t think the McGuffin was the problem with Crystal Skull.
I wholeheartedly agree… I actually really enjoyed it, for the most part. I think it’s a decent movie, if you just take a couple of things out (like Mutt catching up to the others by swinging on vines…)
I thought it was dreadful but not because of the aliens
Crystal Skull was terrible from start to finish. The horrendous CGI mixed with the overbearing antics of “franchise killer” Shia LaBeouf. Harrison was amazing, but the weight of the bad script and too many other anchors weighed it down.
Yeah …and it’s a good thing they’re not bringing back that crappy director to ruin this one!
/s
Good or bad, I at least welcome the chance to see another Indy movie. Will wait until the trailer until I assess emotional levels.
Next will be Indy in the seventies, crossover with Austin Powers
too late. austin powers was frozen by then.
Re: “Indy in the seventies”
The problem with “next will be” … is that Ford will be in the eighties by then. 😉
I’d love to see Indy go head to head with the KGB in the 60s. or 70s. or 80s. He needs to be looking for the fountain of youth and then meets Ponce De Leon.
Disney is going to play it safe, so the fans will enjoy it at first and forget it a few weeks later. But a faithful sequel to Indy I-III will be much better than another stupid idea by Lucas.
I-III were Lucas as well…just saying
Re: “will be much better than another stupid idea by Lucas.”
Yeah… good thing we got rid of the crappy director of that *bad* one!
Wait…what?!
The McGuffin in this one should be Indy’s TV remote control… He falls asleep while watching “The Price is Right” in the old folks home and loses it under the seat cushion of his recliner. The bad guy will be a vaguely Nazi-ish Nurse Ratchet type.
That would actually make an awesome short…
Indie 5….sorry, but they just need to let it go. He’s just way too old. Maybe in 30 years, do a reboot of sorts. When Harrison isn’t burned into everyone’s mind as Jones.
There is no way he’s too old. He KILLED it in TFA and was the best part of the film. His actions scenes were amazing as well. Harrison is ageless — and in his 70’s could kick anyone’s ass on this board.
No…he got killed in TFA! if he was younger, he’d whipped his whiny son and we’d had a better movie.
Love his characters, unfortunately he’s got a bit too old. I will give it to you, he could still kick a little ass!
Han was amazing and the whole world agrees. He “got killed” because Harrison wanted to. But Han was great from start to finish — the crowd at theaters nationwide ROARED when he came out. You can be a “hater” but your age-ist opinion doesn’t matter.
You are right about one thing…it was in his return contract to be killed.
Lol, I’m no hater kid. Love SW and Indie…just time to retire.
Come on … even Han admitted he was getting old when he barely landed the Falcon on Starkiller Base raid.
Going into production when Ford’s 75 or 76…. sorry, but I have to agree that Ford’s “getting to old for this”.
I mean –
Statistically speaking he’ll be dead from old age before production begins.
Come on, why hasn’t anyone said it will be a recon of Raiders of the Lost Ark? However, jokes aside I hoping its either a return to the Holy Relics, such as the Spear of Destiny, or going for Atlantis (without the aliens, we’ve seen enough of them on the History Channel).
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Well… there were moments of greatness in Indy 4 buried by an avalanche of awful. So I’ve mixed feelings on 5. If they can send Indy off right? I’m all for it. It’s one of those things that no matter how bad it can be… I’m going to go see it anyway you know?
I actually felt it was the other way around – mostly good stuff (and fuck all the haters, the Doomtown sequence is pure awesome from start to end) marred by some truly awful bits, but mostly just terribly underwritten. Ford brought his A game, but the script really left him with nothing to do.
I loved when he had those moments of investigation. That’s when it felt the most Indy to me. Not saying his investigations are what Indy is about… I’m just saying it felt like the part they nailed the most.
If they want people to enjoy this film, it has to go back to the Fundamentals: NO CRAPPY CGI, WE WANT PRACTICAL. NO ALIENS —- Indy is not sci fi.
Right. It was LUCAS that directed that film, LUCAS that forced poor, naïve, industry newcomer Spielberg to rely on CGI, I forgot!
speilberg did direct it, but he also pretty much let george do what ever he wanted. he says as much in the behind the scenes stuff.
Except for the BTS stuff where he takes credit for the monkeys. And the fridge. And are you actually suggesting that the Berg didn’t have a say in how he was going to make his movie? That’s just silly. The direction is lazy, and the script is at least a draft away from being something you would expect from an Indy film. Those are problems at the production level, not “CRAPPY CGI(!!!!!) or ALIENS(!!!!!) related. I just do NOT get the complete pass fanboys are willing to give Spielberg on that film while being content to stupidly shit all over Lucas for saying “It’s the ’50s, we should totally do a B movie Alien plot!”.
Agree completely Crankypants.
Also, as I mentioned above – Lucas gave Spielberg more freedom & was less involved with Temple of Doom, arguably the weakest of originals…. and then was more involved again with The Last Crusade.
People seem to want to pile on blame when it comes to Lucas & give Spielberg a free pass…when Spielberg was the frigging director & had last say on all of it.
i never said speilberg did a world class job, but it was the least of that film’s problems. in the past he always provided the counter balance to lucas’ more crazy ideas(like how the third movie was supposed to take place in a haunted house), but here speilberg, probably feeling bad for his friend after the prequel disaster, didn’t bother to challenge him anymore and it showed.
Re: “he also pretty much let george do what ever he wanted”
Ever heard of IJ & Temple of Doom?
The rather universally considered *weakest* of the original 3?
THAT was Lucas letting Spielberg do “pretty much whatever he wanted”.
So plenty of blame to go around between the 2x weakest in the franchise. Let’s not “pile on Lucas” without equally piling on Spielberg for his mistakes.
Oh yeah….& he was the director of Krystal Skull & ultimately the buck stops there.
do you really want to compare temple of doom to crystal skull? that’s like comparing return of the jedi to attack of the clones. not even close. btw, it was a lucasfilm production so the buck as it were stops with the man funding it.
Speilberg has even admitted in recent years – he did NOT want to have an Alien Plot for Indy-5. One of the WORST ideas in cinematic history.
That’s pretty disappointing. This is Lucas’s character after all. Well, still hoping that now Koepp isn’t hobbled by trying to frankenscript three different first drafts of three completely different stories into something comprehensible in like a week and a half that this movie will feel more solid.
no one forced him to sell his company to the white slavers- i mean disney.
If not Atlantis, the lost tomb of Alexander the Great could be a very good McGuffin, clouded in mistery but pertaining to the western culture, with a quest that could go from alexandria to babylon, india and Venice.
sounds interesting. and by going back to egypt, india and venice they could have a bit of a retrospective on the original three films.