'Indiana Jones 5' Producer Frank Marshall Explains How The Pandemic Will Impact The Sequel

Indiana Jones 5 feels like one of those movies we've been hearing about for over a decade now, but it never seems like it's actually going to happen. Harrison Ford going to be nearly 80 by the time the movie gets in front of cameras and the coronavirus pandemic is probably going to make it much more difficult to get a blockbuster of that scale off the ground anytime soon. But franchise producer Frank Marshall doesn't appear to be worried about the next installment of the Indiana Jones franchise, especially with director James Mangold taking over the reins from Steven Spielberg. 

Frank Marshall recently spoke with Collider, and along with news that the Jurassic World franchise won't be coming to an end with Dominion next year, he provided a brief update on the state of Indiana Jones 5. The movie was recently shifted from a release in 2021 to the year after on July 29, 2022, and that's probably why Marshall says the writing process on the sequel has apparently just started. There was a script for Indiana Jones 5 that was previously discussed, but I wouldn't be surprised if the hiring of James Mangold is seeing the movie taken in a different direction. Marshall doesn't hesitate to sing the new director's praises either:

"His love of the franchise. He's a wonderful filmmaker. I think he also has a relationship with Harrison. It was all of the right pieces coming together, at the right time."

Mangold has done a fine job of injecting new life into familiar Hollywood tropes. His take on Wolverine in Logan was a milestone for the X-Men character, who was starting to overstay his welcome on the big screen, and it served as a fitting exit for Hugh Jackman from the franchise. Getting a director like him on board Indiana Jones 5 could help wrap up the film series nicely, and as Marshall confirmed, Spielberg is still staying on as producer. So hopefully it will still be the right time when cameras actually start rolling on the movie.

Speaking of which, Marshall talked about how the new future of filmmaking looks in the aftermath of coronavirus, and how that might have an impact on Indiana Jones 5. The producer said:

"The number one thing, obviously, is the safety of everybody – the cast, the crew, and all of us. So, we're looking at the guidelines that are coming slowly, from the health experts and the studios and the different parts of the business, and we're just trying to incorporate everything, so we can move forward and be safe. It's going to obviously slow things down, so we're trying to adjust. You won't see a lot of big crowd scenes, for example, for awhile. There won't be any more craft service, so maybe that'll be good for people, in keeping more fit. It's a moving target right now. There are a lot of people working on the solutions, to be able to work and be safe."

It will certainly be interesting to see how major blockbuster movies that require huge crews and armies of extras safely get back to work once the coronavirus pandemic has slowed down. We have to wonder if Indy's adventures will need to be scaled down a bit in the wake of the coronavirus, or if Hollywood's movie magic can help them get around that hurdle. We'll find out in the next couple years.