Credit: Lucasfilm/ParamountIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has hit theaters with a resounding thud, making it just the latest of Disney’s losing streak at the box office. While the fifth movie to star Harrison Ford as the world’s grumpiest Nazi-punching archaeologist is not flopping as hard as, say, Warner Bros’ Ezra Miller-led The Flash (which is reportedly being pulled from hundreds of theaters), it is definitely underperforming, which makes the future of the franchise that much more uncertain.
Another thing that makes the further adventures of the character that much more precarious is Harrison Ford’s determination to leave the role in the past, particularly now that the legendary actor has jumped over to the Marvel Cinematic Universe side of the company in the upcoming Captain America movie. However, the Walt Disney Company is understandably reluctant to give up valuable IP just because the original star, director, and writers of the Indiana Jones movies have left the building, and has been developing a spinoff TV series for Disney Plus.
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‘Indiana Jones’ Director Says Show Is Speculative
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny director James Mangold recently told the Happy Sad Confused podcast that the Disney Plus Indiana Jones spinoff series was “purely speculative in terms of whether that show was going to happen,” which does not sound particularly positive for the franchise.
James Mangold went on to say that the show “had nothing to do with Indiana Jones. It was the world, but it was not…,” which confirms that Harrison Ford is really serious about leaving the character behind. On the other hand, Mangold also thought that his movie Logan (2017) would be the final adventure of an ironically grizzled character who has since come out of retirement, so who’s to say?
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Disney Plus Spinoff Would Focus on a Minor Character
The Indiana Jones Disney Plus spinoff series is reportedly being developed as a story focusing on Abner Ravenwood, a largely unseen supporting character referenced in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). The character was a mentor to the central character and the father of his wife Marion (Karen Allen) but has not appeared in a film or TV series thus far.
At this point, it seems very uncertain whether Abner Ravenwood will finally get his time in the sun on Disney Plus, and it definitely seems like Harrison Ford is not up for a de-aged cameo appearance. At least for now, Disney Plus is streaming The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, the 1990s prequel series starring Sean Patrick Flanery as a younger version of the world adventurer. That might be as close as fans will get to a new TV series.