Credit: DisneyJames Mangold nearly caused an uproar from fans over one scene that required one actress to beg for a revision in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023).
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Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones always ends up facing the same enemy. Nazis. While Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Crystal Skull (2008) pitted the legendary archaeologist against the Soviets, all the other movies involved some form of Nazis. Sadly, each adventure ends in misfortune for the enemy, but one scene almost went too far.
Now that the archaeologist is almost 80, Indiana Jones isn’t a spry young man. He’s old, and his age definitely shows. Some have claimed the movie is too depressing seeing an older Indy, but the adventure with his god-daughter Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) pits him against Mads Mikkelsen’s Jurgen Voller, a Nazi scientist who worked in NASA. After helping America win the Space Race, Voller goes all in on finding a lost artifact he once held in World War II.
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Sadly, the movie isn’t bringing back the magic for every fan. The box office numbers have been troublesome, with Disney potentially not making enough and creating another failure in the process. The movie isn’t perfect either, but it could have been a lot worse, according to Variety, if Shaunette Renée Wilson didn’t demand a revision for one scene she felt was too problematic:
“Well, I don’t want to spoil too much, but my character had a particular way of exiting the film and initially I found it to be a little bit problematic and offensive. I was like we probably don’t need to say these words or have it done this way, and this something I am uncomfortable with.”
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This led to Mangold revising the script to make her final scene different, and the film still doesn’t do enough. Without spoiling the scene, it’s clear that Wilson’s character is a vocal black woman in the script, and she is dealing with Nazis working for the American government. Most likely, the original script included more racist comments about the Aryan race, or had Wilson made another comment about how racist Nazis could be. These moments aren’t necessary, and funny enough, Wilson’s character still throws a racial slur earlier in the movie.
This scene didn’t ruin Indy 5, but it could’ve been avoided, as the movie’s first act could’ve followed a different set of events to place Indiana Jones on his final adventure. Sadly, this is it for the iconic hero, and fans might one day enjoy Indy’s final ride, but most will wish the character’s legend was left alone.
Do you think Indy 5 was originally more racist? Let Inside the Magic know what you think!