Harrison Ford Confirmed to Be De-Aged in Opening Scene of INDIANA JONES 5
Last year some photos from the set of Indiana Jones 5 surfaced that showed Harrison Ford with motion capture markers on his clothes and face, indicating that Indy would be de-aged digitally in the film. Well, that has now been confirmed.
The opening sequence of the film will feature a younger version of Indiana, and it will be a flashback to 1944. It will most likely set up the rest of the story, which is set in 1969. When talking about this opening scene in an interview with Empire, director James Mangold said:
"I wanted the chance to dive into this kind of full-on George-and-Steven old picture and give the audience an adrenaline blast.
"We fall out, and you find yourself in 1969. So that the audience doesn't experience the change between the '40s and '60s as an intellectual conceit, but literally experiences the buccaneering spirit of those early days…and then the beginning of now."
When talking about the de-aged Harrison Ford, Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy said:
"My hope is that, although it will be talked about in terms of technology, you just watch it and go, 'Oh my God, they just found footage. This was a thing they shot 40 years ago.’ We're dropping you into an adventure, something Indy is looking for, and instantly you have that feeling, 'I'm in an Indiana Jones movie.'"
This gonna be fun! I hope that they manage to pull this design of Ford off flawlessly. This tech seems to get better and better, so I’m excited to see it!
The story is set 1969, and Indiana Jones is “living against the backdrop of the space race – but the American effort to beat the Russians to the moon brings with it some uncomfortable truths for Indy.” It’s explained:
“The simple fact is that the moon-landing program was run by a bunch of ex-Nazis. How ‘ex’ they are is the question. And it gets up Indy’s nose…” Pitching Indiana – a man always looking to the secrets of the Earth rather than the stars – into the era of the astronaut finds him even more a man out of time. “It’s not just that the model of what a hero is has completely changed. It’s not just that they’re looking for something where there’s nothing up there – it’s like Reno without the gambling, or whatever his line is. But the people that are behind it are, you know, his sworn enemies.”
The film comes from producer Steven Spielberg and it also stars Mads Mikkelsen (Another Round), Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag), Boyd Holbrook (Logan), Shaunette Renée Wilson (The Resident), and Thomas Kretschmann (Avengers: Age Of Ultron).
Indiana Jones 5 is expected to hit theaters on June 30, 2023. To see some previously released photos of the movie, click here and here.