Anyone hoping to see more wip-cracking, artifact hunting and punching of Nazis is probably going to have to wait a little longer for the return of Indiana Jones. Though the movie was set to being production in less than a year it turns out that start date will have to be pushed back yet again due to some changes behind the scenes.
Variety is reporting that production on the movie – which was supposed to start April 2019 in London – is being pushed back “by months, if not a year,” according to their sources. This is apparently due to a necessary screenplay rewrite, which Collider reported earlier yesterday would be done by Jonathan Kasdan (SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY) taking over for David Koepp. As a result, the movie may not make its initial release date of July 2020. Ah, the motion picture business…
At the time of Collider’s reporting, it wasn’t known how much Kasdan would be reworking Koepp’s script. It could’ve been a simple polish or as much as a head-to-toe rewrite. Turns out it’s probably more of the latter as the Variety report indicates that Lucasfilm was not happy with Koepp’s script, and Kasdan will indeed be working on a new draft. Koepp is no stranger to the INDIANA JONES franchise, writing the screenplay to the fourth film, THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL, which was met with, shall we say, a mixed reaction from fans. As for Kasdan, his father, Lawrence Kasdan, wrote the original INDIANA JONES film, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK
Though this sort of thing may not typically push the movie’s production schedule back as much as a year, the shift means director Steven Spielberg will dig deeper into other projects, namely the remake of WEST SIDE STORY. The director is currently in pre-production on the movie, and though there is no confirmation on it yet, he could begin filming that one before INDIANA JONES 5. Spielberg and star Harrison Ford do remain committed to the project, and it’s worth noting Lucasfilm has yet to comment on the matter, or fully remove INDY from their July 2020 release calendar.
Should the movie officially be delayed at least we know it's for the best. INDIANA JONES is a hot property and fans won't tolerate anything less than stupendous, especially after leaving the theater in confusing after INDY 4. This new movie will likely by Ford's final outing as the iconic character, so it has to be the perfect sendoff. The script needs to be tip-top, so best of luck to Kasdan, and hopefully they can get started sooner rather than later. Those Nazis aren't going to punch themselves.