The world's most famous archeologist is putting his fedora back on and heading out on another adventure.
Disney announced today that it will release a fifth Indiana Jones film on July 19, 2019, with Harrison Ford returning as Indy and Steven Spielberg back in the director's chair. The last film in the franchise was 2008's Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which introduced aliens and an illegitimate son named Mutt (played by Shia LaBeouf) to the character's mythology. Don't hold your breath for LaBeouf's return—he seems like he's busy standing in elevators and watching his own movies, these days.
We don't have any information about who may be joining Dr. Jones on his latest crusade, but we certainly wouldn't mind if Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt (who Deadline reported was being considered for an Indiana Jones reboot) showed up in some capacity. Mutt can't be the only lovechild the notoriously flirtatious adventurer has fathered, right?
The fifth Indiana Jones film will be the first to be released by Disney, which acquired the film franchise (along with something called Star Wars) when it purchased Lucasfilm in 2012. Notably absent from today's announcement was any mention of George Lucas, who created the character and provided the story for each of the previous films. Lucas's lack of involvement in an Indiana Jones sequel likely stems from Disney's decision to discard his ideas for the Star Wars sequels—in an interview with Charlie Rose, he referred to Disney as "white slavers" before subsequently apologizing for the remark.
While an Indiana Jones movie without Lucas's involvement may seem strange, J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: The Force Awakens proved that it's possible to revive a franchise by remaining reverent to previous installments and bringing back key on-screen talent. Plus, we know that the only reason Spielberg put extraterrestrials in the last Indy movie was because, as he told Empire, "I am loyal to my best friend." With a great screenwriter on board, we're sure that Indiana can set our hearts ablaze—just like Mola Ram in The Temple of Doom—once more.