Indiana Jones Writer Says Crystal Kingdom’s Aliens Were a Mistake

There is still a lot to be revealed about Indiana Jones 5, but one thing that can be ruled out is the involvement of aliens this time around. While the Indiana Jones franchise has always dabbled in the supernatural, from the horrifying opening of the Ark of the Covenant to the life-giving Holy Grail, when Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull went all Close Encounters, not everyone was on board with the direction of the film. That included screenwriter David Koepp, who revealed recently that he attempted to change the inclusion of “alien-like” beings but couldn’t get Steven Spielberg and George Lucas to go along with it. Speaking on the Script Apart podcast, Koepp explained:

“I was never happy with the idea [of including alien-like creatures in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull],” he said. “When I came on, I tried to convince [director Steven Spielberg and franchise co-creator George Lucas] to change it — I had this other idea. They didn’t want to change it. I’m not saying mine would’ve been better, but I think that a lot of the pushback that movie got, in a larger sense aside from little things people might not have liked — that were too silly or whatever — the larger one was that [fans said] ‘We don’t feel like aliens should’ve been in an Indiana Jones movie.’ Fair enough, in retrospect, you’re probably right [laughs].”

Related: Indiana Jones 5 Producer Says Fans Will Be ‘Very Happy’ With the Sequel

Indiana Jones 5 Could Be an Ending in Many Ways

So far, all we have officially seen of Indiana Jones 5 is a shadowy image of the man himself crossing a rickety rope bridge, which was released at Star Wars Celebration by Lucasfilm. However, we don’t know the title of the movie, the storyline or exactly what it will mean for the franchise in the future.

It has already been said that the role of Indiana Jones will not be going to another actor in the future, signaling not only Harrison Ford’s final outing as the aged archeology professor turned adventurer but potentially the Indiana Jones franchise itself. In addition to that, composer John Williams had hinted that he plans to retire after completing the score for the movie, which would really make the film the end of an era in many ways.

So will Indiana Jones 5 manage to go out on a high, or is it already too late for the 40-year-old franchise? According to producer Frank Marshall, there should be no worries on that score as new-to-franchise director James Mangold has everything under control and is keeping the spirit of the franchise alive. In addition to that, Marshall previously said of the film:

“It’s a great story, it’s a great character, and I think you’re going to be very happy with this movie. It’s everything I think that everybody wants out of an Indiana Jones movie.”

After numerous delays, Indiana Jones 5 has now settled on a release date of June 30, 2023, when it will expect to see a big box office return for the long-awaited and much delayed final installment of the Indiana Jones Saga.