We’re now just days away from Indy’s final adventure. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will see the venerable archaeologist and famed Nazi puncher cracking the whip one last time. Harrison Ford is understandably enjoying a moment in the limelight, though the talents of his co-stars Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Mads Mikkelsen are nothing to sniff at.
Speaking with TheWrap, director James Mangold explained that he was inspired by the Golden Age of Hollywood, the exact same place Spielberg looked to when making Raiders of the Lost Ark:
“When we talk about the ‘Raiders’ film, and even Steven’s work in general, which has always been a big influence on me, you have to kind of understand that Steven himself is highly influenced and inspired by the classical, Golden Age, Hollywood style, so you’re talking about a compendium of influences.”
Mangold specifically cited Waller-Bridge’s character as a fun throwback, saying he wanted her to embody the fast-talking charisma of some of the all-time great leading ladies:
“I had very much in mind Barbara Stanwyck’s character in Preston Sturges’ ‘The Lady Eve’. We see that Phoebe’s character is a bit of a card shark [and] this idea came to me of a kind of conwoman archaeologist who’s of the modern generation that’s more fixated on success, or fame, or money than necessarily finding things of great importance and placing them in a museum or in safety.”
He went on to talk about how Waller-Bridge’s character works against the more old-school Indy, who still has a sense of idealism about unearthing ancient treasures:
“That seemed to be a wonderful contrast with Indy, particularly Indy in his senior years — his idealism about the job of an archaeologist, but it also produced a kind of patter and a way of trying to write and direct Phoebe, in terms of how quickly she moves and turns corners.”
While the Dial of Destiny reviews haven’t exactly been glowing (the film itself is sitting at 63% on the Tomatometer) we’re not going to pass up the opportunity to see Harrison Ford’s final performance as Indiana Jones.
That said, while this may well be Harrison Ford’s last time in the role we wouldn’t count out the franchise just yet. It’s unlikely Disney and Lucasfilm will recast the core role, but with Waller-Bridge’s archaeologist about to strut her stuff, perhaps she could be the new lead character and the inheritor of Indy’s mantle.
Let’s just see whether the fedora fits when Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny arrives on June 30.