The Last Reboot: What We Expect From A New Indiana Jones

Back in February, the Internet began to get very excited (as it is wont to do) about the possibility of an Indiana Jones reboot. While most fans can be expected to be skeptical about the reinvention of a beloved franchise – albeit one that did not do so well with the last installment – excitement boiled over at the prospect of the return of Indy in the person of Chris Pratt, everyone’s favorite funnyman turned sarcastic hero. While Pratt remains cagey about the possibility of playing Indiana Jones, it’s reasonable to imagine that he’ll be in the front of the casting line when Disney gets this series going again. If it happens, what can we reasonably expect from an Indiana Jones reboot, and what will be required to make it work? Read on to find out.... The first question is whether or not the next Indiana Jones will be an actual reboot or merely a continuation of the original series. Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull had our hero going off with the woman he always loved, leaving his beloved fedora to be donned by the next generation. One possible route for a new Indy would be a simple carrying on of the name for another adventurer/archaeologist. This would necessitate a certain amount of retconning the final installment, as we can be reasonably certain that Shia LaBeouf’s character Mutt will not be the new Indy. But advancing the narrative into the 1950s and possibly 60s, rather than rewinding and writing over the original, means that the next films can maintain a nice singular narrative as well as bringing Indy into new eras. It would be respectful to the original series and keep open the possibility of Harrison Ford’s return as the original Dr. Jones, perhaps irate that some new guy is trading on his name. Beyond simple retconning, the problem with carrying on with the series would be explaining why the “new” Indiana needs to take on the name of the old. This has been an argument about James Bond before – but Bond’s name is easily written off as a code name, and thus the series has some basic (though not exclusive) continuity with shifting actors and time periods. Indiana Jones is not a secret agent, or any agent really – he’s first an archaeologist and an adventurer, often not working for anyone save himself, his museum, and in the interests of history. Unless we put it down to some new young man taking on the name as a way of advancing his own career – which in itself would need some clever writing – trying to create another Indiana Jones in the first’s timeline would difficult, if not impossible. A proper reboot of the entire franchise is another option. This is perhaps more flexible than a mere sequel, allowing Spielberg and his new cast to search for different adventures for Indiana without having to worry about being true to the old ones. The new series could pick up back in the 1930s and 40s, or move forward to adventures in the 50s and 60s, without having to deal with the old times. It also allows for a brand new interpretation of the character. Really, the sole problem with this direction would be a sense of actively ret-conning the entire franchise. Unlike the Bond franchise, which had original novels to turn to for many of the early films (and some more recent ones), the Indiana Jones franchise is solely a cinematic endeavor. Do we really want to see Spielberg and Lucas’s original vision written over, even by the men themselves? Whichever direction the new Indiana Jones might go, we still must find someone to wear that fedora. This concerns many of us more than the reboot/sequel issue, because Indiana Jones is a cinematic icon almost of the caliber of James Bond. He’s also forever associated with the person of a dashing Harrison Ford (or, in the case of Crystal Skull, an older and somewhat bedraggled Harrison Ford). Others have played Indy already: River Phoenix is the young Jones in the opening of The Last Crusade, and Sean Patrick Flanery does the same in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. But they still grow into Harrison Ford eventually, something that the new Indy will probably never do. Chris Pratt has already taken on the part of a Han Solo-level scoundrel in Guardians of the Galaxy, and many of the images, clips, and trailers from the upcoming Jurassic World have Pratt occupying a very Indy-ish part. Truth be told, I cannot think of another high-profile actor right now who could play Indiana Jones with the same mixture of panache, humor, and dashing good looks that Ford brought to the role. Pratt comes closest, both in look and attitude, but is also far from a Ford stand-in, which seems necessary for the part. Steven Spielberg is all in favor of Pratt too, which might make all the difference. Once we have cast our Indy and decided what world he’s going to occupy, we must take into account what sort of adventures he’s to have. The original three Indiana Jones films all concerned religion and religious icons: Indy went after the Ark of the Covenant (to protect it from Nazis), and the Holy Grail (also to protect it from Nazis). Temple of Doom, the outlier in the original trilogy, still deals with religion too, this time of the more ancient (and somewhat racist) variety. Crystal Skull did the same, although we had the unfortunate addition of aliens in the place of humanity or godly intervention. The power of religion, legend, and iconography was treated with great respect throughout each film, and the ones that are usually considered lesser entries (Temple of Doom and Crystal Skull) are the ones that most departed from that winning formula. So, what would be another winning formula for this Indiana Jones reboot? The series has not yet exhausted Judeo-Christian iconography, and was really at its best when not attempting to deal with religions or myths outside of that construct. Some of this has to do with obvious reference points for a mainstream western film audience – the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy Grail are both recognizable tropes and need little explanation for their significance. I think it would do well to keep with what has worked best in the past, and find an archaeological marvel, infused with religious and legendary significance, for our new Dr. Jones to investigate. Much has been made out of the possibility of an Atlantis narrative, but that to me has much the same ring as the “aliens and Mayan temples” storyline of Crystal Skull. Jones is an archaeologist, yes, but he’s also a religious scholar and has great respect for history, even if he sometimes robs sacred places. If this reboot is to work, it’s going to have to create a new argument, a new basis for comparison, while also remaining somewhat true to the original concept. No reboot is ever necessary, which means that any reboot has to justify its existence beyond just being a rehash of the same character with the same plots and the same villains. Harrison Ford is probably too old to reasonably continue to occupy the role, and, for all its flaws, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull seemed to close off his part of the story more or less satisfactorily. We don’t really want to see Spielberg remake Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, and we don’t really want to see anyone replace Harrison Ford. Not everyone is worthy to wear that famous hat. We all expect a few things from an Indiana Jones reboot: that it provide us with the same thrills and adventure, the same good humor, with dashing heroes, and dastardly villains. More than anything though, we expect that it be worth the price of a ticket.