Labeouf Not Indy



I was flying to San Francisco last week to visit my mistress, and on the plane I was presented with the option of watching INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL or the SEX AND THE CITY movie. I gave Indy a chance but was disenchanted within minutes. Meanwhile Carrie and crew had me weeping all the way to the Golden State. So it is with much indifference that I bring you this news, because like most of you I believe the Indy franchise has passed its prime. Nonetheless, Indiana himself, Harrison Ford has offcially laid to rest rumours that Shia LaBeouf will be assuming the titular role in the series' next installment.

No, that's never been (the idea)... I think it just doesn't work that way. And there's definitely a distinction between passing the fedora and someone picking it up.

Frankly I'm relieved. Shia as Indy? Or even the next incarnation of Indy? That's just um, pushing it.

Extra Tidbit: You liked the latest Indy, didn't you.

Ford Rules Out LaBeouf As An Indy Replacement



Remember all those rumors that Shia LaBeouf might end up taking over from Harrison Ford as the new Indiana Jones? Ford put a nail in the notion of that coffin today in an interview with Moviefone. No way, no how is he giving up his hat to that kid.

Ford says that not only are there no plans to transition the franchise to Shia in the future and, “that's never been [the idea]. As George has famously said, we'd have to call it 'Mutt Jones: The Search for Elvis.' [Laughs.] I think it just doesn't work that way.”

Unfortunately, that probably doesn’t mean the franchise won’t still go on, just with more of the aching, creaking, increasingly CGI’s Harrison Ford in his traditional role. Given the choice between Mutt Jones and the Search for Elvis or Indiana Jones and the Colostomy Bag of Doom, we might all have been better off if they’d gone with Mutt Jones. At least Mutt doesn’t wear comfortable, sensible, static-free grandpa pants.

Harrison Ford Says Fifth 'Indiana Jones' Is In 'Primary Stages,' Though 'Crystal Skull' Wore Him Out
For his return to the iconic hero, Ford is one of the actors we're thankful for in 2008.



The leaves are falling, and the turkey is practically in the oven. Yes, according to the calendar, it's time to take stock and give thanks. So that's precisely what we're doing by talking to the actors and filmmakers that made 2008 a memorable year at the movies — a year filled with self-loathing kick-ass superheroes, Manolo-wearing women and the return of a very familiar man in a hat.

Sure, we all cringed a little when Shia swung through the trees like a monkey, and Ray Winstone is clearly no John Rhys-Davies, but after 19 long years away, didn't everything just seem a little better when Indiana Jones graced the big screen again? Audiences and critics may have bickered over the worth of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," but we came out in droves to watch Harrison Ford whip his young competitors at the box office one more time.

Ford joined MTV News to look back with at the summer of "Indiana Jones," and he even gave us some hope for one more triumphant adventure for Henry Jones Jr. John Williams, fire up the orchestra!

MTV: You must have gotten a kick out of seeing "Indiana Jones" at the heart of our popular culture again after all these years.

Harrison Ford: I didn't get as much of a kick as it just plum wore my ass out. I was on cereal boxes and soap powder! By the time it was all over, I was ready for it to be over.

MTV: You're no stranger to pandemonium surrounding your films, but the world premiere in Cannes was pretty extreme. Did it feel different from the last time you'd premiered an "Indiana Jones" film?

Ford: I don't know if it was different or I was different. There was a real sense of anticipation. We all went into the French premiere knowing that our hosts were French and that they could have gone French on us. [Laughs.] They're not shy. We were all just curious to how it would turn out.

MTV: How confident were you heading into the release?

Ford: I had confidence in it. Kids come up to me that are 7 or 8 years old and they want to talk about "Indiana Jones." They were not alive when the movies were released. I had confidence that this was deeply seeded in the culture. I thought we had a pretty good shot.

MTV: But then you actually had to deliver a product that people would enjoy.

Ford: I felt mostly confident about that.

MTV: A few months later, can you be objective about the film now?

Ford: I have two heads. I can go inside or outside the film. I think that's important for me to see it in an external way.

MTV: Does that external head think this one stands up to the other three films?

Ford: That external head has no mouth. That external head is smart enough to keep his goddamn mouth shut. [Laughs.]

MTV: There was a lot of debate online and elsewhere about certain scenes and characters. How aware were you of the debate?

Ford: I don't spend much time online.

MTV: There were a number of potential plotlines and scripts considered for this film over the years. Was this your favorite?

Ford: This was the final incarnation. I came to agree to it.

MTV: Did you have any significant moment of trepidation before or during the shoot?

Ford: Never. I knew what the experience was going to be like. I enjoy playing that character. It's fun. There's a great mix of stuff for me to do to keep my attention-deficit-plagued mind focused. It's just a good time for me.

MTV: Did you take any offense to how much was made out of you doing all this action at the ripe old age of 66?

Ford: They were talking about it when I was 45, so it didn't make any difference to me. I don't think I would have taken the part if I didn't feel physically fit for it. I wouldn't want to rob the audience of that part of the pleasure of the films.

MTV: Steven Spielberg has said that another "Indiana Jones" adventure would only happen if the audience essentially asked for more. A worldwide box-office gross of nearly $800 million would seem to say there's still an appetite. Is a fifth "Indiana Jones" film inevitable?

Ford: I don't know. If we come up with a good idea ...

MTV: Is the ball in George Lucas' court at this point?

Ford: It is. That's the process. With some general input, he goes off and searches for the MacGuffin [Ed. note: That's the plot device that propels the story, i.e. the Ark] and then stumbles into a story. And at some point, we have a chance to take a look at it and give some input.

MTV: And he hasn't found the MacGuffin yet?

Ford: No, we're still in the primary stages.

MTV: The end of the last film leaves your character in a very intriguing position. He has a wife and a kid. Can he still be that man of adventure with those commitments?

Ford: And he's seen something. Remember those are the only witnesses to what he's seen. That's kind of interesting.

MTV: James Bond is a franchise that's figured out how to ably switch between actors. If, in 50 years, they find another man to play Indiana Jones, would that sit all right with you?

Ford: The very simple addition of numbers would make it clear that in 50 years I will not give a sh-- at all. I will so not care.

MTV: Well what if you knew today that someone else would wear the hat one day?

Ford: Fifty years from now, they can do anything they want.

MTV: You were recently voted the Best Movie President on AOL Moviefone. Isn't it your responsibility to pass on what you know to President-elect Obama?

Ford: Laughs. I don't know much. But apparently [that poll shows] neither does the public. [Laughs.]

Harrison Ford Barely Cares About Indy Sequels



You think you're tired of hearing rumors about a fifth Indiana Jones movie? Try being Harrison Ford. Even though the guy magnanimously agreed to talk to MTV about this summer's Crystal Skull and a potential fifth movie, you can tell he's ready to get back to kissing Calista Flockhart, or flying airplanes, or whatever else he's up to otherwise.

Asked how he would feel about another actor donning the fedora or whip 50 years from now, Ford responded, "The very simple addition of numbers would make it clear that in 50 years I will not give a shit at all. I will so not care." He even seemed a little indifferent thinking back to the Indiana Jones mayhem that went on this summer; "I didn't get as much of a kick as it just plum wore my ass out. I was on cereal boxes and soap powder! By the time it was all over, I was ready for it to be over.

And while he did give a few hints about George Lucas's development process for the fifth movie, it wasn't really anything we haven't heard before. "With some general input, he goes off and searches for the MacGuffin [like the Ark, the crystal skull, etc.] and then stumbles into a story. And at some point, we have a chance to take a look at it and give some input....We're still in the primary stages."

It baffles me that the McGuffin would be the primary determinant of a sequel, rather than an actual desire to make a new movie or a good story to tell around it. But hey, that might explain why Crystal Skull was such a mess to begin with. Whatever Lucas is planning, though, it sounds like Ford wants no part of it. And who can blame him? Let the poor guy retire with his millions and not further desecrate one of the characters that made him famous. After the Star Wars prequels, it's really the least George could do for us.

'Germ of an idea' for fifth Indiana Jones film



Harrison Ford says an idea for the storyline for the fifth Indiana Jones film has been agreed.

The Hollywood actor says he, director Steven Spielberg and writer George Lucas have come up with a rough outline for the follow-up to Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

He said: "Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] and I are sort of agreed on a germ of an idea and we're seeing what comes of it."

The last Indiana Jones film made more than £500m around the world and introduced Transformers actor Shia LaBeouf to the franchise.

Harrison Ford, 67, says despite coming up with an idea for the movie, people won't see the finished product for some time.

"The process works like this," he said. "We come to some basic agreement and then George goes away for a long time and works on it.

"Then Steven and I get it in some form, some embryonic form.

"Then if we like it we start working with George on it and at some point down the line it's ready and we do it."

The first Indiana Jones film, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, was released in 1981 with two follow-ups released in 1984 and 1989 before a gap of 19 years until 2008's Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.