Lucas on INDY 4: Spielberg "Not That Enthusiastic"

[AndyDursin]

Gee, I couldn't tell!

Says Lucas in this Times Online interview...

"Really, with the last one, Steven wasn’t that enthusiastic. I was trying to persuade him. But now Steve is more amenable to doing another one. Yet we still have the issues about the direction we’d like to take. I’m in the future; Steven’s in the past. He’s trying to drag it back to the way they were, I’m trying to push it to a whole different place. So, still we have a sort of tension. This recent one came out of that."

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/ ... 386319.ece

[Eric W.]

They shouldn't have bothered at this rate.

[mkaroly]

Instead of putting himself into the problems that KOCS had, he basically points out that Spielberg "wasn't that enthusiastic". As if HIS ideas alone would have been that much better? This is why I disrespect him so much. Isn't this the same person who claimed that EMPIRE was the WORST out of the six STAR WARS films??? Instead of having other people make "his" films, he should direct more and and quit leaving it up to other people....not that Spielberg deserves a pass...because he doesn't. But wow. Spielberg wasn't "that enthusiastic". Glad it wasn't Lucas' fault at all.

[AndyDursin]

I think George needs to take his share of the blame too...no question.

Though ultimately, the movie felt lethargic, had no spark, and little energy. I do pin that on Spielberg, because the finished product is his, and it felt limp.

Would Lucas have done better? Maybe not, but I do know the first and third STAR WARS prequels were far more entertaining than this Indy go-around. For me THE CRYSTAL SKULL was barely a notch above ATTACK OF THE CLONES.

Let's not forget Spielberg brought Janusz Kaminski and David Koepp along for the ride also.

[JSWalsh]

As if HIS ideas alone would have been that much better?

Why WOULDN'T Lucas prefer his own ideas to someone else's?

[scorehead]

At this rate, like James Bond, they should just recast INDY with a younger, 30 something, actor and get on with it, already. Getting him back to the 1930's or 1940's would offer enough stories to fill out another trilogy, why go into the future? The fact that I know that Indy lives well into his 90's, perhaps his 100's, has cheapened the character to me. After the lackluster staging of the last film, who would want to see Indy trading in his trade mark whip for a walking cane.

Duh!

SH

[JSWalsh]

I wonder if Lucas and Spielberg want their characters to continue after they have either retired or passed on?

I have a feeling they won't mind SUPERVISING or producing the continuation of these characters. But I wonder if they would like the "original versions" to die with them.

[mkaroly]

I wonder if Lucas and Spielberg want their characters to continue after they have either retired or passed on?

I have a feeling they won't mind SUPERVISING or producing the continuation of these characters. But I wonder if they would like the "original versions" to die with them.

In Lucas' case, I don't think he could just supervise. I imagine he's poured all that money he's made into making the Futurama head-in-a-jar- thing a reality so that he can live forever...lol...and I'm sure if it were up to Lucas he'd just go back and "enhance" the originals into what they "should have been", with the originals then being lost forever. But then again, he's always right, isn't he?

I don't think Spielberg would have any problem with Jurassic Park continuing on with him on the sidelines (or deceased). Indiana Jones is more of a Lucas idea, so Spielberg probably doesn't have as much of an emotional investment in the character.

[AndyDursin]

I'm not sure if INDY 5 will actually happen but Lucas has changed his mind and apparently ISN'T going with a Shia LeBeouf spin-off. The "Mutt" character has been universally disliked by fans (much the same way the Superman "kid" element ruined SUPERMAN RETURNS for most folks) and this MTV interview seems to hint that Lucas won't be going in that direction. And honestly, I'd be OK if they tried a fresh director as well, b/c frankly Spielberg's heart wasn't in that last movie and it showed.

To me, Ford can pull it off -- with the RIGHT script, which they didn't find with the CRYSTAL SKULL. How they'll find a good one is anyone's guess, but I'd still be optimistic about the prospects of one -- provided Janusz Kaminski doesn't come back, and that it centers on Indy this time out.

So there you go -- already Lucas has one good idea in his head

And yeah, you can ask WHY they're making it...but $750 million in worldwide revenue would probably be a good reason for it.

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2008/08/05/ex ... s-insists/

EXCLUSIVE: ‘Indiana Jones 5’ Won’t Center on Shia LaBeouf, Insists George Lucas

This past May, two weeks before “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” opened worldwide, George Lucas told reporters at the Cannes Film Festival that he already had an idea for a possible “Indiana Jones V,” and that it centered, not on Dr. Henry Jones, but on his son, Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf).

Three knife-flipping, tree-swinging, accident having months later and that idea? It’s kind of, well, “Nuked the Fridge,” Lucas told MTV News.

Asked whether he still considered Mutt Williams a strong enough character to drive an “Indiana Jones” film, Lucas was adamant that Indy just isn’t Indy without Indy. Or, to put it another way: No.

“Indiana Jones is Indiana Jones. Harrison Ford IS Indiana Jones,” Lucas said, dismissively adding about a character he helped create that, “If it was Mutt Williams it would be ‘Mutt Williams and the Search for Elvis’ or something.”

It’s unclear what changed Lucas’s mind about the character, or whether he would necessarily return at all – even in a sidekick capacity. That said, “The Search for Elvis” is hilarious.

Of course, talk of an eventual “Indiana Jones V” is something of a giant hypothetical anyway, even as Lucas continued to stroke the fire of anticipation at his Big Rock Ranch near San Francisco, insisting that work IS being done to find a suitable object for another installment.

“We ARE looking for something for him to go after,” Lucas said. “They are very hard to find. It’s like archeology. It takes a huge amount of research to come up with something that will fit.”

[mkaroly]

Hopefully they'll keep Indy in the past and not bring him into present day adventures.

As far as Indy V goes, I have to be honest and say that I am more excited about a possible Rambo V than Indy V. I just saw Rambo the other day and I really, really liked it- Sly did a great job.

And I am glad that they won't focus on MUTT...someone really dropped the ball on naming Shia's character as they did. And if they do make a SUPERMAN RETURNS AGAIN, I won't acknowledge it if it has anything to do with "Superboy".

I'm also glad that Lucas said that Ford is Indiana Jones- let's hope it stays that way.

[AndyDursin]

RAMBO beat the stuffing out of THE CRYSTAL SKULL as a movie. I'd be more up for another Stallone action-fest as well.

[Monterey Jack]

I'm also glad that Lucas said that Ford is Indiana Jones- let's hope it stays that way.

Ford playing Indy in his mid-60's was pushing it as it was. If they do decide to make more films, they should finally bite the bullet, pull a 007, and recast the role. I realize some people would be infuriated at the idea of someone other than Ford playing Indy, but that's what they said about Sean Connery, and they're still cranking out James Bond movies nearly 40 years after he hung up the tux. Remember...Ford wasn't even the first choice for the role (Tom Seleck might have played the role if circumstances had allowed back in the day...and I've always wondered what Selleck would have brought to the role). Just make a big media splash about the idea and start a big search for an unknown talent to fill the fedora and leather jacket. Let's face it...nostalgia was the primary reason why Crystal Skull did the business it did (ditto the Star Wars prequels...and at least those films had an entirely different cast). If the film had lived up to our fond memories of the original trilogy, it would have made Dark Knight-sized numbers or even better, instead of stalling out at just over $300 million. You cast some charismatic 25-year-old, create a ripping script to support him (i.e. more Lawrence Kasdan than David Koepp), hype it up, and go from there. People were crapping all over Daniel Craig when he succeeded the popular Pierce Brosnan (remember DanielCraigIsNotBond.com?), but now, he's suddenly credited with giving the moribund franchise a fresh infusion of energy. Give us a new Indy or just hang it up.

[Eric W.]

I'm also glad that Lucas said that Ford is Indiana Jones- let's hope it stays that way.

Ford playing Indy in his mid-60's was pushing it as it was. If they do decide to make more films, they should finally bite the bullet, pull a 007, and recast the role. I realize some people would be infuriated at the idea of someone other than Ford playing Indy, but that's what they said about Sean Connery, and they're still cranking out James Bond movies nearly 40 years after he hung up the tux. Remember...Ford wasn't even the first choice for the role (Tom Seleck might have played the role if circumstances had allowed back in the day...and I've always wondered what Selleck would have brought to the role). Just make a big media splash about the idea and start a big search for an unknown talent to fill the fedora and leather jacket. Let's face it...nostalgia was the primary reason why Crystal Skull did the business it did (ditto the Star Wars prequels...and at least those films had an entirely different cast). If the film had lived up to our fond memories of the original trilogy, it would have made Dark Knight-sized numbers or even better, instead of stalling out at just over $300 million. You cast some charismatic 25-year-old, create a ripping script to support him (i.e. more Lawrence Kasdan than David Koepp), hype it up, and go from there. People were crapping all over Daniel Craig when he succeeded the popular Pierce Brosnan (remember DanielCraigIsNotBond.com?), but now, he's suddenly credited with giving the moribund franchise a fresh infusion of energy. Give us a new Indy or just hang it up.

I think if they ever do anything else with this series it needs to be a Batman Begins scenario. Something new and fresh from the ground up that presses the reset button on the series and you move forward from there.

In essence, yes, treat it like they have the Bond series with Daniel Craig.

[JSWalsh]

“We ARE looking for something for him to go after,” Lucas said. “They are very hard to find. It’s like archeology. It takes a huge amount of research to come up with something that will fit.”

What the heck is Lucas having his minions DO all day at that ranch that it takes him decades to come up with something for a character to go looking for?

[Monterey Jack]

“We ARE looking for something for him to go after,” Lucas said. “They are very hard to find. It’s like archeology. It takes a huge amount of research to come up with something that will fit.”

What the heck is Lucas having his minions DO all day at that ranch that it takes him decades to come up with something for a character to go looking for?

There have been DOZENS of Indy novels and comic books that have featured archeological MaGuffins that would work just fine for the big screen (Indiana Jones And The Fate Of Atlantis comes immediately to mind). Just adapt one of those stories.