When the Indiana Jones 5 news broke, my immediate question was who Steven Spielberg was going to hire to write the script. With George Lucas seemingly out of the picture (his name was nowhere to be found in the announcement), having a solid writer on board to work on a script would seem to be the most important first step. But, who could we trust to shepherd a new Indiana Jones film into existence? How about the guy who wrote the script for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull?

Wait, where are you going?!

Yes, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Spielberg has hired longtime collaborator David Koepp to write the script for Indiana Jones 5. Koepp last worked with Spielberg on the ill-fated fourth Indiana Jones movie, a movie we’d all like to forget existed. But, if we’re being fair, he’s also credited with writing Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible and Spider-Man.

As the THR story notes, it’s unclear whether Koepp is working from a story treatment that was conceived by Spielberg, or if he’s free to start from scratch. Before you get too crazy about his involvement on Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, remember that he was working from a story by George Lucas and Lucas was very specific about wanting aliens, even though Spielberg and Harrison Ford did not. Said Spielberg in 2011, “I am loyal to my best friend [George Lucas]. When writes a story he believes in - even if I don’t believe in it - I’m going to shoot the movie the way George envisioned it.” With no Lucas around this time, Koepp and Spielberg may be free to take Indiana Jones in place that are not horrible!

Whatever story Koepp writes, it will have to address the advancing age of Indy. Ford will be 77 years old when the film is released and despite Spielberg’s assertion that, “There is only going to be one actor playing Indiana Jones and that’s Harrison Ford,” at some point they’re going to have to plan for life without the classic actor. One idea we have proposed in the past is a variation on the legacyquel that would have Ford as Indy bookending the movie and flashing back to a time in the 1930s with a younger actor (Chris Pratt or Bradley Cooper or whoever) starring as Indiana Jones. They can even explain away the lack of resemblance as Indy’s recollection of being handsome. One way or another, you’d have to expect this movie to bridge the gap between the young and old. How they do it remains to be seen.

Indiana Jones 5 is set to open in theaters on July 19, 2019.

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