The fifth Indiana Jones film, ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinty’ hasn’t even been officially released yet, and the actress playing Helena Shaw is already discussing that character’s possible future. Many fans have been worried that Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character would replace Indiana Jones. While it’s been made clear that no one else would play Indi outside of Harrison Ford, spin-off films aren’t off the table. Especially given Disney’s tendency to overmilk every franchise they own.
The Indiana Jones 5 director James Mangold said he refuses to spin off Helena into more films. But I don’t think he gets to make that decision. Steven Spielberg has also said they would not replace Indiana Jones, but that doesn’t mean he won’t go along with new films for Waller-Bridge.
However, Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy and now Waller-Bridge have both made comments suggesting Helena could return in more films.
Speaking to Variety, Kennedy said it was “entirely possible” that a Helena film could happen but added “We’re not having any of those conversations right now. We’re just focused on finishing this with Harrison.”
Now Phoebe Waller-Bridge has just sent out a fishing line to Vanity Fair saying:
“There’s no replacing Indiana Jones in any way. But I feel like the character herself—she did feel fresh on the page, and there is a sense of, is there room in the world for someone like this? So I do think there’s room for a slightly clumsier, bruised, limping female action star, maybe, in the future.”
The question now is, will audiences and Disney agree?
Right now, the fifth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise is headed for a $60-$70 million opening. Some even project it as high as $102 million. If it can indeed pull big numbers, there might be a spin-off ordered.
While possible, I think audiences are getting tired of new films with female versions of (insert famous male character.) We’ve seen it with James Bond, Luke Skywalker, Ghostbusters, the Terminator, and more. For many, the gimmick is getting old. People are tired of being called “misogynistic” if they want new female characters and not replacements for iconic male characters.
It will all likely depend on how ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ performs in the next few weeks.
What do you think? Comment and let us know!
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