Empire has confirmed that James Mangold is incorporating de-aging technology to take fans back to the earlier days of our favorite Nazi-beating hero!
No Indiana Jones flick is complete without a show stopping opening sequence. Given that George Lucas and Steven Spielberg pulled inspiration from none other than James Bond, whose stories always begin with a tone-setting opener, it would only make sense for James Mangold to continue the tradition by putting a unique spin on the tried and true formula!
It has now been revealed that Harrison Ford will have the clock wound back, appearing as his younger version of Henry Jones Jr. from the 1940's!
Empire magazine got the scoop on how Mangold will jump start us right into the world of Indiana Jones… by de-aging Harrison Ford to take us right back to the time when we first fell in love with the character. Using updated technology that Ford described as a "little spooky." “This is the first time I've seen it where I believe it,” he added.
It sounds like the plan is to give us enough of the old school to hook us before taking us into the '60s. When asked what motivated the filmmakers to begin the movie with a flashback, Mangold had this to say.
"So that the audience doesn’t experience the change between the ‘40s and ‘60s as an intellectual conceit, but literally experiences the buccaneering spirit of those early days… and then the beginning of now. I wanted the chance to dive into this kind of full-on George-and-Steven old picture and give the audience an adrenaline blast!”
There have been a number of examples in recent memory that have used this technology. Comic book movies have de-aged the likes of Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas in the Ant-Man films, while Arnold Schwarzenegger has been de-aged on at least three occasions.
The technique has not come without critics or controversy, however. Will Smith's Gemini Man, as well as Carrie Fisher's appearance in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker are both examples of what most fans do not want to see.
The earliest significant example was in X-Men: The Last Stand. Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen appear as their characters Charles Xavier and Magneto through flashbacks as they try to recruit a pre-teen Jean Grey. While the technology has always been impressive, we may be approaching the point where no real difference can be observed to even more critical fans.
With Bruce Willis recently selling the rights to his likeness, can we hope technology is about to give us another John McClane story? it It seems as if fans are split on whether or not this is an opportunity to get more time with the heroes of our childhood, or a cheap money grab that will never be able to fully recreate the cinematic experience of seeing these films made with the original actors in their prime?
Do you like the idea of using technology to take us back to the golden era of the coolest archaeologist to crack a whip? What type of adventure are you hoping for? What other characters of yesterday would you be excited to see?
Share your thoughts in the comments section below!