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Lucas Researching Concept For New Indiana Jones Film 272

Cycon writes "According to George Lucas, 'The franchise really depends on me coming up with a good idea. And that series is very research-intensive. So we're doing research now to see if we can't come up with another object for him to chase ... hopefully we'll come up with something.' Lucas 'scoffed at the possibility of passing the famed fedora from Ford to Shia LaBeouf,' instead stating, 'if [Harrison Ford] wasn't in it, you'd have to call it "Mutt Williams and the search for Elvis."'"
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Lucas Researching Concept For New Indiana Jones Film

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  • by beh ( 4759 ) * on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:12AM (#24535917)

    There's plenty he could be going after:

    Indiana Jones and the Clump Of Dark Matter [slashdot.org]

    Indiana Jones and the RIAA lawsuit about him touching the Ark Of The Covenant (without seeking prior license from the Vatican) ...?

  • It has to be some kind of magical totem that will resurrect the desiccated corpse of the franchise.
  • I know (Score:3, Funny)

    by twatter ( 867120 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:22AM (#24535947)

    How about introducing a strange new character that behaves in an obnoxious way, speaks in unintelligible patois and causes everyone to flinch whenever he's onscreen. He could be called Shortstop Bingo and be Indy's trusty right-hand fuck up.

    Surely this would totally enhance the franchise.

    • by EdIII ( 1114411 ) *

      I sincerely hope you are not making fun of the little kid in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. You must be making some sort of sarcastic obscure reference to Jar-Jar "WTF" Binks.

      Otherwise prepare for an ass wooping :) I mean come on, he played Data, AKA "Booby-Twap" in The Goonies. How could you not love that?

      In fact, screw Jar-Jar. You could replace him and put Data in the Phantom Menace and it would be an even better movie.

    • With the exception of the mine cart chase and the rope bridge fight, Short Round was the only good thing about Temple of Doom.

      • by mcvos ( 645701 )

        With the exception of the mine cart chase and the rope bridge fight, Short Round was the only good thing about Temple of Doom.

        You're kidding me, rgiht? Temple of Doom had the two worst sidekicks ever. Even apart from the mine cart chanse and the rope bridge fight, the movie has its moments, but those were mostly the ones without Short Round in it.

        I particularly really like the opening scene a lot.

  • by mcvos ( 645701 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:23AM (#24535949)

    Lucas 'scoffed at the possibility of passing the famed fedora from Ford to Shia LaBeouf,' instead stating, 'if [Harrison Ford] wasn't in it, you'd have to call it "Mutt Williams and the search for Elvis."'

    I think Lucas missed an opportunity to turn Indiana Jones into a James Bond-like franchise. Some months ago I read that it was originally sold as "James Bond with nazis and ancient treasures", and I think it would have been a great idea to keep it perpetually in a pre-WW2 setting with nazis and zeppelins, and replace the main actor if he gets too old.

    Although ofcourse no other Indiana Jones could ever compare to Harrison Ford.

    • by OzRoy ( 602691 )

      I remember when I first saw Last Cruisade at the cinema. I was only 12 at the time and I got really confused by the bit at the beginning. I thought they had done exactly what you said and replaced Harrison Ford with a new actor.

      • Ah, River Phoenix. Had he lived, he may well have become the next Indy.
        • by OzRoy ( 602691 )

          No I'm talking about the bad guy he got The Hat from. I recognised The Hat, and saw he was digging up stuff so I assumed he was Indy.

          I didn't realise it was a flashback to his childhood.

          • No I'm talking about the bad guy he got The Hat from. I recognised The Hat, and saw he was digging up stuff so I assumed he was Indy.

            I didn't realise it was a flashback to his childhood.

            That was Richard Young [imdb.com] who's been in a ton of stuff, including "The Ice Pirates". You're right, he would have made a good Indy.

            That's what Lucas should do is cast relatively unknowns (i.e. not big stars) and do a James Bond thing - as everyone else has suggested. Ford wasn't a big star when he was cast as Indy.

            • by mcvos ( 645701 )

              That's what Lucas should do is cast relatively unknowns (i.e. not big stars) and do a James Bond thing - as everyone else has suggested. Ford wasn't a big star when he was cast as Indy.

              Originally he wanted Tom Selleck (Magnum PI) for the role. I'm glad they ended up with Harrison Ford.

            • Then we would have to endure the Indy cycle as well as hte Bond cycle.

              The bond cycle for those who don't know, is where they start of with a good film, then then add more gadgets and stupid stunts to outdo the last one, this continues until you get a piece of shit like Moonraker or Die Another Day. Then they decide they have to go back to basics and restart the Bond cycle (usually with a new actor) with something like Goldeneye, or Casino Royale, where it's actually based on the character of Bond rat
            • Ford wasn't a big star when he was cast as Indy.

              How old are you? Or, what planet are you from? Harrison had already done two of the three Star Wars films and a couple other things that were very popular, even at that time. He was very well known. [imdb.com]

              Hint:

              • American Graffiti: 1973
              • Apocalypse Now: 1979
              • Star Wars IV: 1977
              • Star Wars V: 1979
              • Raiders of the Lost Ark: 1981
    • To do the James Bond thing he would have had to have kept making films, not leave it this long between movies.

      They were a product of a different age anyway, time was the a new James Bond film was a cause for national celebration. Now if one is released its just another action flick, people simply don't care as much.

      The only reason studios are interested in getting a James Bond type thing going is the potential product placement revenue such a popular series would generate.

       

      • by mcvos ( 645701 )

        To do the James Bond thing he would have had to have kept making films, not leave it this long between movies.

        Exactly. That was the missed opportunity, IMO. But I admit I didn't realise this until I heard the new movie played in the '50s with commies instead of nazis.

        They were a product of a different age anyway, time was the a new James Bond film was a cause for national celebration. Now if one is released its just another action flick, people simply don't care as much.

        Nowadays it's a new Star Wars that's cause for national celebration, it seems. The new Indy got quite a lot of press too.

        The only reason studios are interested in getting a James Bond type thing going is the potential product placement revenue such a popular series would generate.

        If it's such a popular series, wouldn't they be interested in it anyway? The product placement is just a nice bonus.

    • I think Lucas missed an opportunity to turn Indiana Jones into a James Bond-like franchise.

      I believe that was the idea when Clive Cussler's Sahara was adapted to the big screen.

      As I understand it there was a desire to turn Dirk Pitt into a brand new big screen hero, as a combination of James Bond and Indiana Jones, hence the tag line,

      "Dirk Pitt. Adventure has a new name"

      However, the film was a box office bomb and nothing else came of it.

      It probably didn't help matters that Clive Cussler himself attempted to torpedo the franchise.

      But, in fairness to him, he did request to approve the script and th

      • by mcvos ( 645701 )

        I believe that was the idea when Clive Cussler's Sahara was adapted to the big screen.

        As I understand it there was a desire to turn Dirk Pitt into a brand new big screen hero, as a combination of James Bond and Indiana Jones, hence the tag line,

        "Dirk Pitt. Adventure has a new name"

        I've never heard of any of these.

        However, the film was a box office bomb and nothing else came of it.

        That explains it then. Was it any good at all?

      • Well, there was Raise The Titanic in 1980, the first Cussler/Pitt cinematic foray. Raise your hands if you remember that one. The book was a hit, the film wasn't.
        With the notable exception of Hunt For Red October, underwater sagas do not perform well at the box office. Remember The Abyss and Waterworld.

  • Pffffft.... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by VE3OGG ( 1034632 ) <`VE3OGG' `at' `rac.ca'> on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:26AM (#24535955)

    Lucas whining about "research" is laughable.

    Granted, Raiders of the Lost Ark had some interesting stories in it, and did at least deal with some research, but I would say the amount of true "research" in Indiana Jones films has been dropping geometrically.

    Indeed, The Last Crusade, other then repeating the Romantic-era story about the grail that so many people already knew, gave no new information and instead focused on the relationship between Indy and his father.

    And Crystal Skull -- from what people have told me about it is even worse. Dealing with a completely fictional back story that doesn't represent anything presently known about the crystal skulls, nor anything that is written about widely in popular paranormal literature.

    No one is saying that Indiana Jones isn't a fabulous example of those serial movies from the 40s and 50s, but I am arguing that the amount of research is mind-numbingly small.

    And who here thinks that this statement:

    "The franchise really depends on me"

    Isn't just a bit egotistical... *cough*Phantom Menace*cough*

    • by 1u3hr ( 530656 )
      "Research"??? At least he's being honest, it's obvious he doesn't have the ability now, if he ever did, to create a story that isn't a rehash. Problem is he isn't rehashing imaginative stuff by good writers, as he did in his early movies, but third-generation self-plagiarism. He should stick to marketing action figures and hand over the creative reins to someone who hasn't disappeared up their own asshole.
    • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

      by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @06:51AM (#24536255)
      Comment removed based on user account deletion
      • In Lucas' mind, his movies are the only ones that exist. Never mind that Star Wars was The Hidden Fortress [imdb.com]. If you listen to his commentary on these recent movies (I've made a huge mistake,) he's including homage to his own earlier movies.

        As such, there are only about 10 movies to watch in the entire history of film. So we clearly need more.

      • Re:Pffffft.... (Score:5, Insightful)

        by c ( 8461 ) <beauregardcp@gmail.com> on Saturday August 09, 2008 @08:54AM (#24536659)

        > Seriously WTH is Lucas thinking, either come up with some new ideas or
        > sit on your money and quietly retire.

        If you kept coming up with stupid ideas, lousy plots, terrible actors, and every nerd on the planet still paid money to see it (often multiple times), do you think maybe you'd be getting a bit of a mixed message? What, is he supposed to listen to critics? If half your "fan base" consisted of people like "Comic Book Guy", you'd probably learn to ignore them pretty quickly.

        If you don't like Lucas' stuff, stop giving him your money.

        c.

      • by Narpak ( 961733 )
        I expect he just want to keep seeing his name in lights, and have magazines interview him.
    • > Lucas whining about "research" is laughable...

      I guess searching 'The Google' on the 'Internets' which cars are right for the era can be called 'research'.

  • Shit (Score:5, Insightful)

    by RinzeWind ( 413873 ) <chema AT rinzewind DOT org> on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:38AM (#24536011) Homepage

    The franchise really depends on me coming up with a good idea

    We're fucked.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by mikelieman ( 35628 )

      The franchise is DEAD. This last iteration, "Indiana Jones and the Crystal McGuffin" put a bullet in it.

      George, STOP LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE TELLING YOU THAT YOU'RE GOOD.

      They're lying to you.

      Your last good idea you had was hiring Irvin Kershner and Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan for Empire.

      • No, we aren't. Sorry if you don't agree, but I quite enjoyed his newer work, as well as his older. Hell, Episode 3 was the crowning achievement in the Star Wars saga, what with having an actual interesting plot and all.
      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        Actually, from what I understand, Ford signed up for 5 movies in his original contract. There was a massive delay between #3 and #4 because Lucas was insistent on doing one with aliens, and Ford kept balking at the script (justifiably so, imho). They finally found a script that was tolerable, considering the plot concept, and it got made. But Ford is still signed up for one more movie. So, regardless of people telling Lucas that he's good or not, there's one more movie to be made, according to the contr
  • And The Raiders of the Lost Death Star? Temple of the Lost Jedi? Last Strike of the Empire?
  • ... but "Mutt Williams and the search for Elvis" seems like it could be ok.
  • Indiana Jones and The Quest to Regain His Dignity...

    Or why don't we just cut right to the chase to keep this franchise going another 20 years:

    That Kid From Transformers and Indiana Jones
  • by iapetus ( 24050 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @05:40AM (#24536025) Homepage

    Indiana Jones and the Still Beating Heart of George Lucas

    Seriously, if the franchise really depends on Lucas coming up with a good idea, they might as well call it a day right now.

  • We could call the new film "Indiana Jones: A Bridge Too Far". It describes Indiana going to Europe in search of a decent Lucas script, but Indiana pushed so far and fast across Europe he got bogged down in Arnhem (he forgot his whip), his lackey cannot help Indy because he can't land because of fog. Indiana meets intense local opposition saying "enough of the franchises and rubbish scripts." So Indiana gets beaten back and returns home empty handed.

    The film will later be re-released in THX certified, ultra-

  • Indiana Jones and the Search for the Giant Goiter

  • Incredibly lame (Score:3, Insightful)

    by HEbGb ( 6544 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @06:24AM (#24536171)

    Lucas is going to completely destroy the franchise, just like he did with Star Wars. Clearly he has no new ideas whatsoever, as he's prefer to spend his energy squeezing every drop of life out of a one-successful brand rather than continue to create new quality films. He should be ashamed of himself.

    • a movie based on a video game that was based on a movie that was based on a movie serial from the 40's (IIRC) that was based on pulp fiction novels...phew! Wouldn't that suffer from idea degeneration? - like making a copy of a copy of a copy of a ....
  • Subject (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Legion303 ( 97901 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @06:43AM (#24536235) Homepage

    "The franchise really depends on me coming up with a good idea."

    George Lucas hasn't had a good idea since about 1982. Well, I guess not passing the fedora to Shia LaBeouf would be a good idea if Lucas had given the correct reason for it: Shia can't act.

  • by PietjeJantje ( 917584 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @07:05AM (#24536291)
    Following the big financial success of Indy IV, Lucas has decided to further pursue the theme of self parodying absurdities.
    Mel Brooks has been cast as the new Indy. Rick Moranis is close to being signed as the new bad guy.
    Work title: Indiana Jones and The Power of The Schwartz.
    • by Cylix ( 55374 )

      I like it...

      Except replace brooks with Mel Gibson, make him an escaped mental patient who thinks he is a cop and make Rick Moranis his weak willed therapist trying to bring him back!

      Mel Gibson believes himself to be a cop is trying to solve a case.

      Then twist it up and make him right and then make it a semi-action flick. (Mel Gibson still being insane and not a cop.)

  • Indiana Jones and the Portal of Tatooine

    "Dr. Jones discovers the lost continent of Atlantis, containing a portal that jarringly thrusts him backwards though time, to a land far far away. After pooling resources with a seemingly kind hearted philanthropist by the name of palpatine, they leverage indi's scientific earth-knowledge of stem cells to construct a device that elicits a rapid growth in users midi-chlorian count. After mysteriously falling into the wrong hands, it becomes predictably obvious that the

  • Because lets face it, the guy hasn't come up with a good idea in quite some time.
  • For George, researching a movie means researching the copy protection for the movie.

  • Fate of Atlantis (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward

    To anyone who's played Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, why don't/didn't they make that into a movie? Thought the story line was great and would have made a watchable movie.

  • come on guys! (Score:2, Insightful)

    by ramul ( 1103299 )
    george lucas' attitude makes for unintentional humour sometimes if you ask me

    eg anakin and his bitch rolling around in field of grass . ahhh, heartwarming

  • by voss ( 52565 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @09:23AM (#24536809)

    711 million worldwide box office.

    Harrison Ford looked pretty good in the current film, I think they were just let down by the script and the film still did well.

    The main problem for any sequel with the current film is that it gave indy his happy ending, theres nowhere to go with the character....

  • When we saw "Pet Sematary" at a horror movie marathon, we were all getting a bit tired, so the comments flew fast. A major line in the film, referring to a spot of ground with the ability to resurrect pets buried in't (but it brings them back...wrong), was "Anyone ever bury a person up there?"

    When, in the film, a truck crashed and totalled, , someone yelled out, "Anyone ever bury a truck up there?" I forget if it were I or my dear who shouted, "Anyone ever bury a script up there?

    "Anyone ever bury a fran

  • According to George Lucas, 'The franchise really depends on me coming up with a good idea.

    Lucas hasn't had a good idea in decades so there is no fear that he'll produce another one of his cinematic abortions.

  • by grumling ( 94709 ) on Saturday August 09, 2008 @10:23AM (#24537099) Homepage

    ' Lucas 'scoffed at the possibility of passing the famed fedora from Ford to Shia LaBeouf,'

    Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth.

    After all, Harrison Ford is eligible for Medicare as of last year.

  • Top Ten Indiana Jones Sequel Pitches

    10. Indiana Jones and the Hernia of Doom
    9. Indiana Jones and the Island of Liver Spots
    8. Raiders of the Golden Medicine Cabinet
    7. Indiana Jones and the Crystal Kidney Stones
    6. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Fallen Arches
    5. Raiders of the Lost Car Keys
    4. Indiana Jones and the Wife Nearly Half His Age
    3. Indiana Jones and Pirates of Rehash Reef
    2. Raiders of the CG Lagoon
    And the number one Indiana Jones Sequel...
    1. Indiana Jones and th- Hey You Kids Get off My Law

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