Harrison Ford will be nearly 80 years old by the time Indiana Jones 5 hits theaters, but just because Indy is up there in years that doesn't mean he can't deliver a worthwhile performance. The whip-wielding, vehicle-jumping, swashbuckling archeologist is famed for his acts of derring-do, but almost four decades after Indy's debut, it stands to question whether he can fulfill these seemingly requisite duties of the job. Fortunately for director James Mangold and company, Harrison Ford has proven an ability to come through with interesting aged takes on familiar characters. And he already has a solid example to follow from within the Indy franchise itself.
In 1978, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and Larry Kasdan convened to discuss an idea for what would become the Indiana Jones franchise, specifically Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Fundamental to the concept was the notion that the film be comprised of "cliffhanger situations" daisy-chained together every ten minutes or so, steadily increasing in intensity until a climax. Action was baked into the Indy formula, and throughout the 1980s, Harrison Ford was more than equal to the challenge. In 2008, however, when Spielberg revived the franchise with the much-maligned Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, it became clear that Indiana was getting too old for his usual antics. And now, with Indy approaching octogenarian status in his fifth feature, audiences must again consider his age in relation to his character.
While an old Indy may not be able to swing on a vine or make daring leaps across chasms, his character still has much to offer in his twilight years. After all, Indy is, first and foremost, an academic. His archeological and anthropological appreciation can shine through in any situation he and his band of allies may find themselves. While his ability with a whip may have declined, his handiness with a handgun is surely in-tact. Some of Indy's finest moments involve him merely operating machinery, whether he's shooting a swordsman or mowing down a heavy with an airplane propeller. And of course, his debonair has only improved with the years. Indiana Jones was conceived as a pseudo-Bond film. and his dashing young adventurer has ripened into an alluring silver fox in more recent iterations.
Of course, many of these cues can be found in the third Indy film Indiana Jones an the Last Crusade (1989), in which Indy's father Henry, Sr. (Sean Connery) plots out the perfect course for his son to follow in his own twilight years. By tagging along for the titular adventure, Indy's dad demonstrates a love for anthropology, an ability to use objects around him in an intelligent and efficient manner when dispensing with enemies, and an effortless charm. Being a more worldly man, experienced in whip, plane, and fist combat among other methods, an aged Indy may not be quite so hapless as was his father in certain circumstances, but no less ingenious.
And Ford himself is no stranger to bringing his classic characters into new films, playing them with the added dimension of their additional years. In Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), he manages to keep up with all the various firefights as an older Han Solo, worn with age and heartbreak (though it does bear mentioning that Ford broke his foot on set after it was caught in a hydraulic door, and production was suspended for two weeks while he recovered). His performance in Blade Runner 2049 (2017) similarly brings his classic character - in this case, Rick Deckard - into a new story, his face and mannerisms reflected by years and tragedy, but no less dangerous.
Even with the 40th anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark's release in 2021, Harrison Ford is ready to return to the famed fedora once more. He need only follow the late Sir Connery's example in Last Crusade, as well as his own experience bringing Solo and Deckard into their twilight years, to successfully see an aged Indy through to success in Indiana Jones 5. No matter the surrounding factors, fans can rest assured that Ford will deliver, as he has done so reliably time and time again.
