Indiana Jones Series Killed By Disney And It Could Signal The End Of The Franchise?
According to unconfirmed report, Disney has canceled the Indiana Jones spin-off series that was heading to Disney+.
The long rumored Indiana Jones spin-off series which was previously reported to be in production at Disney+ has been canceled, according to Jeff Sneider on a recent episode of The Hot Mic Podcast. The podcast, which is available in full on YouTube, covers the upcoming fifth Indiana Jones film, which is set to star Harrison Ford alongside Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Podcast hosts Sneider and John Rocha explored the potential plot for the now canceled series, as well as the development rumors that led to the series biting the dust.
Apparently the Indiana Jones spinoff series was set to be a prequel, taking place before the events of 1981’s Raiders of the Lost Ark, with a particular focus on Indiana’s mentor, Abner Ravenwood. Ravenwood is a looming presence in the world of Indiana Jones films, but never actually appears on screen, as his character is said to have died before the events of the first film. The series would have marked the second television entry into the franchise after George Lucas’ short lived 1992 series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, which aired for two seasons.
According to IMDb, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles starred Sean Patrick Flanery and Corey Carrier as younger versions of the iconic Harrison Ford played character, with a singular cameo appearance from the legendary Star Wars actor himself. George Hall appeared in the prequel as well, portraying a 93 year old Indiana Jones, not far off from the one we’re likely to see this Summer in Dial of Destiny. With the new adventure set to hit theaters June 30th, this will mark the first theatrical outing from Lucasfilms since 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Things have certainly been shaken up at Disney recently, after a series of behind the scenes corporate moves forced executives across both the Star Wars and Marvel franchises to cancel a number of projects, while investors are expecting a significantly reduced budget across the board from the massive media empire. Disney has recently canceled the fantasy series Willow after one season at Disney+, as well as pumping the brakes on a number of announced Marvel projects before the announcement of the Indiana Jones film going the way of the giant boulder. With recent reports of Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson departing the upcoming Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy helmed Star Wars film, many fans are speculating that this isn’t the end of the cancelation news.
This comes as some surprise as Lucasfilm’s bread and butter with Disney seems to lay in their original Disney+ programming. Series such as The Mandalorian and upcoming shows like Ahsoka, Skeleton Crew, and The Acolyte all seem to tout massive budgets and high yield return on investments, while big name Marvel films such as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania have begun to see diminishing returns. Making the pivot to focus Indiana Jones solely on the box office is an odd move, as the series would likely have scored big with Disney+ subscribers.
Regardless of what’s coming next, we’ll be sure to stay plugged in, with industry insiders such as Jeff Sneider providing us with all the information we need to keep an eye on the future of the franchise. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny marks the fifth film in the series, the first since 2008’s Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and is set to premier in theaters on June 30th.
