Harrison Ford, 80; John Williams, 91, defy aging limits for ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’
MANILA, Philippines — The stunts 80-year-old Harrison Ford did himself and the original musical score of 91-year-old John Williams are among those that inspire the viewers of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.”
Truly, the film franchise’s lead actor and musical scorer have defied the limits of their age as can be seen in this new blockbuster now showing in theaters nationwide.
Williams, who scored each Indy adventure since the original “Raiders of the Lost Ark” in 1981, has once again composed the score for “Dial of Destiny.”
Lucasfilm has earlier released a feature trailer highlighting Ford’s commitment in performing his own deadly stunts.
“Harrison wants everything to be real,” producer Kathleen Kennedy said in the trailer, which showed Ford riding a motorcycle over a cliff, scuba diving in great depths, caught in between gun fights and riding a horse against a moving train, among others.
“It’s gonna hurt, but he’s gonna do it anyway,” added director James Mangold in the trailer.
“Action is an essential element of what an Indiana Jones film is. Our goal was to do as much as we could for real.”
"When you're able to keep it real, that feels more visceral for the audience," Ford said in the featurette.
Interestingly, another top reason to watch “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is Ford’s de-aging.
Mangold said Ford was de-aged to look 35 years old in the fifth and final installment of the “Indiana Jones” film franchise. The opening sequence with the 35-year-old Indy is believed to be among the longest footage for a de-aged actor at 25 minutes, as reports said computer-generated imagery (CGI) of de-aged actors in such films like “The Flash,” “Star Wars” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” were not as long.
"Harrison still has that brash Indy attitude," executive producer Steven Spielberg said in the trailer.
To welcome the final Indy installment to cinemas, a premiere event was held at Ayala Malls Vertis North last June 25. Die-hard fans, along with people new to the franchise, enjoyed the Indiana Jones-themed cave photo wall, making them feel like a part of Indy’s adventures. Fans and guests also dressed up as their favorite Indiana Jones characters and enjoyed a string quartet performance of the film's iconic theme song to set the mood even better.
In Lucasfilm’s “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” Ford returns to the role of the hero archaeologist, donning his iconic fedora, leather jacket, and trusty whip one more time in search of one of the most valuable treasures.
After a lifetime’s worth of adventures, Indy is ready to live a retired life away from adventure. But his plans changed after a surprise visit from goddaughter Helena Shaw. She seeks Dr. Jones’ help to search for the Archimedes Dial, a mysterious artifact that can manipulate time. After Helena steals the dial to sell it to the highest bidder, Jones has to prevent it from getting into the wrong hands. This leads him to another journey where he meets old friends, and an old nemesis Jürgen Voller, a former Nazi who wants the Archimedes Dial to help him change the course of world history.
Starring alongside Ford are Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Helena, Antonio Banderas, John Rhys-Davies, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Thomas Kretschmann, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook, Olivier Richters, Ethann Isidore, and Mads Mikkelsen.
“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is written by Jez Butterworth & John-Henry Butterworth and David Koepp and Mangold. Based on characters created by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman, the film is produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Simon Emanuel, with Spielberg and George Lucas serving as executive producers.
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