Indiana Jones has got a new rumor for the upcoming fifth installment of the long-running franchise. This latest rumor says that there will be a new lead star taking over the spot of Harrison Ford in the future installments, which is something that's no easy feat for the series considering it is named after the titular Indiana Jones.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge was announced as one of the cast members joining Indiana Jones 5 a while back, and now she is also the rumored talent who might be taking over as the lead of the iconic action-adventure franchise. Indiana Jones has always been led by the character of the same name, and now it appears Indiana Jones 5 will be the character's proper exit while also opening the door for the future of the series.

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The report comes from Daily Mail, which claims Waller-Bridge is being tapped to portray a "female version of the fictional professor of archaeology" and take over the franchise afterward. According to the outlet, insiders claim the move is a decision made by Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, who allegedly wants to make big changes to the Indiana Jones franchise. However, Kennedy's spokesman and Disney reportedly declined to comment and did not respond when reached out to, respectively. Ford has been afforded the luxury of being able to see an end to most of his iconic pop culture characters, including both Star Wars' Han Solo and Blade Runner's Rick Deckard. Years before Indiana Jones 5 finally started filming, many were speculating about how to properly hand off the franchise and what it means for the series going forward. The first go-to response was a reboot of the franchise by casting a younger actor.

Indiana Jones 5 Harrison Ford

One idea that the creators might consider is to take notes from the Rocky series by making a film of a different name that's still set in the same universe, so it serves a 'soft reboot' without actually undoing what was done. The Rocky Franchise handled their lead change by changing the name from Rocky to Creed. For those who don't know, Rocky is a popular franchise following the fictional boxer Rocky Balboa, and the film series is now led by Michael B. Jordan in the role of Adonis Creed (son of the famous boxer Apollo Creed). This could be done in a similar way for the Indiana Jones franchise, where the name of -Waller-Bridge's character could be the title of future films.

Waller-Bridge is credited for her work both behind and in front of the camera, working on projects such as Fleabag, the Emmy award-winning Killing Eve, and Crashing. If Indiana Jones were to switch roles, there would be a solid following because they found somebody new and younger who's more capable of doing the stunts required in the film without injury, as happened to Ford on the set of Indiana Jones 5. It also would open up the audience by having a woman lead, as it would attract more than just the fans of the original series.

The story itself is arguably played out for some, but there is still a group of audience members who would like to see the Indiana Jones series laid to rest properly. No matter which way they go, somebody is going to be disappointed because some of the fans want to see the Indiana Jones universe continue. If they end Indiana Jones' story in this movie while leaving the door open for more, then that's the best way to serve both sides of the fence. Rebooting the series isn't a proper move because the stories are viewed as classics amongst film fans.

Indiana Jones 5 is scheduled to be released in theaters on July 29, 2022.

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Source: Daily Mail