Indiana Jones: Harrison Ford is not in it – who stars in the Disney+ series?

• “Indiana Jones” is coming back and in a double pack, with a new film and its own series.
• However, Harrison Ford will not play the role of the hero of the same name in the show planned by Disney+.
• Could an old companion of Indy take on the role of adventurer?

Fans of the courageous adventurer have had good reason to be happy in recent months. Not only has a new “Indiana Jones” movie starring Harrison Ford been announced, but also a completely separate series on Disney+. But there’s a slight setback, as Ford won’t be stepping into his starring role for the Disney+ production.

Although the Indiana Jones Disney+ series bears the name of the title character, James Mangold, the director of Indiana Jones and the Call of Fate, announced on Twitter that Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones will not appear in the Disney+ show. Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who plays Indy’s goddaughter Helena in the fifth film, will also not be there.

However, that doesn’t mean that Indy won’t appear in the new series at all. It is quite possible that the series follows a much younger version of the hero. As the franchise proves with the Indiana Jones 5, there is interest in telling the adventurer’s early history. Lead actor Harrison Ford has been significantly rejuvenated for the upcoming film.

That would also explain why Helena doesn’t appear in the series. Nevertheless, a younger actor for Indy is rather out of the question. If that were the case, then the new young Indy would already have been introduced in the new film and Ford’s appearance would not have been extensively changed with CGI.

Who could become the new Indiana Jones?

It seems like we’re going to have to embark on a new adventurer for the Disney+ series. It is quite possible that one of Indy’s companions will take over his position in the future.

In “Indiana Jones and the Call of Fate,” Shaunette Renée Wilson plays a previously uncharacterized government agent who could easily be made into a new heroine. Indy’s previously unknown friend and Helena’s father would also be a potential new series star.

Characters from older films would also be possible candidates for the Disney+ series. Ke Huy Quan, better known as Short Round, Shorty for short, from “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” is particularly popular.

After a career break of almost 20 years, the actor celebrated his comeback with the film “Everything Everywhere All At Once”. The series could follow an adult shorty as he has his own adventures, in the spirit of his mentor.

Already with Shia LaBeouf as Mutt Williams in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” one had tried to replace Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones. At that time it had worked rather moderately, with the series one could take up this attempt again.

While there are many ways to replace Ford as Indy, Disney’s proposition is still risky. The great success of the film series can be attributed to a large extent to the charismatic main actor himself. Finding a suitable replacement is almost impossible.

If there’s any truth to the rumors of Shorty’s return, then the Disney+ series might have a good chance of working after all. After all, Shorty was already a popular character in “Temple of Doom”, unlike LaBeouf’s Mutt Willams.