James Mangold recently shared how the final scene in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny came together and it contradicts recent comments made by Harrison Ford.
Mangold’s latest comments come after he previously claimed that composer John Williams was “misinformed” when he revealed that the film would be shooting another ending.
Back in December Williams addressed a number of concert goers telling them, “Here are three pieces from Indiana Jones 5. I felt we would be finished with Indiana Jones after four. You know Harrison Ford. You all know who Harrison Ford is. And Harrison is 78 years old, but he’s much younger than I am. Well, I thought, ‘Aw if he can do five of them, I have to try to do the final five also.”
He then states, “So, we have just about completed the film. We have maybe another ending to shoot and to record. Maybe in a couple weeks.”
Last night, John Williams told his audience that they are shooting a new ending to Indiana Jones V in a couple weeks.
Thanks to @doomcock for the find. Added captions for you.@wdwpro1 @ValliantRenegad pic.twitter.com/FZUOpjOpX7
— Jonas J. Campbell (@JonasJCampbell) December 14, 2022
Mangold reacted to Williams’ comments writing on Twitter, “John was mistaken. Maybe read Twitter too much.”
He then reiterated, “We’re not shooting new endings. Never did. The film is 99% finished & being rated by MPAA.”
“This imagined zany ending w/ Indy being erased & replaced is a fever dream of wounded folks angry about other films I did not make,” Mangold concluded.
When asked for further clarification on Williams’ comments, Mangold answered, “Joking, mistaken or misinformed. Not happening.”
However, he would then claim that Williams was “fully informed” in another response.
Mangold wrote, “I agree that he’s one of the greatest composers in the history of film. And also one of the most lovely people on earth. And he’s fully informed.”
Mangold would later reiterate that Williams “was mistaken.”
Now, speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Mangold revealed that the ending to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny was something he and Lucasfilm shot “pretty early.”
Mangold told the outlet, “Yeah, Jez and John Henry [Butterworth] came up with that. When we came up with the idea of Marion coming back at the end, that idea came to Jez and John Henry pretty early and was pretty brilliant.”
“And we shot it pretty early, because we shot Karen’s scenes in the second or third month of production, and the power of her coming in really landed,” Mangold relayed. “I mean, it landed more when I could see the whole journey in getting to that scene and bringing those two together.”
He concluded, “But Karen literally came to set and worked two days. She landed and just dropped in, and the chemistry between her and Harrison was, of course, immediate. It’s something they had developed over many years.”
However, Mangold’s comments fly in the face of recent remarks made by Harrison Ford. Speaking with Spanish-language outlet Espinof, Ford said, “We did a little work on the ending, which is the last thing I shot with Karen Allen, who has been in a substantial part of the whole thing, but appears in this story only briefly, at the end, but with a very strong, emotional hook. I felt nostalgia, a sense of accomplishment. I’m proud of the film, happy with the film.”
“Every good thing, you know, there comes a right time to go on to something else. I really enjoyed the process of making this film. I’m very happy with it. So I left the set that day content,” Ford concluded.
Indiana Jones: ¿Qué fue lo último que rodó Harrison Ford como Indiana Jones? pic.twitter.com/XR9qnc3grj
— Espinof (@espinof_com) June 13, 2023
Clearly, shooting it “pretty early” and “the last thing I shot” don’t really add up.
What do you make of Mangold’s narrative about how the ending of the film was shot?