3 Things We Already Know About The Recently Announced 'Indiana Jones 5'

The Internet is ablaze with excitement after the news dropped that Harrison Ford will be reprising his role as Indiana Jones in a fifth movie, to be released in 2019. We don't know much — enough to get excited! — but Disney has actually told us a lot more than it perhaps realizes. Check out three things we already know about the upcoming Indiana Jones 5.

1. This Isn't A Reboot

With the exception of The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, the Indiana Jones films starred a much younger Harrison Ford. The temptation must have been very real to reboot the franchise, to hire a new actor to play the iconic role, and to feature a young Indiana Jones once again. Instead, Disney is keeping Ford and, by extension, the continuity that fans know and love. It means that Ford will be 77 when the as-yet-untitled film is released.

2. Disney Is Choosing To Honor The Originals

In keeping with the fact that it's not a reboot, Disney has brought together the classic Indiana Jones team — with the exception of George Lucas; Harrison Ford is on board, as is Steven Spielberg. "It’s rare to have such a perfect combination of director, producers, actor and role," said Disney chairman Alan Horn, "and we couldn’t be more excited to embark on this adventure with Harrison and Steven.”

As with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Disney is intending this to carry the same spirit and tone as the originals.

3. The Goal Will Be To Restore The Franchise

The George Lucas-penned The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull did real damage to the Indiana Jones franchise, and it's telling that Disney only turned back to the archaeologist once its Star Wars relaunch had proven successful. Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012 and wasted no time setting out its vision for Star Wars — that was the priority. But Disney doesn't intend to waste any of the $4.05 billion it paid for Lucasfilm and its goal with this new Indiana Jones film would be to reverse the damage done by Lucas to his own creation.

That's why George Lucas isn't involved. Although Indiana Jones was his baby, his more recent decisions — the Star Wars prequels, or his return to Indiana Jones in The Crystal Skull — have left many questioning his judgment. Disney wasn't interested in Lucas's ideas for Star Wars and the same seems true for Indiana Jones.

Because Disney is focused on building a new franchise, the reality is that we can expect there to be other vitally important roles in this film — namely, new actors and actresses who can carry the franchise onward.

Given the fact that Disney has done such a good job with Star Wars, I'm pretty excited to see where they go next!