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The 'new' Indiana Jones 5 director quashes big Star Wars rumour

James Mangold may well be working on Indy but, he's not doing Star Wars.

The 'new' Indiana Jones 5 director quashes big Star Wars rumour

By Marc Chacksfield

29 February 2020

The biggest of big movie news broke recently: it looks like Steve Spielberg is out as the director of Indiana Jones 5. There has never been an Indiana Jones movie without Spielberg at the helm, so the thought of one without him is, well, not a good one.

But, the proposed new director is one of the best around. James Mangold was last seen directing Ford Versus Ferrari (Le Mans 66 in the UK), a brilliant heartfelt car movie based on a true story - you can read our interview with Mangold about the movie. He also directed the fantastic Cop Land, Walk The Line and the two best Wolverine movies.

Hugh Jackman reckons it's "a travesty" he's never won a Best Director Oscar and we would have to agree.

If Mangold does end up directing the new Indiana Jones, then he is a damn fine choice but is he Disney material, given Disney now owns the Indiana Jones rights?

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Well, earlier this week there was a new report that he is part of a big-name roster of directors who have been working on Disney Plus' The Mandalorian: Season 2.

According to ScreenRant, Mangold was set to direct some of the Star Wars TV show, as is Robert Rodriguez and Bryce Dallas Howard is returning to direct.

Mangold took Twitter, however, to speak Hollywood director Ron Howard and dad to Bryce-Dallas about the rumor and stated it wasn't actually true, explaining: "I'm so pleased if it's true about Bryce directing another part of Mandalorian, but I can tell you its [sic] not true about me. Not doing it, never discussed it."

Hey Ron. I'm so pleased if it's true about Bryce directing another part of Mandalorian, but I can tell you its not true about me. Not doing it, never discussed it. And I suggest fans should look at who's "reporting" this & make a note that these sites present conjecture as fact.
— Mangold (@mang0ld) February 29, 2020

The Mandalorian Season 2 release date is October so there is still some time to wait for more Mandalorian goodness, but the UK is set to get Disney Plus March 23rd - where they will be able to get a weekly fix of the show.

As for Indiana Jones 5, Mangold has neither denied or confirmed this one, but we reckon there will be an announcement on this very soon.