The "Indiana Jones" franchise is moving forward with a fifth film, but while Harrison Ford has been confirmed to reprise his iconic role in "Indiana Jones 5," it is speculated that Shia LaBeouf will not following a recent interview with Variety in which the latter slammed director Steven Spielberg.
"You're meeting a different Spielberg, who is in a different stage in his career. He's less a director than he is a [expletive] company," the actor stated. "Everything has been so meticulously planned. You got to get this line out in 37 seconds. You do that for five years, you start to feel like not knowing what you're doing for a living."
He also explained that he did not like any of the movies he made with Spielberg except for the first "Transformers" movie.
It is pointed out that in all of these films Spielberg only served as an executive producer for them except for one, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." Spielberg is a producer for the "Transformers" films and for LaBeouf's other projects such as "Eagle Eye" and "Disturbia."
LaBeouf portrayed Indiana Jones' (Harrison Ford) son, Mutt, in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and it was hinted back then that the franchise might move on and focus on Mutt as the main character. However, the film was poorly received and any plans for an immediate sequel with Shia LaBeouf were canned.
Should LaBeouf be absent from the next film it is possible that he will be referenced but not shown or the studios may simply opt to recast the character with a different actor. It is also in the realm of possibilities that LaBeouf will still be hired to work with Spielberg and reprise his role in the film.
"Indiana Jones 5" will release on July 19, 2019.
