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Harrison Ford is embarking on one last ride as Indiana Jones next year thanks to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, one of the more highly-anticipated 2023 movie releases. However, when the archaeologist returns, he won’t be accompanied by his son, Mutt Williams, who was introduced in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. However, it turns out The Dial of Destiny will address Shia LaBeouf’s character, and we’ve also learned more details about a different member of Indy’s family: his goddaughter Helena, played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
It’s no secret that Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull isn’t one of the more beloved entries in the Indiana Jones film series, and Shia LaBeouf’s Mutt Williams was one of the more critiqued aspects of the movie. LaBeouf even shared his dissatisfaction with Kingdom of the Crystal Skull a few years after it came out. Well, back in 2017, it was revealed that Mutt would not appear in Indiana Jones 5, but for those who are curious about the character, director James Mangold informed EW that people seeing The Dial of Destiny will “find out what happened” to him, but the filmmaker wouldn’t divulge any specific information.
This is a broad spectrum to work with concerning Mutt. On the one hand, he was 19 years old in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which took place in 1957, so he’d be 31 in The Dial of Destiny since it takes place in 1969. So it’s possible Mutt’s simply off living his own life elsewhere, forgoing the opportunity to travel with his dad to find treasures and ancient artifacts. On the other hand, perhaps a horrible fate befell Mutt (like dying in the Vietnam War) in between Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and The Dial of Destiny, which in turn affected Indy’s marriage to Karen Allen’s Marion Ravenwood, who may or may not be present in this next movie. One way or another, we’ll learn about Mutt, but whether you like the answer is a different matter.
Turning our attention to Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Helena, who will not be taking over the franchise from Harrison Ford’s character, James Mangold described her as being a “catalyst” for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, adding:
She’s a daughter of a friend of Indy’s, who we will also meet in the movie. Helena’s gotten herself in a bit of trouble, and brings [that] to Indy’s doorstep. She’s a character who’s a wonderful set of contradictions — charming and brilliant, but also a lot of trouble.
While watching the Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny trailer, it’s clear that Helena will be Indy’s main companion throughout the story, with their adventure together involving car chases, exploring trap-filled caves and a lot of bullets. Per James Mangold’s comment though, it’s an event in Helena’s life that thrusts Indy back into action, as opposed to him looping her in on a journey. Furthermore, evidently Helena’s mother/father (maybe both?) is someone new we’ll be meeting in The Dial of Destiny rather than an established character we’ve seen before.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny arrives in theaters on June 30, 2023. While we wait for more details about what to expect from it, stream the previous movies with a Paramount+ subscription.