Movie Trace

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Opens May 22, 2008 | Runtime:

• Indy travels to the lost city of Atlantis.
• Cast: Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent, Shia LaBeouf

• Director: Steven Spielberg

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a 2008 adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a story co-written by executive producer George Lucas. Set in 1957, this fourth film in the Indiana Jones film series pits an older and wiser Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) against agents of the Soviet Union—led by Spalko (Cate Blanchett)—for the crystal skull. Indy is assisted by his former lover Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) as well as the greaser Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) and fellow archaeologist Mac (Ray Winstone). John Hurt and Jim Broadbent also play fellow academics.

The film was in development hell since the 1989 release of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, because Spielberg and Ford initially disagreed over Lucas's choice of the skull as the plot device. Screenwriters Jeb Stuart, Jeffrey Boam, M. Night Shyamalan, Frank Darabont and Jeff Nathanson wrote drafts, before David Koepp's script satisfied all three men. Shooting finally commenced on June 18, 2007, and took place at New Mexico, New Haven, Connecticut, Hawaii, Fresno, California, and soundstages in Los Angeles. In order to keep aesthetic continuity with the previous films, there will be minimal use of computer-generated imagery and more of a reliance on traditional stuntwork, and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski has adapted his style to that of Douglas Slocombe from the previous films.

Marketing will rely heavily on the public's nostalgia for the series, with products taking inspiration from all four films. Anticipation for the film resulted in a legal dispute over an extra violating his non-disclosure agreement, and another man was arrested for stealing a computer containing various documents related to the project. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is scheduled for a worldwide release on May 22, 2008.