Finn said:
It's the usual logical infallacy that comes with being fan. We tend to imprint our individual thoughts onto the larger audience.
May be. I could be the one who is wrong.
But I still think you underestimate the existing fanbase.
It's not only us die-hard fans, as you say. It's the whole generation of people behind us.
The fourth Indy film made almost 800 million dollars at the box office. It was one of the biggest hits of the last decades, and still ranks in the top 50 of the highest grossing films of all time, in spite of the fact that it featured a character that had been
completely absent from the spotlight since 1989. And mind that, apart from us real die-hard fans that read on this message board and surf the cinema sites for news, most of the fans that made those 800 millions possible were casual moviegoers and people who didn't even had an idea a fourth film was being made, until they saw the trailer or somebody told 'em in person.
You can't just take as fanbase the
very small group of people that write on this message board, or comment on facebook, youtube channels, or whatever, because most of them are just young boys and girls that may have not even been born during the golden years of the franchise. I am 27 years old.
But Indiana Jones managed to bring back to the theater
the previous generation of people, many of those guys that first connected to it in 1981, when Raiders came out at the theatre.
My parents went to see it. My uncles went to see it. And all of my friends' parents, and families. People in their late fifties and sixties, that simply do not go to the theater anymore because they don't care, or have better things to do. But yet they were there for Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, because "Harrison Ford, that ole' scumbag, had made another Indiana Jones film". I think it's the combination of the two things, Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford, that so many people are really fond of, to the point that it could work so well even now.
On the other hand, people like us, that regularly use the internet, and comment on the internet, and are so vocal about their opinions and whatever, are generally ranging from their teens to their early thirties. Older people usually just do not care a damn about message boards, facebook, movie sites and social networks. But lots of them are fans nonetheless. And I bet they would go see a fifth movie with Harrison Ford whitout even thinking about it twice. I'm not so sure they would, if Chris Pratt would take on the role.
This is the main reason why I think they would do better going for Harrison while it's still a possibility, if they want to do something with it now.
I didn't write an explanation for this because I had already written it with different words in another post some days ago, on the thread about "What's Harrison Ford doing these days".
Given that the thing is still a concrete possibility, for how slight it can be, I think it would be far more intelligent for Disney to target the
already existing fanbase, instead than just reboot everything and aim to a new breed of kids and teenagers alike,
many of whom do not even have an idea who that guy Indiana Jones is. And it's not so sure they'd be interested in it.
Indy Jones said:
As much as Harrison loves Indy, it's a whole new ballgame now. A big corporation isn't going to respect Harrison's involvement like a close personal friend (Lucas) would.
It's not to say I wouldn't want Ford in another one, but I think it's practically assured now that the franchise will move ahead without him. George respected Harrison, and wouldn't think of making Indy without him, or at least his blessing. Disney doesn't have to care, or to be loyal to anyone.
Guardians Of The Galaxy is a film that is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the biggest and most successful movie saga ever. It was one of the most hyped films in recent years. It featured Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, and many other of the coolest and hottest actors in modern Hollywood. It was one of the most acclaimed films of the year. It was released in 3D, so tickets even cost more...
... and STILL it underperformed in comparison to Indiana Jones 4, with Harrison Ford.
Now, I'd really say it is safe TO BET that our good old Harrison has still much more star power in Hollywood than both Chris Pratt and Bradley Cooper put together. He has more star power than simply
anybody else they could choose as his younger replacement. And just wait for next year, right after Star Wars 7 and the new Blade Runner have come out...
P.S.
Sorry for another damn long post...