Earlier this month, at the D23 Expo 2022, dubbed “The Ultimate Disney Fan Event,” in Anaheim, California, there was a Studio Showcase panel for the highly anticipated fifth Indiana Jones movie, which is set for release on June 23, 2023. Stars Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge were joined at the convention by Director James Mangold (taking over the reign from Steven Spielberg) to present an exclusive trailer and discuss the highly anticipated release, which Ford declared was “fantastic.” The 80-year-old actor also exclaimed that it was to be his last time portraying the iconic character in the series by exclaiming, “This is it – I won’t fall down on you again,” resulting in much laughter and applause.

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But while this event was given a lot of press, one important element has been glossed over: the film’s long-awaited title. Since the intrepid archeologist’s last adventure, the fan-lambasted but critically acclaimed fourth entry, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, in 2008, the project has been plainly labeled Indiana Jones 5. In the summer of 2021, a rumor went around that the title, Indiana Jones and the Order of Elysium, was seen on the cover page for the film’s screenplay, but that unconfirmed report faded, and more recently, the word was that the title might simply be Indy.

According to the trailer, which hasn’t leaked yet online, and the D23 panel’s backdrop screen, the title is now cleanly Indiana Jones. If this is the final title, despite its basic simplicity, it has the promise to be felt as a strong one as Mangold’s Wolverine-closer, Logan (2017). It indicates a more personal and poignant concluding portrait of our beloved hero than his last effort.

Of course, the fifth film since the series launched in 1981 will be a rollicking action film with spectacle aplenty, as evidenced by reports of the trailer, but as Ford told the audience at D23, “Indiana Jones movies are about fantasy and mystery, but they’re also about heart. We have a really good story to tell, as well as a movie that will kick your a**.”

The Franchise Didn’t Begin With Indiana Jones in the Title

     Paramount Pictures

The history of Indiana Jones titles can be a bit tricky as the first film in the series, Raiders of the Lost Ark, didn’t have the character’s name in it; it was the 1984 sequel (actually prequel, if you want to get technical), entitled Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom that established the trend that carried through 1989’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. To retro-fit the original into this uniform, the original was re-titled Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark for its DVD release in 1999 (the title wasn’t changed in the actual film), and this re-branding extended into the franchise’s further merchandising.

The original’s revised title change made it into a more convoluted moniker, but, let’s face it, people rarely use the titles anyway. The second entry, Temple of Doom, appears to be the only one that’s referred to properly, as Indiana Jones’ debut is usually just called “the first one.” The third is considered “the Sean Connery one” (that’s what Quentin Tarantino called it recently), and the fourth is just regularly dismissed as “the one that sucked.” That’s a joke (sort of), but after the unwieldy mouthful that was Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, it’s for the best if the concluding chapter is officially just going to be called Indiana Jones. “The new Indiana Jones movie” is what people will be calling it, whatever the case.

The Main Character Name Titles Grants Gravitas To Our Hero’s Grand Farewell

     Paramount

Alongside Logan or even Rocky Balboa, which was supposed to be the swansong for Sylvester Stallone’s signature character until Creed came along, the simple character name title also recalls Rooster Cogburn, the 1975 sequel to Henry Hathaway’s 1969 western classic True Grit, which featured one of John Wayne’s final performances. It was far from a franchise, but the umbrella of the lead protagonist’s name over that film made the statement that the persona, history, and what the character stands for are in the spotlight in their definitive finale.

Mangold’s presentation of Ford’s retiring turn as Indiana Jones has a lot riding on it. After the poor reception (despite its still fresh 78% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes) for the previous film, which came out 14 years ago, fans have been long thirsting for a redemptive follow-up. The coverage of the D23 event shows that fans are beyond excited about a film that’s not even out until next summer. When the trailer unveiled at the convention drops online, there will surely be another point of heightened frenzy.

With the release of the fifth film in 2023, Ford will have portrayed Dr. Henry Walton “Indiana” Jones, Jr. over the span of 42 years. That makes it the second-longest span for the starring actor in a top 50 domestic box office franchise (Stallone holds the span for the first longest in the Rocky series), so his reign deserves a strong, stately farewell. The clean, solid title of Indiana Jones that simply delivers our hero to us for one last go-around for old time’s sake (and a lot of money as it’s one of the highest-grossing movie franchises ever) transcends its obviousness into something suggesting supreme gravitas.

Of course, it’s yet to be seen if this much-hyped movie will live up to that mighty task, but with the power of the world-known and treasured name by itself, it can be fairly speculated that they chose wisely.