Kathleen Kennedy and James Mangold On How To End The WGA Strike

Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy and "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" filmmaker James Mangold gave their thoughts on the WGA writer's strike at the Cannes Film Festival world premiere of the fifth and final entry in the "Indiana Jones" franchise.

On Friday, the director was asked about the writer’s strike at a Cannes Film Festival press conference. The director admitted that movies can’t be made without a great script, and writers are necessary to creating a great script.

“No movie happens without a great script, and no great script happens without writers,” James Mangold said on Friday (via Deadline). “And writers are often — because they’re first in the process, they’re the first to be forgotten. So true in many parts of the business. I support them in their struggle for what is fair for everybody.”

Producer Kathleen Kennedy was also asked about the writer’s strike, although she first took a moment to praise Mangold for taking over from Steven Spielberg and directing “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Kennedy described Mangold as a “consummate filmmaker, adding, “He loves cinema.”

She said that the best part of watching him work was seeing him “take from the world of cinema and create something that is not just what we did with Indiana Jones, but walk this fine line of stepping into 2023 with something that we created in the late ’70s.”

As for the standoff between the AMPTP and WGA, Kennedy said, “I would like to see the whole situation resolved truly in an environment where people can talk about what some of the really complicated issues are affecting the entire industry.”

“But when it comes to acknowledging the importance of writing, I think everybody out here has demonstrated that you can’t do any of this without great writing,” she added. “So, all of us who make movies agree anything with television… I know most people are in full support of the writers getting what they deserve.”

“I think what the meta issue here is how that it’s being impacted by an industry that’s really changing, that is in the midst of change, both technologically and just basic aspects of how we work,” Kennedy continued.

“That’s going to take time. That’s what everyone is getting ready for,” she added. “I think that we should take the time necessary to articulate what those feelings are.”

Elsewhere at the Cannes Film Festival, actor Harrison Ford was fending off jokes about his age. Even his costar Mads Mikkelsen, best known for his role in "Hannibal," joked, “The first [Indiana Jones] film came out 30 years before I was born.”

The 80-year-old actor first started playing the role of Indiana Jones in 1981’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” before reprising his role in 1984’s “Temple of Doom,” 1989’s “Last Crusade,” and 2008’s “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” 2023's "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" represents the last time Ford will play the whip-slinging archaeologist.

When a journalist asked Ford why 2023 was the year to stop playing the iconic character, the 80-year-old actor asked, "Is it not evident?" while gesturing to himself. However, he did confess, "But I love to work and I love this character and I love what it brought into my life."

Ford also went on to say, "I wanted to see the completion of the five. I wanted to round out the story." That being said, Kathleen Kennedy was asked about the possibility of seeing another de-aged Harrison Ford in a future "Indiana Jones" film. Special VFX software was used to create a de-aged Harrison Ford for a 25-minute sequence in the fifth installment of the franchise. However, Kennedy was quick to shut down the question.

As for his new movie, Ford went on to say that James Mangold created a "beautiful movie" that comprised the fundamental elements of the "Indiana Jones" franchise "a little myth and a little magic." He said those two elements "all belong in the same box," adding, "And when it works, it's f---ing magic."