How perfect of a match was Harrison Ford’s stunt double on the set of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny? The stunt double could literally unlock Ford’s phone with Face ID. This is just one of the fascinating, but not always essential, facts we enjoyed in a brand new making-of documentary.
Dial of Destiny is now available for digital download and with it comes an hour-long, five-part making-of documentary that breaks the film down location by location. There are sections on the flashback prologue, New York, Morocco, Sicily, and even the shocking finale, much of which is told through never-before-seen on-set interviews shot during the making of the movie. You’ll see Ford along with co-star Phoebe Waller-Bridge, director James Mangold, producer Steven Spielberg, and many others dive into spoilers, decisions, intentions, and so much more.
It’s well worth a watch and what follows are just a few things we thought stood out.
Indy always lived
Near the end of the documentary, Harrison Ford said in all the years of talking about a fifth Indiana Jones film, he never read a version or heard anything about Indy dying. Nor, in this film, was there ever a chance he was going to stay in the past. Instead, he loved the idea that this time, Indy himself is the treasure that is saved.
The last one ever
Dial of Destiny producer (and director of the other four Indy films) Steven Spielberg refers to Dial as the last Indiana Jones movie that’ll ever be made. Which is a very interesting choice of words. But he also says that’s part of the reason why they had to bring back Marion and Salah.
A practical match
No, it’s not the Paramount logo, but James Mangold was sure to match a logo at the beginning of Dial of Destiny. He chose to match the Lucasfilm logo (easier than a Disney castle we guess) with the lock on the truck Indy is in. The effect was done practically, in camera, and you see the process in the doc.
Two days covers 40 years
When James Mangold pitched the idea of a young Indy at the beginning of the movie, Harrison Ford was initially hesitant. However, Mangold revealed that the process ILM created to de-age Harrison, using old footage from previous movies, was so good, he’d get a version back only two days after filming. Once Ford saw that, he was sold.
A Wilhelm winner
Mangold and the sound team debated when in the film to use the unmistakable piece of Hollywood history, “the Wilhelm scream.” It was inserted in six to seven different places throughout, with the winner ending up in the opening train sequence.
Real relics
In reality, the Nazis actually did steal priceless artifacts from all over Europe as seen in the film. In fact, the Indy team did so much research on this, the train in the film is filled with actual, historical relics that were never recovered again, because it’s believed the Nazis stole them.
The Spear of Destiny
The relic in the opening scene is sometimes referred to as “the Spear of Destiny,” which was a) a real artifact, but also b) a purposeful wink back at a 1995 Dark Horse comic series during which Indy and his dad searched for the same spear.
Adding some Indy magic
When Indy first sees Voller, he was always going to punch him. But it was Harrison Ford, on set, who had the idea of putting the hat in front of his face and punching through that. Apparently, that’s one of many examples of Ford giving things in the movie his own Indy magic.
Is that really New York?
No, the New York City parade scenes were shot in Glasgow, Scotland, where the crew was able to shut down a city street for almost a mile and turn it into New York. The subway set, where the horse runs, was built in full on a stage at Pinewood in England.
Shoulder issues
Much like Harrison Ford injured himself on the set of The Force Awakens, he apparently injured his shoulder on the set of Dial of Destiny too. Luckily, the production kept working with his stunt double, Mike Massa, in the role—with Massa never quite looking at the camera.
Quite the double
As mentioned in the intro to this piece, Massa—in makeup—was such a good double for Ford, that he was able to unlock Ford’s phone via Face ID.
It was always Phoebe
Even before the script was written, Mangold and Ford imagined Phoebe Waller-Bridge in the role of... whatever the other lead in the movie was going to be. They knew her energy was what they wanted for the role that became Helena.
Salah’s lines
James Mangold revealed that while talking to John Rhys-Davies about returning as Salah, the actor told him he had a few ideas of lines he would like to say and several of them made it into the movie. And, actually, it was the lines that made it into the trailer about missing the desert and sea.
Stunt short films
Before a big fight scene, like the one in the Moroccan casino, the stunt team filmed a crude, shorter version so that the director and everyone else involved could get an idea of what would be possible on the day.
A love of Logan
When actor Ethann Isidore was auditioning for the role of Teddy, he apparently geeked out and told James Mangold that he loved Logan.
A tuk tuk for any scenario
While filming the tuk tuk chase over many, many weeks, the team had about 12 different versions of the vehicle that were optimized for specific scenarios.
Even Antonio Banderas was star-struck
The documentary shows the moment Antonio Banderas first saw Harrison Ford in costume. He asks him if he can kiss him. In an interview, Banderas talks about the chills he gets just thinking about being in an Indiana Jones movie.
Too much smiling!
Waller-Bridge says that the main piece of direction she got during the shoot was that she had to stop smiling. But it was hard because she was having so much fun.
Just look at these two!
There’s much, much more in the making-of documentary, so if you’re an Indy fan you should definitely check it out. And if all the previous facts didn’t grab you, the fact you get to see these two talking about their characters, on set, in costume, should be enough. It’s a magical moment.
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