When “Raiders of the Lost Ark” first premiered back in 1981, the world was introduced to one of the most iconic action heroes. Also, he comes with a familiar name to Hoosiers…Indiana Jones.
Where does the name Indiana Jones come from?
Is this movie icon named after our Great State? Was Jones from Indiana? Does the character display a huge amount of Hoosier hospitality?
Looper.com has tracked down the history of Harrison Ford’s movie nickname stating, “the real-life story of how Indiana got his name is pretty similar to the story we get in the film series itself.” In “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” it’s revealed that Ford’s character got his nickname from the family dog. In the movie, Indy’s full name is Henry Walton Jones Jr., yet throughout the film, his father, played by Sean Connery, constantly calls him “junior.
Who came up with the famous nickname?
George Lucas (who created the character alongside Steven Spielberg) used to own a dog named Indiana. The pet was a large Alaskan Malamute. Spielberg and Lucas were having a brainstorming session to determine a name for Ford’s persona. They agreed the name should convey uniqueness. “It’s a character. Very Americana. Square.” All things considered; they landed on the dog’s name.
Lucas initially named the character Indiana Smith, though the last name was later changed to Jones. Accordingly, like the dialogue says, the nickname comes from Lucas’ pet. “We named the dog Indiana.”
Ford, who is now 80, states that there won’t be any old man jokes in this new movie. Additionally, he said that he wasn’t super excited about the idea of using AI to de-age him for some flashback scenes. However, he saw the result and mentioned that it actually looks really good.
Dial of Destiny is directed by James Mangold, making it the first Indiana Jones film not helmed by Steven Spielberg. But Ford clarified that Spielberg is still a big part of the production.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is scheduled for release in the United States on June 30, 2023. It is the fifth installment of the Indiana Jones film series.
