SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for Indiana Jones and the Dial of DestinyThe fifthIndiana Jonesfilm is now in theaters, bringing about one last adventure for Harrison Ford as the titular explorer.Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinyis the first film in the series to be released sinceIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skullhit theaters in 2008.Shia LaBeoufhad a key role in the fourth film as Mutt Williams, the son of Indy and Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen). While Ravenwood returns as Marion in the film, it had been known ahead of release that LaBeouf wasn’t a part of the project, so fans knew not to expect to see an appearance from Mutt.
While Mutt isn’t physically in the movie,Dial of Destinyreveals what ultimately became of the character. It is explained that Mutt was killed in the Vietnam War, and the incident took its toll on his parents' marriage, leading to Indy and Marion separating. In a new interview withVariety, director James Mangold sheds some more light on the decision to kill off Mutt in this way, suggesting that it just felt like that was what was best for the story.
“That seemed to me to be right emotionally, that a disillusioned hero could end up at this wonderful tumultuous moment in world history and — with his son gone and his wife gone — that he’d picture himself staying in the place he loves best, which is this imagining these worlds," Mangold explains.
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Mutt’s Fate Is Revealed in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
It could be theorized that LaBeouf’s absence inIndiana Jones and the Dial of Destinyis because of reports about the actor’sproblematic behavior. He had also spoken out againstCrystal Skull, at one point admitting outright in aVarietyinterview that he wasn’t a fan at all of the film. With that said, the actor also noted how painful it was to see someIndiana Jonesfans blaming him personally forCrystal Skullgetting bad reviews.
“I don’t like the movies that I made with Spielberg," LaBeouf said. “I prepped for a year and a half. And then the movie comes out, and it’s your fault. That sh*t hurt bad.”
In any case, Mangold insists that killing off Mutt had nothing at all do with LaBeouf’s negative press. As he wasn’t involved withIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Mangold also notes how he didn’t exactly care about the actor’s comments on that film, either. He goes on to explain how a convincing explanation needed to be provided to explain why Indy’s son wasn’t in the film, though Mangold also admits that he wasn’t a fan of the Mutt storyline to begin with.
“It’s separate from all past studio, political intrigue on movies I didn’t make,” as the director put it. “You were either going to make a movie all about the two of them, or you’re going to have to find a way to not have [Mutt] around, because he was too significant a player in the previous film to just pretend he didn’t exist.”
He added, “I didn’t think his whole thing worked that well in the previous film. I just went towards something else because it was what was more interesting to me.”
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinyis now playing in movie theaters. Meanwhile, Mutt will live on through repeated viewings ofIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which is currently streaming for free on Pluto TV, as well as on Disney+ and Paramount+.
