The actor first played Jones in 1981’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

Harrison Ford returning as Indiana Jones for new Disney project

The actor first played Jones in 1981’s “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

Joey Nolfi

Joey Nolfi is a senior writer at *. *Since 2016, his work at EW includes RuPaul’s Drag Race video interviews, Oscars predictions, and more.

EW's editorial guidelines

on August 16, 2026 11:40 a.m. ET

Harrison Ford in ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’; ‘Indiana Jones’ ride at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom. Credit:

Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection; Courtesy of Disney Experiences

- Harrison Ford will return as Indiana Jones for a new Disney project.

- The actor is set to reprise the role at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom park.

- Ford, 84, last played Indy on screen in 2023’s* Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny*.

Harrison Ford is whipping back into blockbuster shape, as the 84-year-old is set to return as iconic adventurer Indiana Jones in a new Disney project.

The company unveiled Saturday at the D23 convention in Anaheim, Calif., that the Oscar nominee and longtime* Indiana Jones* franchise lead will reprise the titular role at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom theme park, where a new ride themed to the film series is currently under construction on the site of the former Dinoland, U.S.A. area that permanently closed earlier this year.

“I’m the actual model” for the attraction, Ford told attendees Saturday in a pre-taped message about the ride, which is called Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent. “I’m coming to Walt Disney World soon.”

The ride was first announced at D23 in 2024, where then-Disney Parks head (and current Disney CEO) Josh D’Amaro revealed that the beloved Dinosaur ride would receive new exterior and interior theming, removing the 2000 *Dinosaur* movie inspiration and replacing it with Indy-centric dressings and a new storyline.

Dinosaur first debuted with a different name when it opened in 1998 as Countdown to Extinction alongside Animal Kingdom as a whole. The ride took guests on a time-traveling journey aboard Time Rover vehicles at the fictional Dino Institute, where Dr. Helen Marsh (played by Phylicia Rashad in a pre-ride video) attempted to send guests through dinosaur-heavy history. The ride system used similar technology for its ride vehicles that Disney previously used for the first time at Disneyland in California — specifically on that park’s Indiana Jones Adventure ride that opened in 1995.

Ford’s return as Indy comes amid not just the Dinosaur ride’s evolution, but the entire former Dinoland, U.S.A. area’s revamp into Tropical Americas, celebrating regional history and architecture. The area will additionally feature a culturally inspired carousel as well as an indoor *Encanto*-themed ride when it opens sometime in 2027.

2 new rides revealed for Disney World’s Villains Land — including Maleficent roller coaster

Robert Downey Jr. returning as Iron Man in new ‘Avengers’ project with Disney

In a 2023 interview with ** at the grand opening of Hong Kong Disneyland’s new *Frozen*-themed land, D’Amaro teased that the company’s planned $60 billion investment in its global parks and experiences properties was intended to show that Disney understands “what our fans expect of us,” and that they’re “going all in” on expansions, additions, and more.

“You’re going to see more and more of that,” D’Amaro said at the time, after stressing: “We’ve got so many stories to tell, we have so many things we want to make even better in the theme parks. My plan is to continue to share that with the guests. I know people are like, ‘My gosh, I can’t believe he’s saying this. Is he serious, is he not?’ The answer is, we are absolutely serious.”

Indiana Jones ride opening at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom park.

Courtesy of Disney Experiences

The new *Indiana Jones* ride is slated to roll out among a number of overhauls happening at Disney World parks, with the Magic Kingdom set to open two hotly anticipated projects in the future: Piston Peak, a *Cars*-themed revamp sitting atop the filled-in Rivers of America water canal adjacent to the now-demolished Tom Sawyer Island, and Villains Land, a long-awaited expansion based entirely on Disney villains.

New ‘Indiana Jones’ ride monster that will face off against Harrison Ford at Disney World.

disney-d23-ew-081626-jjs

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our ******EW Dispatch newsletter******.***

“This land will be home to the villains that you know and those that you loathe, which means happily-ever-after might feel like a distant dream,” D’Amaro said on stage in August 2024, upon Villains Land’s announcement at D23 that year, promising that it will be constructed on “an incredibly twisted grand scale” unlike anything seen at Disney parks in the past.

- Entertainment Lifestyle

- Amusement Parks & Attractions

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Disney”