Harrison Ford won't die in 'Indiana Jones 5,' vows Steven Spielberg

LOS ANGELES, June 16 (UPI) -- Harrison Ford will survive the fifth Indiana Jones movie.

Director Steven Spielberg vowed as much while discussing the new installment of the franchise with The Hollywood Reporter. Ford, 73, has portrayed the adventurer in four previous Indiana Jones films.

"[I'm] super excited," Spielberg said of the sequel. "I think this one is straight down the pike for fans. The one thing I will tell you is I'm not killing off Harrison at the end of it."

Ford was not so lucky in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, as his iconic character, Han Solo, met his end at the hands of Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). Disney had confirmed the actor would return as Indy when they announced the fifth movie in March.

"Indiana Jones is one of the greatest heroes in cinematic history, and we can't wait to bring him back to the screen in 2019," Disney chairman Alan Horn said at the time.

"It's rare to have such a perfect combination of director, producers, actor and role, and we couldn't be more excited to embark on this adventure with Harrison and Steven," he added.

Ford first played Indy in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and last appeared in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008). Producer Frank Marshall revealed in April further sequels are possible, but said he can only envision Ford in the role.

"It's all about the story," he told Variety. "I think both in the Jason Bourne series and on Indiana Jones, we are not going to do the Bond thing. We think those characters are iconic, and those are the only actors who can play that."

Indiana Jones 5 is scheduled to open in theaters July 19, 2019. Ford is also slated to reprise Rick Deckard in Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner sequel.