It's official: Harrison Ford will return in a fifth 'Indiana Jones' movie

Harrison Ford, pictured here in the 2008 movie 'Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull' is set to feature in a fifth instalment next year. (©Paramount/Everett Collection)

Harrison Ford will be grabbing his whip and ramming on his hat for a fifth "Indiana Jones" movie, Disney has confirmed -- a mere 41 years after the first instalment, "Raiders of the Lost Ark," was released.

Disney said in a tweet on Friday that the movie would be produced by its production arm Lucasfilm and released in July 2022, and that "Indy himself, Harrison Ford, will be back to continue his iconic character's journey."

The entertainment giant also confirmed the news in an investor presentation, saying the movie was currently in "pre-production."

There had been mounting speculation that a new movie was in the works. In February, Ford told Ellen DeGeneres in an appearance on her talk show that production on a new Indiana Jones movie would begin this year.

"It's going to be fun. I am excited," he said on the show. "They're great fun to make."

The last film from the franchise was 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which came almost 20 years after the third movie, "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," which was released in 1989.

The first movie, "Raiders of the Lost Ark," came out in 1981 and was followed by "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" in 1984.

As well as Indy, the 78-year-old Ford has played an array of well-loved characters on the big screen, including Han Solo in "Star Wars." But he has said that his success did not come without hard work.

"I was not an overnight success. I spent 15 years before I had any real, noticeable success," Ford told Parade in an interview earlier this year. "Persistence is certainly something I think I can credit myself for having."

In a separate interview with CBS, Ford said he feels a sense of "responsibility" any time he returns to an iconic role.

"I feel obliged to make sure that our efforts are as ambitious as they were when we started," he said.