“Movie star” is a complicated term. On the one hand, it implies performances that are a fair bit more sugary than the dramatic and comedic character work that most actors prefer to be known for. But on the other hand, the unique cultural impacts they’re capable of making can’t be overlooked, and the one made by Harrison Ford over the years is a testament to that.
Indeed, the 82-year-old has been Indiana Jones, Han Solo, Rick Deckard, Jack Ryan, and now the MCU’s new Thaddeus Ross as of Captain America: Brave New World. By all appearances, the career he’s leading is as lucrative as ever, but Ford wouldn’t quite define it that way.
Harrison Ford opens up about his busy year and shares what it'll take for him to retire. pic.twitter.com/fusIngOg6h
— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) February 20, 2025
Speaking recently to Entertainment Tonight‘s Cassie DiLaura at the premiere for the second season of 1923 (in which Harrison Ford portrays one Jacob Dutton), Ford was asked how he would describe the current chapter of his career, and — without missing a beat — the crown jewel of Lucasfilm landed on “stupid,” eliciting laughs from both himself and DiLaura.
DiLaura wasn’t buying it, pointing out how Ford’s relevance in the industry and the wider pop zeitgeist hasn’t diminished even after all these years. “You’re everywhere!” exclaimed DiLaura. “I’m a little too everywhere,” replied Ford.
He would go on to point out that he took the 1923 job because he wanted to take advantage of being presented with great material (a privilege he was not afforded for his Marvel debut), and that he plans to retire as soon as people “forget [his] name.”
In all likelihood, Ford’s candidness isn’t an act for the cameras. He doesn’t quite seem to understand why everyone is obsessed with him, nor why anyone seems to believe that he’s as invested in the mythology of his projects as they are. “I was there,” he says of the new 1923 season, which he also says he hasn’t watched. And when asked if there were hopes to keep the story going, he quite plainly said “I just work here. Taylor [Sheridan] tells me when he’s out of story.”
He’s hardly been the only one to speak frankly about the side of the job that traffics in fandom curiosity/obsession. Daniel Craig, of 007 fame, went a fancast seemingly coming out every other week.
Craig’s response? “I don’t care.” It’s no great assumption that you’d get a similar answer from Ford if you asked him who the next Thaddeus Ross should be.
But hey, everyone seems to want Ford in their franchise, and while it’s one thing to not care about certain strands of popular fiction, it’s quite another to not care about five- or six-figure checks. If he runs into some inspired writing here and there, that’s even better.
Published: Feb 20, 2025 12:23 pm