UPDATE: Movieline has learned from a source they trust that the rumor is "completely false" and the studio is entirely focused on the Star Wars conversion. I trust Movieline, but you are welcome to draw your own conclusion.
If you thought George Lucas would stop at Star Wars in terms of pillaging his back catalog for pure profit, you clearly haven't been paying attention over the last 15 years. We suspected it the moment Lucasfilm announced they would be converting all six Star Wars films to 3D for a theatrical re-release, and now Blue Sky Disney-- a pretty reliable source for rumors-- is reporting that it's true: the Indiana Jones films will also be getting the same 3D treatment.
Apparently the announcement is coming next month, with Raiders of the Lost Ark the first film scheduled to hit. Given that Spielberg and Lucas felt no guilt in revisiting Indy with the thoroughly mediocre Kingdom of the Crystal Skull it's no surprise that Lucas would dip back into the well with 3D. The only surprise here to me is that they'll go ahead and start work on the conversion without measuring the success of the 3D Star Wars films first. In fact, we still have no idea if any film converted into 3D and re-released will be a hit. James Cameron has been planning that treatment for Titanic for years now, and at some point Disney will have 3D Beauty and the Beast to bring to theaters, but so far the notion of up-converting old films to 3D is one of those ideas that sounds good on paper but hasn't even been tested in practice yet.
And besides, do we really need to see Indy lash his whip and run away from a giant boulder in 3D? As much as the 3D Star Wars films have the potential for disaster, given Lucas's cavalier attitude toward his legacy, a 3D Raiders feels even more pointless. There's something about the models on a black background of the Star Wars films that seems to lend itself to 3D in a way the practical effects and real locations of the Indiana Jones films just don't. Sure, the conversion might look just fine, but the added 3D element seems so out-of-step with the whole retro feel of the Indy franchise.
Am I just have a knee-jerk bad reaction to 3D at this point? Or are you guys with me on this? Chime in in the comments and let us know.
