Harrison Ford is currently promoting his final Indiana Jones movie Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which came out last Friday. While Ford has been playing the role of Indiana Jones in five different movies since 1981, many fans may be surprised to know that it was actually “Magnum P.I.” star Tom Selleck who was originally cast in the role.
During a panel discussion at the Taormina Film Festival in Italy last week, the 81 year-old Ford made a point of thanking Selleck, 78, for making it possible for him to take on this iconic role.
Before Harrison Ford Tom Selleck was originally casted to be Indiana Jones. If he succeeded do you think Selleck would play Indiana Jones just as good or even better than Harrison Ford did? pic.twitter.com/WfVx4qk0ye
— Dev2Dust (@Dev2Dust) June 24, 2023
Ford Thanks Selleck
“How I got the job? Tom Selleck had the job, but he also incurred an obligation to do a television series and he was unable to get out of that contract,” Ford said when asked how he was cast as Indiana Jones.
“I became the second choice, and I’m very grateful for Tom,” he continued, according to People Magazine. “Thank you, Tom, man. If you’re listening, thank you again.”
Ford went on to talk about how he ended up being cast as Jones.
“He said ‘I want you to read it right away, I want you to read it in an hour.’ I sat down, I read it an an hour, and he said ‘I want you to go over to Steven Spielberg’s house and talk to him,’” Ford explained. “I went to Steven Spielberg’s house, I had never met Steven Spielberg before. I guess about an hour later I had the job.”
The new @IndianaJones is going to be fun. pic.twitter.com/PrHUNgf4Ok
— Harrison Ford (@HarrisonFordLA) June 16, 2023
Selleck Initially Cast As Indiana Jones
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Selleck was initially cast to play Indiana Jones in the 1981 movie Raiders Of The Lost Ark, but he was unable to get out of filming “Magnum P.I. in order to actually take on the role.
“After I did the pilot for Magnum, I tested for Indiana Jones and got the job,” Selleck explained in a 2017 interview with BUILD series.
“Steven [Spielberg] and George [Lucas] offered me the job. And I said, ‘Well, I’ve done this pilot.’ And they said, ‘Thanks for telling us. Most actors wouldn’t do that, but we got cards to play with CBS.
‘Turned out, CBS wouldn’t let me do it…Harrison Ford hates to hear this,” he added. “Harrison, this is your role, and you’re indelible in it; it’s just an interesting story. I signed a deal for ‘Magnum,’ and it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m proud that I lived up to my contract.”
Check out this interview in the video below.
‘I Had To Kind Of Move On…’
In a 2014 interview with David Letterman, Selleck further talked about how much Spielberg and Lucas fought for him.
“[Spielberg and Lucas] held the offer out for about a month,” Selleck recalled. “The more they held out the offer and talked to the network the more the network said no … so I had to kind of move on.”
In the end, it all worked out for both stars. Selleck would go on to star on “Magnum P.I.” from 1980-1988, and Ford continues to enjoy playing Indiana Jones to this day. Their story just goes to show that everything really does happen for a reason, and that things like this turn out exactly how they’re supposed to!
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