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Mr. Star Wars talks about Sean Connery and Indy IV.

TV Guide snagged a bit of convo with George Lucas about Indiana Jones IV and he explained why they’re disappointing everyone by not forcing Sean Connery to return.

TV Guide: Speaking of friends working together… you and Steven Spielberg — how’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull going?
Lucas: Very well. Very well indeed.

TV Guide: Were you disappointed about Sean Connery not coming out of retirement to play Indy’s father?
Lucas: No, in the end, it turned out better. In the beginning, he was just in a little bit of it, and I think with the strength of Sean Connery, people would’ve wanted him to go all the way through the whole thing, and the story really didn’t work that way. And so I think there would’ve been some disappointment that [his character] dropped out partway through the movie. By having somebody else fill that role, you lose him without any regret, so to speak, even though we got a great actor to play the part. And I mean, he’s not his father, so it’s much easier….

TV Guide: You mean [the other actor] is not playing Indy’s father?
Lucas: That’s right. It’s just a completely different character, so you’re not invested in him in any way. The fact that that character, after the first part of the movie, isn’t needed doesn’t become a problem. Whereas I think with the scene we had, where [Indy] says goodbye to his dad, everybody was, “Wait a minute! Isn’t he coming back?” So in the end, I think it turned out for the best. Sean just retired and he wants to stay retired, and I understand that. [Laughs] I think he just said, “Look, I’ve done it, I’ve done it.” He was very tempted, you know, and we talked for a long time. But in the end, he just said, “Eh, I’m playing golf.”