Indiana Jones 5 star reveals she asked for script change over ‘offensive’ and ‘problematic’ scene

Shaunette Renée Wilson plays a CIA agent in the fifth Indiana Jones instalment

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny star Shaunette Renée Wilson revealed she had notes for director James Mangold about one of her character’s scenes.

Wilson, previously known for her role as Dr Mina Okafor in the Fox medical drama The Resident, plays CIA Agent Mason in the fifth Indiana Jones movie, which was released on 28 June.

“I was so jazzed,” the 33-year-old, Guyanese-born American actor told Variety about her casting at the film’s Cannes premiere in May.

“I was quite impressed by a lot of things, but I also had thoughts and wanted to make input about my character in particular. And the brilliance and wonder of James Mangold is his ability to collaborate, and he heard me out and he was very honest about it and took what I said and it was implemented in rewrites. That has been a wonderful part of this process – to actually be able to feel like you are integral and you have a point of view when it comes to what’s being written.”

*Warning – Spoilers ahead for ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’*

In the movie, Wilson’s character is shot and killed by Mads Mikkelsen’s dastardly Nazi astrophysicist, Jürgen Voller. In the interview with Variety, which the publication held until after the release to avoid sharing spoilers, Wilson said her character’s exit from the film was initially “problematic”.

“Well, I don’t want to spoil too much, but my character had a particular way of exiting the film,” Wilson told Variety. “And initially I found it to be a little too offensive and a bit problematic, and I was like, ‘We probably don’t need to say these words or have it done this way, and this is something I’m uncomfortable with.’”

Shaunette Renée Wilson in ‘Indiana Jones 5’ (Disney/Lucasfilm)

Wilson praised Mangold for his openness to collaboration, adding: “He was like, ‘You know what, you’re completely right, I hear you. That’s something I flagged as well.’ And we were able to work on that.”

The Independent has contacted Lucasfilm, Disney and Mangold’s representatives for comment.

Harrison Ford’s fifth and final outing as the archeologist-cum-adventurer celebrated a $130m (£102m) global opening over the weekend.

The film revolves around the hunt for an ancient treasure that can be used to “read fissures in time”, potentially allowing the user to travel back in time. However, fans were quick to notice a big “plot hole” created by this storyline.

In a three-star review of the film for The Independent, Geoffrey Macnab wrote: “Tonally, the film wavers. It pulls in too many different directions at once. On the one hand, this is an exercise in affectionate nostalgia.

“On the other, like its predecessors, it’s an old-fashioned matinee adventure in which characterisation is deliberately broad. Certain episodes are knowing and ironic, while others seem painfully naive.”

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is out in cinemas now.