23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘I was enraged': Former Paramount CEO slams George Lucas over ‘Indiana Jones' dispute
Former Paramount Pictures CEO Barry Diller is opening up about his bitter argument with George Lucas during the development of the 'Indiana Jones' franchise in the 1980s.
The San Francisco-born businessman explained in his recent memoir, 'Who Knew,' that Lucas betrayed his trust by demanding more money for the series' second film despite previously agreeing to no new negotiations.
'I hadn't expected to find that the Hollywood-bashing, take-the-high-ground George Lucas was actually a sanctimonious, though supremely talented … hypocrite,' he wrote in the book, which was released Tuesday, March 20.
Financial concerns began when Diller contemplated greenlighting the franchise's first film, 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' which Lucas co-wrote and executive produced. Despite loving the script, Diller was worried about steep production costs. So, he came up with a compromise.
'I insisted we had the right to make sequels on the same terms as ('Raiders of the Lost Ark'), given that the terms on the (movie) were so much higher than anyone else had ever received. I wanted to retch once, and then not have to regurgitate in a new negotiation if the film was a success,' he wrote. 'I wanted it in the clearest, most unambiguous language that all the parties agreed to and understood; there would be no new negotiating if George Lucas wanted to do a sequel.'
He was particularly careful to lay out the terms to avoid being in the same situation as 20th Century Fox, which gave Lucas ' Star Wars ' merchandising and sequel rights when they had negotiated the deal for 'A New Hope' (1977).
After the 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' became a massive hit upon its release in 1981, Diller and Lucas regrouped to plan out the sequel, 'Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.' By then, Lucas was on the heels of 1980's 'The Empire Strikes Back,' the second installment of his 'Star Wars' franchise, and seemed to have a new idea of his worth as a filmmaker.
'I was enraged,' Diller wrote. 'We had made such a big deal out of never having to be put in this position, and yet that was exactly what was happening. I couldn't believe it.'
Speculating that the push for more money could have come from lawyers egging Lucas on to renegotiate for their own benefit, he wrote that he decided to call the filmmaker.
The Modesto native 'responded with cold clarity,' according to Diller, and stated that the current terms were not 'worth it.'
'But you made a legal and moral commitment to honor these sequel terms. Here you are, someone who doesn't live in Hollywood because you loudly decry the amoral atmosphere of the company town, and then you blithely renege on an agreement made in good faith,' Diller responded.
Standing his ground, Lucas reiterated that the project wouldn't be worth it for him unless he received more money. Diller eventually gave in and renegotiated the film, but he has clearly not forgotten the dispute.
