Despite the disappointing box office performance of standalone flick "Solo: A Star Wars Story," Disney and Lucasfilm are staying in business with the film's screenwriter. And his rumored next project is equally as high profile.

Collider is reporting that "Solo" scribe Jonathan Kasdan has been tapped to take over scripting duties for the upcoming fifth installment of the venerable "Indiana Jones" franchise, which will once again reunite original director Steven Spielberg and star Harrison Ford. According to Collider, "multiple sources" have confirmed Kasdan's hiring.

Kasdan is replacing previous screenwriter David Koepp, who collaborated with Spielberg on 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." That fourth flick in the series debuted decades after the previous Indy flick, 1989's "The Last Crusade," and its oddball plot divided both fans and critics alike.

It's unclear why Koepp was ultimately let go (the venerable "creative differences" defense, perhaps?), or what state his script was in. As recently as September, the writer was discussing development on the flick, including the decision not to feature Shia LaBoeuf's "Crystal Skull" character (though perhaps with Koepp's exit, that will now change).

This latest blip seems to be par for the course with "Indy 5," which has had an offbeat journey throughout its existence. Back in 2015, there was a juicy rumor going around that newly-minted Disney star Chris Pratt -- fresh off the success of the first "Guardians of the Galaxy" flick -- was set to headline a rebooted version of the franchise. That was eventually quashed when the Mouse House announced in 2016 that Spielberg and Ford were reuniting for another round, which was initially slated for release on July 19, 2019.

That release date has since shifted to July 10, 2020, and Spielberg recently announced that the movie would start production in London in April of 2019. With the recent screenwriting switcheroo, we'll see if either of those dates stands.

[via: Collider]