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January 2, 2007 - At long last, filmmakers Steven Spielberg and George Lucas are officially ready to roll on the fourth installment in the Indiana Jones series. While speaking to the press on Friday, preparing for his duties as grand marshal of the Rose Parade, Lucas confirmed that production would get underway in 2007. "It's going to be fantastic. It's going to be the best one yet," he told the Associated Press.

Further confirmation comes this morning, via the Hollywood Reporter, which claims that Steven Spielberg has placed the film at the top of his directing to-do list and that shooting may begin as early as June.

The screenplay, which was a sore spot in the development of the project for years, was approved several months ago after Spielberg crony David Koepp took a stab at it.

The story is still a mystery, but Lucas has hinted that the movie will be a "character piece" and that the plot will, not all that unexpectedly, involve supernatural elements.

During a previous chat with Empire Online, Lucas explained, "I discovered a McGuffin. I told the guys about it and they were a little dubious about it, but it's the best one we've ever found. ... Unfortunately, it was a little too 'connected' for the others. They were afraid of what the critics would think. They said, 'Can't we do it with a different McGuffin? Can't we do this?' and I said 'No.' So we pottered around with that for a couple of years. And then Harrison really wanted to do it and Steve said, 'Okay.' I said, 'We'll have to go back to that original McGuffin and take out the offending parts of it and we'll still use that area of the supernatural to deal with it.'" Your guess is as good as ours.

And what of Sean Connery's involvement? Lucas told Access Hollywood that the filmmakers are "writing him in whether he wants to do it or not."

Shooting locations have not yet been finalized, but Lucas said that some of the film will be filmed in Los Angeles.

If things go according to plan, Indiana Jones should be back on the big screen in May 2008 -- if the pattern of previous Indiana Jones films continues, then expect a pre-Memorial Day release. A May date would put Indy up against the next installment in the Narnia series, Speed Racer, and Iron Man.

In a statement, Ford said he's pumped to return to the series. "I'm delighted to be back in business with my old friends," he said. "I don't know if the pants still fit, but I know the hat will."