Entertainment Movies Action Movies 'Indiana Jones 5' Goes 'Heavily Back' to First Two Films, Teases Mads Mikkelsen: 'Dense and Epic' Like the first two Indiana Jones movies, Mads Mikkelsen says the upcoming fifth film taps into "that golden period of serials from the 1940s" By Jen Juneau Jen Juneau Jen Juneau is a News and Movies Staff Writer at PEOPLE. She started at the brand in 2016 and has more than 15 years' professional writing experience. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 14, 2022 02:23PM EDT Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981); inset: Mads Mikkelsen. Photo: Lucasfilm Ltd/Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock; Inset: Stefania M. D'Alessandro/Getty The next Indiana Jones movie is going back to its roots. Mads Mikkelsen — who will star opposite Harrison Ford in the action-adventure franchise's upcoming fifth installment — told The Hollywood Reporter, in an interview published Thursday, that the new film has a "dense and epic" feel. He said the sequel harkens back to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984). "[Raiders of the Lost Ark] was one of my favorite films, and it just oozed that golden period of serials from the 1940s — and that's in the fifth film as well," said Mikkelsen, 56. "They're going heavily back to the first and second film and getting that original feel, the original Indy, something dense and epic," he added. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories. From left: Antonio Banderas, Mads Mikkelsen, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Harrison Ford. Steve Granitz/WireImage; Sylvain Lefevre/WireImage; Frazer Harrison/Getty Desiree Navarro/WireImage Indiana Jones Is Back! Harrison Ford Suits Up in Iconic Costume in Set Photo from Fifth Movie The news of Mikkelsen's addition to the star-studded cast was announced back in April 2021. He is rumored to be playing the movie's villain, though official details about his character (and the film's plot) have been kept under wraps. Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge will play the new partner of Ford's archaeologist hero, while Antonio Banderas was revealed last July to have joined the project in an undisclosed role. Although Steven Spielberg is not returning as director — he helmed the first two films, plus 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and 2008's Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and returns as a producer — Mikkelsen told THR that the new movie "felt like a Spielberg film." "Though it's obviously James making it with the same vision," he added of director James Mangold, who also co-wrote the fifth Indiana Jones film and is known for his work on movies like Walk the Line and Logan. RELATED VIDEO: Karen Allen Reflects on Indiana Jones as Raiders of the Lost Ark Celebrates 40th Anniversary In June 2021, Ford was seen in costume as the fictional archaeologist in a photo that circulated online, which Frozen star Josh Gad later posted to his Instagram account. The photo showed Ford, 79, wearing the iconic character's brown fedora and a brown leather jacket over a beige button-down shirt. Also joining the Indiana Jones 5 cast alongside Ford, Mikkelsen, Banderas, 61, and Waller-Bridge, 36, are Logan actor Boyd Holbrook and The Resident's Shaunette Renée Wilson. Indiana Jones 5 is expected to hit theaters on June 30, 2023.