When Movies In Focus Met Harrison Ford

Movies In Focus has been covering movies for quite a long time and I’ve met a lot of famous and talented people along the way. But meeting Harrison Ford was something else. Ford is notoriously press-shy and he doesn’t suffer fools gladly. Therefore, you have to be on- point when you meet him, and meet him I did, just before the Ender’s Game Q&A at the Odeon, Leicester Square back in October 2013. 

Before the event Ford, along with Sir Ben Kingsley, Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, director Gavin Hood and producers Robert Orci and Gigi Pritzke met the press. For men of a certain age (like myself), Ford is truly a cinematic legend (a phrase that is relentlessly over-used, though more than apt on this occasion) Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Blade Runner – these films really have defined a generation. Ford is exactly how he comes across on screen – he’s serious and intelligent, with a very dry wit.

When I asked him if he was worried about upsetting fans of the Ender’s Game novel with his portrayal of Colonel Graff, he looked me right in the eye, waited a beat, simply said ‘no’ and walked away, with the faintest hint of a smirk. It was pure Harrison Ford and it was priceless.

Harrison Ford turned 79 years old on Tuesday 13 July 2021 – and he’s currently filming a fifth instalment of the Indiana Jones franchise, which is set for release in 2022.