Connery won’t be in ‘Indiana’

Indiana Jones will be back, hat and all. But his dad likes retirement too much -- which means that actor Sean Connery, who played Harrison Ford’s father in 1989’s “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” won’t be returning for the latest installment in the lucrative action franchise that begins filming this month.

Connery, 76, who retired from acting in 2005, released a statement Thursday saying that he wouldn’t be reprising the role. He acknowledged being tempted by the offer to appear in the fourth installment of “Indiana Jones,” which will be directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by George Lucas. “But in the end,” he said, “retirement is just too damned much fun.”

Meanwhile, Lucasfilm announced that three other actors were not so reticent: Cate Blanchett, John Hurt and Ray Winstone will join Ford and the previously announced Shia LeBeouf in the new film. Paramount Pictures plans to release the movie on May 22.