It looks like LEGO is backing off from its planned reveal of the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom. Read on to know more.
Earlier today, LEGO fans all over were buzzing with excitement as the highly anticipated LEGO Indiana Jones 2023 sets were finally revealed. Despite a few leaks from the rumor mill since 2022, fans were thrilled to finally get an official reveal of what the sets would entail.
Why is the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom No Longer Releasing?
However, eagle-eyed enthusiasts quickly noticed that one anticipated set that was announced was conspicuously missing from this lineup. Unfortunately, it seems that the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom (77014) will not be making its debut eventually.
A Look Back at the History of LEGO Indiana Jones Sets
As you may recall, a previous version of LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom was offered by LEGO back in 2009 with set 7199. And since early leaks of a remake of this set have circulated already, fans were already expecting that four LEGO Indiana Jones should be in order.
In fact, images and box art of the modern LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom set have also been shared online months prior to the theme’s official comeback. So it’s understandable, to say the least, that such an absence of the set in question left most LEGO fans a bit perplexed.
LEGO’s Official Statement
LEGO has yet to make an official statement about the absence of the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom’s absence, but a word from the LEGO Ambassador Network (LAN) may give us a hint about the future of this set.
Throughout 2022, the LEGO Group worked closely with Lucasfilm to optimize our planned product line up for the upcoming LEGO Indiana Jones product launches in April 2023. As an outcome of this, we consolidated the launch to focus on three products (77012, 77013, 77015 ) that feature some of the most iconic scenes from the Indiana Jones franchise. We hope our fans love the new range and can’t wait to get their hands on them.
Well as always, LEGO is neither denying nor confirming anything about the future of the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom (77014) set in this statement. But reading between the lines, it’s quite apparent that LEGO purposively left out this set and will most likely not launch this product anytime soon.
From a corporate perspective, I understand LEGO’s seemingly apprehensive stance about the release of this controversial set. Well, it’s not that the set itself is controversial, but the film or scene from the film that it recreates.
Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom was released in 1984, back in those days when racial stereotypes abounded in Hollywood films. That scene in particular when one of the film’s antagonists, Mola Ram, is included and eventually made its way as an official minifigure in 2009, is something that the LEGO Group may be weary about.
Not only because of the gruesome ritualistic sacrifices that this character in the film did (like tearing away a beating heart from a live human sacrifice) but also the potential harm that culturally inaccurate portrayals may do to people of color and other communities.
These set cancellations are not really new as far as the LEGO group is concerned. There were numerous occasions in the past when LEGO needed to cancel a set that was eventually slated to be officially revealed. But in case you’re curious about what the LEGO Indiana Jones The Temple of Doom (77014) has to offer, what we do know is that it comes with 6 minifigures including the characters of Short Round, Willie Scott, Indy, Mola Ram, and two Temple Guards. It is also expected to retail between $85-$90 and clocks in at 801 pieces.
As I’ve mentioned, the LEGO Group itself has not released any official statement regarding this missing (or perhaps, canceled) set. It is also understandable if LEGO will eventually forego the idea of offering this re-release all throughout as it doesn’t align with their values. And also as a way of avoiding further criticism as well. We just have to wait and see in the following weeks.
Its because someone at Disney felt the depiction of Mola Ram as an Indian villain was racist and the set was pulled by the consumer products group after it had been previously approved.This is same thing happened to every other toy company making product (like Hasbro). IF the set makes it to market, it will be WITHOUT the Mola Ram mini-fig.