| “ | To the victor goes the spoils. | „ |
| ~ Colonel Weber deluding himself in front of Indiana Jones. |
Colonel Weber is a major antagonist in the 2023 action-adventure film Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the fifth and final installment of the Indiana Jones franchise.
He is a Schutzstaffel (SS) colonel and member of the Nazi Party who assists the German Army during World War II by transporting looted artifacts and art to Germany for Adolf Hitler. In 1944, Weber crosses paths with the American archaeologist Indiana Jones, who sneaks into the Fascist castle where Weber is stationed, just as he and Dr. Jürgen Voller retrieve artifacts in a futile effort to help Germany win the war.
He was portrayed by Thomas Kretschmann, who also played Alfredo Grossi in The Stendhal Syndrome, Eli Damaskinos in Blade II, Timothy Cain in Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Professor Zündapp in Cars 2, Flemming in Hostel III, Wolfgang von Strucker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Le Clerq in Hitman: Agent 47 and Lorentz Vogelmann in Dragged Across Concrete.
History[]
Weber, a Schutzstaffel (SS) colonel, was ordered by Adolf Hitler to assist with Jürgen Voller's attempts to recover the Lance of Longinus in the hope of turning the tables on the Allies. The two of them tracked the lance to a castle in the French Alps full of other supposed artefacts.
American archaeologist Indiana Jones and Oxford University professor Basil Shaw infiltrated the castle just as Weber and his men were in the process of looting the artefacts and loading them on to a train bound for Berlin. Jones was soon captured and interrogated by Weber, who deduced that he was a spy after the lance and ordered his men to hang him before boarding the train to make his escape with the lance and the rest of his spoils.
Just before the train left, Weber heard that Shaw had also been captured and had him brought aboard so he could beat information out of him, confirming that Jones and Shaw intended to prevent them from claiming the Lance of Longinus. However, Voller interrupted his interrogation with disturbing news: the Lance of Longinus they had recovered was a fake. Weber realized he would have to inform Hitler, which he knew would result in his death. Voller also revealed that the train was carrying half of Archimedes' Antikythera mechanism, but Weber responded that he didn't care and neither would Hitler.
Weber received more disturbing news when he discovered that Jones had escaped the castle and boarded the train. Even worse, he managed to knock out Voller and steal the Antikythera segment. Weber led his men searching the train for Jones, but Jones evaded them and was able to reach Weber's carriage and free Shaw. The two of them then fled further down the train and climbed atop the carriage to jump off into a nearby river, but were caught by Weber, who engaged Jones in a brawl. During the fight he dropped his gun, which Shaw picked up; however, due to his poor aim and the movement of the fight he ended up shooting Jones by mistake. This allowed Weber to gain the upper hand, get on top of Jones and continue beating him until he was shot by Shaw, as he sat up wounded Indiana mirrored Weber’s words before kicking him off the train to his death.
Trivia[]
- Immediately upon the announcement of Thomas Kretschmann's casting in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, several fans quickly assumed that he would be portraying a German-accent character or a Nazi given Kretschmann's history of having played several Nazi or German villains in many films throughout his career.
- Ironically, one of the Nazis portrayed by Kretschmann in his career was Wernher von Braun, whom Kretschmann portrayed in the Project Blue Book television series and who was cited as one of the inspirations for Jürgen Voller, the main antagonist of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
- A theory that became popular before Weber's name was revealed was that Kretschmann would play Helmut von Mephisto, one of Indy's enemies in the Expanded Adventures who first appeared in Indiana Jones and the Mystery of Mount Sinai. However, the film's casting announcement put this theory to rest.
- Coincidentally, Weber shares his last name with Art Weber, a friend of Indiana Jones who briefly appeared in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. However, given how forgettable that character was plus his status as a British military officer, it's highly unlikely that the two Webers have some kind of connection.
External Links[]
- Colonel Weber on the Indiana Jones Wiki
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 Villains
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