Directed by:
Steven Spielberg

Starring:
Harrison Ford as Dr. Henry 'Indiana' Jones, Jr.
Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood
Paul Freeman as Rene Belloq
Ronald Lacey as Toht
John Rhys-Davies as Sallah
Alfred Molina as Sapito
Denholm Elliott as Marcus Brody
Wolf Kahler as Dietrich
Anthony Higgins as Gobler
Vic Tablian as Barranca/Monkey Man

• In the well of souls, you can see hieroglyphics of C-3PO and R2D2 on the wall.

• In the scene on the streets of Cairo, when Marion is kidnapped, Indy is confronted by a man wielding a scimitar. The guy is being very fancy with it, and Indy just shoots him. This was funny, but originally he was supposed to fight him with the whip. Harrison Ford was suffering from a bad case of the flu (another source says he had diarrhea), and asked if the scene could be shortened. Spielberg said the only way he could shorten it was if Indy pulled out his gun and just shot the guy. The entire crew laughed and that's how it was filmed.
  • Comment: I heard that it was Harrison Ford that suggested that he just take out his gun and shoot the guy in the scene where the scimitar-wielding man is challenging him. - Cathy
  • Comment/Addition: It was Harrison's own suggestion. At the time he was suffering from dehydration. Furthermore; the man swinging the scimitar had been practicing for months with the sword and was appalled when he heard about the script-change. (Source: TV program)
  • Addition: The scene where Indy is confronted by a sword-wielding villain which leads to Indy shooting him was actually not in the script. Harrison Ford (Indy) and the actor who played the villain originally rehearsed an elaborate fight scene where Indy would fight with his whip, not his gun. It was extremely hot the day that they were supposed to film the scene, and Harrison was getting impatient. Harrison wanted to get the scene finished as soon as possible. The scene that made it into the film was what Harrison Ford made up on the spot without telling anyone. The actor portraying the swordsman actually, for a moment, thought that Harrison had shot him. I think they resurrected the whip fight scene in Temple of Doom. Indy is confronted with two swordsmen. The catch this time is that Indy doesn't have his trusty gun. In the end he has to use his whip. - swmchristian
    • Comment: Seems very unlikely to me. You don't run around with a loaded gun (not even with blanks) on a movie-set if you are not supposed to fire it in the scene that is in progress. The handling of explosives and ammunition on movie-sets are very strict controlled to prevent accidents. An actor can't load his gun without somebody knowing it. And, if the story, after all, is true, the whole scene must have been reshot, so the "victim" new that he should fall backwards and lay still when Ford fired his gun. - Olav Westerman
  • Comment: Ford actually had dysentary which gives you the runs. (Source: thought it was common knowledge) - Kinderbat13

• Tom Selleck originally cast as Indiana Jones, but was committed to "Magnum P.I." (1980).

• Jock's airplane at the beginning has the registration number "OB-CPO", referring to Obi-wan and C-3PO from Star Wars.

• Ford badly bruised his ribs during the scene where he is dragged behind the truck. When asked if he was worried, Ford quipped: "No. If it really was dangerous, they would have filmed more of the movie first."

• A fly can be seen crawling into Belloq's mouth (and not reappearing) when Indy threatens to blow up the Ark.

• The scene where Indy climbs down under the truck and makes his way to the rear was done by digging a ditch to allow the stuntman room to maneuver without being crushed by the truck above him. - Rick

• Pat Roach, the actor who played the big German Mechanic in the classic fight scene, also appeared as the big Sherpa in the barroom scene. - pat

• In the bar seen where Indy meets with the woman again the club is named club obi wan. - jrel280

• The German submarine was a movieprop built for the German production "Das Boot". Spielberg rented it before it was used in the German movie. When the Germans saw how well the mockup behaved in the sea while used by the Americans, they later tried to film it in rough weather with high waves during the making of "Das Boot", and it sank. - Olav Westerman

• The German flying-wing aircraft in the excavation-area in the desert never existed in real life. It was a mock-up, and the design had the sole purpose to fit the demands of the script. - Olav Westerman
  • Correction: The Germans DID have a flying wing during the Second World War. They actually discovered it had "stealth" capabilities. They were going to use this plane to drop a nuclear bomb on the USA. It flew only once during the latter parts of the war. (Source: History Channel)
    • Explanation: You are both right. Germany had many flying wing designs on the drawing board and in the air by 1945 from several manufacturers. Some prop and even some jets. However, the exact aircraft shown in the movie with the distinctive feature of the rear gunner turret behind the pilot and the down-turned wingtips is not found on any project list. (Source: Website, Luft-46) - jvault

• The flying boat that Indiana Jones climbs onboard for the first part of his journey to Asia was a derelict that lay on land (it later went to a museum). The pier was built on dry land alongside the aircraft, and the water and background were added later by use of some movie-magic. In the flying scenes a model was used. - Olav Westerman

• According to Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford stapled his indy-hat to his head, in order to keep it from flying off during all the action. Spielberg: "George will kill me for saying this, and so will Harrison, but that's how he does it." - Webmaster
  • Comment: Spielberg was, of course, speaking toungue-in-cheek when he made this comment. He was refering to a promotional trailer shown prior to the release of 'Last Crusade.' In the trailer, Ford's hat repeatedly falls off while filming a horseback riding scene. Ford is seen getting down off the horse, picking up a stapler, 'stapling' his hat to head, and then getting back on the horse to finish the scene. It was all just for fun of course. - rick

• When we first see Marion she is having a drinking competition with a rosy-cheeked fella. When his turn to drink comes around and the crowd murmur in excitement, you can hear quite clearly, in the finest east London Gawd Blimey, Lord love a duck accent, implore everyone to "Give him space". I suppose there is no reason why a cockney should not be in a remote mongolian bar. There are Americans and Germans in the same bar within a few minutes after all. - ClausHergscheimer

• Tom Selleck made the comments during an interview that when he couldn't get permission from the Magnum P.I. people to act in Raiders as they feared it would delay shooting on Magnum. But when he got to Hawaii, filming on Magnum was held up by a TV union going on strike and Raiders (which was partly filmed in Hawaii while Tom was there waiting to begin Magnum) was completed before the first TV episode. (Source: Biography TV Series, this was a quote by Tom Selleck) - JohnnyD