Indiana Jones / Characters

Here we have the daring heroes and blackhearted villains of the Indiana Jones saga of films, directed by Steven Spielberg and James Mangold, and produced by George Lucas.

Feature films

Television series

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

Video games

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Titular Protagonist

Indiana Jones

Dr. Henry Walton Jones, Jr. (AKA Indiana "Indy" Jones, Henri Defense, etc.)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/indy350.png

"Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?"

Played By (films): Harrison Ford (ages 36–70) | River Phoenix (age 13)

Played By (TV): George Hall (ages 93-94) | Sean Patrick Flanery (ages 16–21) | Corey Carrier (ages 8–10)

Voiced By (games, rides): Dave Temple (Indiana Jones Adventure) | Lee Everest (Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine) | David Esch (Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb) | John Armstrong (Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings) | Troy Baker (Indiana Jones and the Great Circle)

Voiced By (French): Claude Giraud (Raiders of the Lost Ark) | Francis Lax (Temple of Doom) | Richard Darbois (Last Crusade, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Dial of Destiny)

Voiced By (Latin American Spanish): Guillermo Coria (first dub of Raiders of the Lost Ark) | José Lavat (both dubs of Temple of Doom, second dubs of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Last Crusade, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) | Antonio Farré (first dub of The Last Crusade), Carlos Stevenson Jr. (Young Indy, first dub of The Last Crusade), Enzo Fortuny (Young Indy, second dub of The Last Crusade)

Appearances: Raiders of the Lost Ark | Temple of Doom | The Last Crusade | Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | Dial of Destiny | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

"It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage."

The Adventurer Archaeologist.

The main protagonist of the whole franchise. Henry "Indiana" Jones Jr. is an archaeologist who primarily works as an unassuming college professor, however he leads an active double life as a brave explorer who travels around the world in search of ancient artifacts and lost cities. Owing to his experiences as a military spy who fought in both World Wars, he also knows how to fight his way past various enemies he encounters on his adventures.

Absent-Minded Professor: At one point, Indy tries to return to his office and is besieged by students because he hasn't been grading any of their work. He has to climb out the window to escape. Although some of the female students were there for something else...
Ace Pilot: "Fly, yes. Land, no." Interestingly, in Temple of Doom (which is a prequel set in 1935), he says he doesn't know how to fly a plane. However, in the novelisation for Temple of Doom, it's made pretty clear that Indy was joking with Willie that he didn't know how to fly to mess with her. In The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series, he indeed does learn some basic flight skills, but never how to land.
Action Duo: With Short Round, his father, or Mutt. They're all less physically proficient and/or less experienced than the seasoned adventurer Indy, so the look like Action Survivors next to him.
Action Survivor: Indy may have styled himself as an Action Hero, but in practice he's not much more than a slightly-greedy college professor who doesn't know when to quit.
Adventurer Archaeologist: Duh. The Trope Codifier ever since 1981.
Adventurer Outfit: Another Trope Codifier with his flight leather jacket, khaki shirt and pants and most of all Fedora Of Ass Kicking.
Agent Scully: To a point. In Crystal Skull, Indy is a big skeptic about the existence of alien races, and in Raiders, considers The Ark of the Covenant nothing but a fancy gold box, but when the Ark is opened at the end of the film, he insists that he and Marion avert their eyes.
Ancestral Name: Indy's real name is Henry Walton Jones, which he shares with his father, Henry Walton Jones, Sr.
Anti-Hero: He's a Deadpan Snarker and somewhat cynical Knight in Sour Armor, but a good guy at the end of the day. He also counts as a Pragmatic Hero, as he seems to have little qualms about killing if the situation requires it and has shown many times to be a dirty fighter. There's also the fact he did pretty unmentionable things to an underage Marion Ravenwood (although he maintains that Marion was old enough to know full well what they were doing and give consent). In the original script of Raiders he's also prone to fooling around with some of his college students.
Arbitrary Skepticism: Despite the fact that he's encountered many powerful artifacts over the years, he still sneers at the prospect of magical telepathic skulls or any new "mystical" discovery.
Arch-Enemy: Rene Belloq, a rival archaeologist willing to steal from Jones and collaborate with the Nazis to get the glory of discovery without doing the work.
Badass Biker: In The Last Crusade and Dial of Destiny we can see he's quite skilled in riding motorcycles while fightning Nazis.
Badass Bookworm: He can grade your university thesis AND kick your ass.
Badass Normal: No superpowers. Just a large number of Improbable Aiming Skills (you know - the gun, the whip etc. etc.) and being Made of Iron (given how much he has to suffer). He's also survived quite a few supernatural events over the course of the series.
Badass Teacher: However, his college students have little clue of what he's really doing in-between classes.
Been There, Shaped History:
- In The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, if there's anyone who has been written down in history books during the last 100 years, then Indy has probably met/befriended/fallen in love/slept/fought with him or her.
- In Dial of Destiny, he inadvertently helps Archimedes and the Greek earn a small victory in the 213 BCE siege of Syracuse, and gets to have a one-on-one conversation with Archimedes afterward.
Belligerent Sexual Tension:
- With Marion.
- With Willie at first.
Berserk Button: Don't call him "Junior"!
Beware the Nice Ones: Indy is a charming, laid-back guy but he is definitely not to be messed with, a fact those who piss him off often find out the hard way.
Boots of Toughness: Indiana as an Adventurer Archaeologist wears boots, tough enough for stomping killer ants. His teacher persona does not wear them, opting for everyday shoes, not that he'd need them since when he's teaching, he's not expecting anything "adventurey" to happen.
Boxing Battler: While he knows some other styles, he mostly uses boxing methods in fights.
Brainwashed and Crazy: When Mola Ram captures him and doses him with the blood of Kali, Indy becomes callous, sadistic and cruel. Short Round manages to bring him back to normal.
Brave Scot: Indy's got Scottish heritage on his father's side.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He actually is a talented archaeologist, but he also forgets to mark work on a regular basis.
Butt-Monkey: Spielberg intended for him to be this. Indeed, he gets punched by a lot of people, suffers other Amusing Injuries, and is often the butt of the jokes (like at the ending of Last Crusade regarding his name). Indy also tends to suffer even more comical misfortunes in the TV show.
Captain Crash: Indy's a genuinely good pilot, but he's unfortunately quite fuzzy about how to land.
"Fly, yes! Land, no!!"
Character Development: Chronologically, Indy starts off as a greedy treasure hunter interested mainly in fortune and glory. However, in Temple of Doom he learns to appreciate the cultures he investigates and be more altruistic. And in Raiders of the Lost Ark he learns to believe in things greater than himself, and to accept others' faith. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull has him overcome treating women poorly and become faithful to Marion; by the end of the film he's a dedicated family man, and even after their divorce in Dial of Destiny he still remains devoted to her.
Chick Magnet: Wherever Indy goes there are always girls who want him, even his own classroom.
Clueless Chick-Magnet: One of the girls in Indy's class goes so far to write "Love You" on her eyelids to flirt with him. Indy apparently isn't aware of this, as he actually stumbles over his lecture when he sees that and shows no reaction to the other students staring dreamily at him.
Colonel Badass: By the end of World War II.
Cool Old Guy: He's getting on by Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and a certified senior citizen in Dial of Destiny and as those films make clear he's more than capable of kicking ass well into his golden years. He's still a neat guy well into his ninties as depicted in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, even as a retired adventurer.
Combat Pragmatist: Get challenged by a man wielding a large sword? Simply pull out your gun and shoot him. This is a trait he keeps throughout the five films.
Cultured Badass: Equally at home in a Duchess's party as he is in the moldy depths of an ancient ruined city.
Cutting the Knot: Indy's favorite solution to problems tends to include this.
Cynical Mentor: To Mutt Williams.
Deadpan Snarker: Like Han Solo, Harrison Ford again plays a guy who snarks at the weird things he encounters.
Dented Iron: Indy is 70 years old in Dial of Destiny and while he's still fairly spry and strong for a man his age he still struggles to keep up with his much younger opponents and allies. He relies on horseback and vehicles to keep up in a foot chase, gets winded halfway through a short climb and is no longer capable of the extended fistfights he was still able to do even just over a decade earlier.
Determinator: His true strength. Indy isn't Charles Atlas Superpowered like Doc Savage, or a Gadgeteer Genius like MacGyver, or a government trained agent who's world class at everything from seduction to assassination to proper etiquette like James Bond. What he is is the kind of person who, if you shoot him, punch the open wound multiple times, and then smash him through the windshield of a speeding truck... will slide under the truck, let himself be dragged until he comes out the other end, climb back on, and punch you right back.
Disappeared Dad:
- Indy complained that his father was more concerned about artifacts in a museum than his own son. Notably, however, it was Indy that walked out on him.
- Indy himself is one, having walked out on Marion before learning that she was pregnant with Henry Jones III aka "Mutt".
- Disappeared god-dad in the case of Helena but she still holds some resentment against him for walking out of her life when she was only 12.
Disney Death: Similar to Basil from The Great Mouse Detective. In The Last Crusade Indy seems he's fallen to his death in a deep chasm along with Vogel. While his father, Brody, and Sallah peering over the cliff, believing that he died, Indy climbs onto the cliff edge, revealing he's jumped from the tank before it fell.
Do Not Call Me "Paul": One of Indy's most frequent arguments with his father is his insistence on referring to him as "Junior". Why? Because his real name is Henry Jones Jr. He got the nickname "Indiana" from their dog.
Eagleland: Type 1. He's a dashing adventurer who bravely challenges dangerous ruins and wicked Nazis in order to find lost relics and save the day.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Taking into account the TV series never being officially de-canonized, that is how the story of Dr. Jones ends: his adventuring days behind him, living to the ripe old age of 80-90 (if not beyond), retiring to a small town, telling his life stories to anyone willing to listen, cared for by Sophie (a daughter that didn't make it into the movies) and playing with his many grand and great-grand children, while getting hooked on soap operas. It took a long time, but the great Indiana Jones managed to find some peace in the last years of his life.
- Even without the TV series, Indy still has this in the film canon. Successfully rekindling his relationship with the love of his life and becoming a surrogate father to his absent goddaughter and presumably Teddy Kumar, and still contueining his adventures.
Even the Guys Want Him: University professor Indy is being openly lusted over by all his female students, and then one of the males leaves an apple on his desk. Some of his male students in Crusade look at him a bit doe-eyed, too.
Eye Scream: Sometime between 1969 and 1992, he lost his right eye for reasons unknown. Due to Dial of Destiny having an And the Adventure Continues ending, it is not unlikely that the loss of his eye was a contributor to him retiring from adventuring later down the road.
Fatal Flaw: When Indy is going on his adventures, his only focus is the prize. Because of his dogged single-mindedness, his judgment tends to suffer. He chooses unreliable allies, ignores the locals, comes up with half-baked plans to get the object of his hunt quicker, and puts himself and his friends in mortal danger. He does manage to partially overcome this weakness in Raiders of the Lost Ark and finally grows out of it in The Last Crusade.
Fedora of Asskicking: Codified this trope for modern times.
Feeling Their Age: In Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and especially Dial of Destiny, he deals with growing older and feeling out of place in modern times.
Freudian Excuse: His father's neglect and his experiences in World War I are what lead to Indiana becoming jaded and cynical in the present day.
Friend to All Children: Despite his gruff exterior, Indy has a soft spot for children. Do not even think about threatening a child in his presence unless you want to get your ass kicked. In the second movie, Indy didn't originally go to Pankot Palace to stop the Thuggee. His goal was to retrieve the Sankara Stones to gain "Fortune and glory." He only decides to be a hero after discovering the mines where the village children are being used as slaves. He even intervenes to stop a slave master from whipping a boy even though it means blowing his cover and risking capture by the Thuggee. Indy is himself, in many ways, an overgrown child living out his boyhood fantasy.
Friend to All Living Things: With the exception of snakes, many animals don't bother Indy. He even took his name from the family dog.
Genius Bruiser: He's a renowned archaeologist with an encyclopedic knowledge of history, languages and religion and is extremely skilled at thinking on his feet and outsmarting his enemies, as well as a fairly big guy who knows how to fight and can hit like a truck.
Good Is Not Soft: Has a moral compass, but no restrictions on the use of brute force. Or asking the help of shady people.
Good Old Fisticuffs: While he knows other styles, his preferred method of hand to hand fighting is to simply use boxing tactics to pound his enemy relentlessly.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has a noticeable scar on his chin. The Last Crusade reveals that he got it when he was a kid, using a whip to scare off a lion during the circus train chase.
Grief-Induced Split: Dial of Destiny reveals his marriage with Marion fell apart after Mutt's death. They reconcile at the end of the movie, though.
He Cleans Up Nicely: Can pull off a damn fine Tux and three-piece suit when teaching.
Hell-Bent for Leather: One of Indy's most iconic outfit pieces is his leather flight jacket.
Heroes Love Dogs: He adopted his nickname from the family dog, Indiana. When Sallah teases him for it, Indy defensively remarks that he has a lot of fond memories of that dog.
Heroic Ambidexterity: Downplayed. Indy will sometimes perform a remarkable feat (such as disarming someone) with his whip in his right hand while holding or shooting his gun in his left. Typically, however, he will use only whip or gun at one time, and in his dominant hand.
Honor Before Reason:
- In his younger days, as chronicled by the TV series. Becomes cold and jaded in adulthood, but regains this trope after reconciling with his father.
- In Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana could have escaped with his fortune and glory, instead got captured to save a helpless little boy from being whipped to death. Not the smartest of moves, yes; but any illusions of him being a heartless and cynical mercenary disappear at this point, and we cheer for him all the way as he saves all of the children and defeats the evil of Kali-Ma.
Horrible Judge of Character: The number of people who haven't betrayed him is in the single digits. But notably, he is True Companions with everyone who does stay loyal to him.
Hot-Blooded: Best shown by how he counteracts discussions by shouting.
Hot Teacher: The fact his classes have mostly women shows the college finds him that.
Hunk: Tall, muscular, attractive and manly.
Iconic Item: His fedora and bullwhip.
Iconic Outfit: He does wear a wide variety of clothes in the films but he just isn't Indy without the fedora. He's also strongly associated with a leather flight jacket, although he does ditch it in hotter climates such as Egypt and Nevada.
I Know Karate: Indy has shown proficiency in Northern Style Kung Fu in his TV series; though this is not retconned into the movie series proper, Indy has consistently been shown to be skilled in US Marines CQC (Close Quarters Combat, made famous by the Boss and Big Boss) since Temple of Doom; justifiable considering his extended experience in the military.
Indy Hat Roll: Trope Namer. He can leave much behind, but the hat stays!
Indy Ploy: THE Trope Namer. He and his friends frequently lampshade how he does everything on the fly (in Indy's defense, things are often moving so quickly that he doesn't actually have time to come up with a real plan). On his myriad of adventures, Dr. Jones has rarely, if ever, planned things out in advance, but always manages to either escape death or come out on top. He's called the "Patron Saint of Player Characters" for a reason. Examples include:
- At one point in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull it doesn't work, where Indy tries to jump onto a truck and misses.
  Indy: Damn, I thought that was closer.
- Lampshaded later in the film:
  Mutt: What's he gonna do now?
  Marion: I don't think he plans that far ahead.
- And then he pokes his head between them with a RPG-7!!!
  Indy: Scooch over, will you, Son?
  Mutt: [eyes wide] Don't call me, "Son!"
  Indy: [completely ignoring Mutt] I'd cover my ears if I were you!
  [cue Stuff Blowing Up, and then a giant saw blade comes flying at them]''
  Indy: Duck! Duck!
- In the first movie, Sallah asks "What are we going to do now?" to which Indy responds, "I don't know, I'm making this up as I go."
- In-universe, Indy seems to have picked up the "making this up as I go" line almost word-for-word from a group of older gentlemen while on a special mission during WWI (Young Indiana Jones and the Phantom Train of Doom).
  Old Soldier: Youngsters and their plans...
  Young Indy: What's wrong with plans?
  Captain Selous: Nothing. As long as you're willing to adapt when they don't work out.
  Young Indy: Make it up as you go? That'll work...
- He even does this as a teenager - in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, when fellow scout Herman asks how he's going to get the Cross of Coronado away from Fedora and his men, he admits that he doesn't know, but he'll think of something.
- In Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Mac, who knows Indy, immediately assumes playing chicken with vehicles is a really bad idea, because Indy's going to pull something unexpected — in this case, it turns out, pulling himself up and out of the car at the last moment and letting the crash happen.
- Probably his ballsiest (if not outright insane) ploy was in the climax of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Indy is in the middle of a rope bridge, surrounded on both sides by Thuggees. Mola Ram forces Willie and Short Round to go out onto the bridge with him. Indy quickly wraps his leg around a rope railing and yells something in Chinese to Shorty, who quickly wraps his arm likewise and tells Willie:
  Short Round: Hang on lady, we going for a ride!
  (Willie sees Indy raising his sword and realizes what he's going to do)
  Willie: OH MY GOD. Oh my god! Oh my god! (Wraps rope around arm) Oh my god! Is he nuts?!
  Short Round: He no nuts. He crazy!
  Indy: Mola Ram! Prepare to meet Kali! IN HELL!
  (Indy cuts the rope bridge with his sword and the bridge splits in half, sending the Thugees into the river below.)
- Of course, his most infamous Indy Ploy might be the time he escaped a ground zero nuclear test by...climbing into a lead-lined fridge.
- In Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Indy manages to escape from Voller's goons and the CIA simultaneously when they have to lead him through the moon landing parade. He momentarily distracts them by joining an anti-Vietnam War chant from some protestors before wriggling out of the guy holding him's grip and thwacking him with a protestor's sign. He first tries to get a mounted policeman's attention, but when Klaber shoots him Indy instead steals the cop's horse and dashes through the parade. Klaber and Hawke aren't far behind on a commandeered motorcycle and parade car respectively when Indy rides the horse into the subway. He thinks that he's safe by darting out onto the track until a subway train starts rocketing up behind him, and he just barely escapes and makes it onto the next platform. Even after all of that, Mason has almost caught up with him before he slips into the now just-arrived subway train he was running from a moment earlier.
  Indy: [to a passenger on the train] Subway's faster.
It Belongs in a Museum: Trope Namer. He says the line twice in The Last Crusade, first as a teenager Scout and later when Indy is a full-fledged adventurer. Both refer to the same object, the Cross of Coronado. Note that this example falls under both Don't Touch That MacGuffin (again, when Indy says it) and What a Piece of Junk (Panama Hat's retort).
Panama Hat: Dr. Jones, this is the second time I've had to reclaim my property from you.
Indiana Jones: That belongs in a museum!
Panama Hat: So do you!
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Indiana Jones isn't the greatest guy - he's rather cynical and at times a bit angry, he can be greedy and ruthless and he's certainly not above fooling around with the barely legal Marion Ravenwood or (according to Word of God) his college students. But he has a brave and heroic heart, is a good and loyal friend to his companions and will always do the right thing (eventually).
Jumped at the Call: He may be a world-weary cynic but no one optionally does the kind of stuff Indy does without enjoying it just a bit.
Karma Houdini Warranty: One of his less-sympathetic actions is getting involved with Marion when she was seventeen; her father Abner understandably went Papa Wolf and cut Indy out of their lives. Even though Marion is mad at him for stealing her innocence, they reconcile over Raiders of the Lost Ark before he goes on to have other adventures and affairs. Then he finds out in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that Marion became pregnant with his son but didn't tell him because he left her and was irresponsible besides. He visibly has no defense, and Mutt is a high-school dropout who is equally reckless and impulsive, who refuses to acknowledge him as his father at first. Indiana is forced to admit he messed up by leaving the only woman he loved, and works to earn their trust back.
Knight in Sour Armor: He is cynical most of the time, but has his romantic moments as well.
Last of His Kind: If Lucasfilm is spiteful enough to render The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, and therefore the many happy grandchildren from his prior marriage visiting him in the 1990's non-canon, the death of Mutt fighting in The Vietnam War means that Henry Jones Senior's bloodline, and the Jones family, will die with Indy.
Line-of-Sight Name: "Henry Defense" came into being when he was asked to give a name while enlisting for the Belgian Army in World War I, and the French word "Defense' just happened to be on a plate resting on the desk.
Loveable Rogue: Like only Harrison Ford can play. Indy is greedy, cynical, and very comfortable dealing with shady figures, but he's charming and has a strong sense of morality.
Luke, I Am Your Father: In Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Marion reveals that he is actually Mutt's biological father. Overlaps with Luke, You Are My Father since neither party was aware of the relationship.
Made of Iron: Unlike the Eighties Action Hero that followed, Indy's not invincible, and everyone punches him (Ben Burtt noted how the series required him to do a vast library of beating sound effects). The stunts he's forced to do (sliding below a moving truck, falling from a plane in a lifeboat, jumping from a tank that's falling off a cliff, using a refrigerator as a bomb shelter) also proves his toughness.
The Mentor: To Short Round, Mutt and to a lesser extent Helena.
Mighty Whitey: Skirts the line in that he actually wants to preserve and protect the cultures he researches rather than lord and dominate over them.
Mirror Character: Belloq has this speech in Raiders of the Lost Ark that sums up their similarities quite well:
Belloq: You and I are very much alike. Archaeology is our religion, yet we have both fallen from the pure faith. Our methods have not differed as much as you pretend. I am but a shadowy reflection of you. It would take only a nudge to make you like me. To push you out of the light.
Missing Mom: Indy's mother died while he was at a young age.
More than Just a Teacher: He is an archaeology professor who moonlights as a badass treasure hunter.
Mr. Fanservice: In The Temple of Doom in particular, he has a Walking Shirtless Scene.
My Greatest Failure: He tells Helena it was letting Mutt go to Vietnam; he didn't come back.
Omniglot:
- Latin, Greek, Japanese, German, Mayan, Egyptian, French, Spanish, Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese, Irish, Vietnamese, Hungarian, Hindi, Dutch, Old English, Quechua, and even American Sign Language. In Young Indiana Jones, 19-year-old Indy claims he speaks 27 languages, and he probably had learned many more by the time the films are set. This trope largely came about in the sequels and prequels; in Raiders of the Lost Ark, scriptwriter Lawrence Kasdan intended Indy to be rather poor with foreign languages, which is why Belloq sneers at his inability to speak Hovitos, and he needs someone else to translate the Staff of Ra headpiece inscription.
- In Dial of Destiny he gets to really show this off by having an intelligible conversation with Archimedes himself in Ancient Greek.
One-Man Army: Is able to hold his own against large crowds (be it Nazis, Thuggee, or Soviets).
One True Love: There may have been other women in his life, but Indy's heart belongs to Marion Ravenwood.
Marion: I'm sure I wasn't the only one to go on with my life! There must have been plenty of women for you over the years.
Indy: There were a few, yeah, but they all had the same problem.
Marion: Oh yeah? What's that??
Indy: They weren't you, honey.
Only Known by Their Nickname: All of his friends consistently refer to him as "Indiana" or "Indy". It wasn't until the third movie that people learned his first name is actually Henry, and that he got his nickname from their dog.
Sallah: What does it mean, this "Junior"?
Henry: That's his name. (Points to himself) Henry Jones... (points at Indy) Junior.
Indy: I like Indiana.
Henry: We named the dog "Indiana".
Sallah: The dog? You are named after a dog?! (Laughs)
Indy: (deadpan) I've got a lot of fond memories of that dog.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: At the beginning of the third movie Marcus notes it is uncharacteristic of Indy to be so concerned about his father.
Outliving One's Offspring: As revealed in Dial of Destiny, his son Mutt predeceased him, dying in Vietnam.
Papa Wolf:
- He's incredibly protective of Short Round, willing to put himself in harms way just to keep him safe.
- Although he's only Helena's god-father he still travels half-way around the world to protect her (and by extension Teddy).
- And of course, to Mutt. When he thinks that Mutt is simply Marion's son, Indy looks out for him like anyone else with him on an adventure, but when he learns the truth, the trope is embodied full-on.
Part-Time Hero: A passing line from one of his students in the first movie mentions "all that travel" Indy does. Save the world from Nazis on Sunday, midterm on Monday, sure, why not?
Pragmatic Hero: While Indy is ultimately a good person, he's a Combat Pragmatist, not reluctant to kill when he thinks it's necessary.
Punch-Clock Hero: In the first movie. Unlike the government officials who hire him, Indy primarily wants to recover the Ark for its historical value, and to prevent his rival Belloq from obtaining it, and doesn't seem to believe it has supernatural powers and could be weaponized by the Nazis.
Refuge in Audacity: In The Last Crusade, when a Nazi officer is searching for him and his father aboard a blimp they have just boarded, Indy disguises himself as a ticket taker and audaciously demands a ticket from the officer. When the officer fails to produce a ticket, he beats the snot out of him and chucks him out of the blimp before quipping "No ticket."
Revolvers Are Just Better: Has a preference for .45 revolvers^note over semiautomatic pistols, despite them being widely available in the USA at the time his films are set and being the standard sidearms of most of the villains. It emphasizes his old-fashioned sensibilities and the Genre Throwback nature of his franchise.
Save the Villain:
- In Temple of Doom, Indy actually tries to save the slave driver from being crushed in a rock crusher. Apparently even that was too horrific of a fate to condemn him too.
- In The Last Crusade, he tries desperately to save Elsa from falling into the crumbling abyss, but the villain's lust for the grail prevents him.
Sesquipedalian Smith: The Trope Codifier. His impressive first name, Indiana, contrasts his mundane surname, Jones.
Signature Headgear: Can you imagine Indy kicking ass without his trademark fedora? Didn't think so. Word of God states that as long as Indy's hat is on his head, he's effectively immortal.
Silver Fox: In the fourth and fifth movie he's in early sixties-seventies but he's still an handsome-looking man.
Special Person, Normal Name: "Henry Jones, Jr." is not a particularly extraordinary-sounding name. No wonder he prefers "Indiana".
Tall, Dark, and Handsome: In the first three movies he's tall, brown-haired and very easy on the eyes. In the last twos he's a Silver Fox.
Tall, Dark, and Snarky:..and he's also prone to snark at almost everything.
Took a Level in Kindness: Over the course of the films, Indy gradually changes from a greedy and mercenary treasure hunter into an altruistic hero. While never losing his rough personality, he learns to prioritize others over himself and to move past his tendency for brief flings to become a devoted family man.
War Hero: He served in both World Wars by doing espionage work.
General Bob Ross: Do you have any idea how many medals this son of a bitch won?
Weapon Specialization: Always carries a whip. And the first time he tried to use it, the result was the famous scar on Harrison Ford's chin...
Weight and Switch: The Trope Maker. He performs the trick in Raiders Of The Lost Ark (unfortunately the bag proves too heavy after a Hope Spot: the trap goes off, leading directly to the Indy Escape), and as mentioned above, every other example of this trope seems to be presented and/or interpreted as a reference to it.
"Well Done, Son" Guy: The Last Crusade shows he resents his father's absence. While the two frequently argue, it's clear Indy wants Henry's respect and for him to actually express love for him.
What You Are in the Dark: Towards the end of Temple of Doom, Indy could easily escape Mola Ram's mine with no consequence to himself, but he chooses to stay behind and rescue the enslaved children instead.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?:
- Trope Namer, in that getting to the Ark meant going into a room loaded with them.
- He finds he's not too fond of eels and how similar to snakes they seem either, in Dial of Destiny.

Recurring Allies

Marion Ravenwood

Marion Ravenwood/Williams/Jones

"Until I get back my five thousand dollars, you're gonna get more than you bargained for."

Played By: Karen Allen

Voiced By (Latin American Spanish): Patricia Palestino (first dub of Raiders of the Lost Ark) | Anabel Méndez (second dub of Raiders of the Lost Ark, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)

Appearances: Raiders of the Lost Ark | Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | Dial of Destiny

"Well, Jones, at least you haven't forgotten how to show a lady a good time!"

Indy's on-again, off-again girlfriend (and eventually his wife). She plays a prominent role helping him in his quest to find the Ark of the Covenant. Over two decades later, they reunite for another quest to find the Crystal Skull of Akator; where it's revealed that she and Indy had conceived an illegitimate son, Mutt Williams.

Action Girl: Actually helps in Indy's battles, quite unlike the Damsel in Distress staple to "normal" pulp adventures. She actually manages a higher body count than Indy in Raiders, especially when she is trapped in the flying wing, sees a truck of soldiers approaching, and immediately gets into the gun seat and mows them down.
Adventure Duo: With Indy in Raiders and Crystal Skull.
Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Indy, of course. She punches him in the face when he first shows up in her bar.
Bound and Gagged: In both movies she appears in. Well, the first two.
The Bus Came Back: After Raiders, Marion is neither featured nor even mentioned in any films until Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Probably because she was too busy raising her and Indy's son. Admittedly, Temple Of Doom takes place before the events of Raiders, so she'd still be in Nepal, while her absence in Last Crusade isn't explored until the 4th film.
Damsel in Distress: Marion has that unusual ability to attract danger to herself that places her in many dangerous situations, luckily Indy is able to bail her out of them.
Deadpan Snarker: She has her moments of snark, mostly directed at Indy's (who's very snarky himself) unusual mannerisms.
Defiant Captive: She must have a lot of nerve to face a sadistic torturer like Toht and blow smoke in his face. And if you look carefully when she comes off the Nazi sub, her guard has several bandages, his arm's in a sling, and is clearly being very careful about keeping her covered.
Demoted to Extra: Goes from being the Deuteragonist in Raiders and a prominent supporting character in Crystal Skull to only having one scene in Dial of Destiny.
Disney Death: In Raiders, Indy thinks she's dead when the truck she was thrown in while she was in a basket explodes. But he finds her alive at the Tanis site since they have switched baskets.
Drives Like Crazy: In Crystal Skull she not only ends up taking part in the chase by driving one of the amphibious cars used by the Communists, she ends up driving one of them off a cliff with the rest of the Jones family in it. All the while smiling as she does.
Establishing Character Moment: She gets two, the first in Raiders of the Lost Ark when she out drinks a guy twice her size in a shot for shot contest. The second is in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. As soon as she's introduced we don't see her throughout most of the movie and even Mutt was a little vague about her full name. Upon re-introducing her we still don't see her, but we can hear her defiance prior to meeting Indy again the first time in years. Of course unlike Raiders, she's not surprised Indy showed up this time.
Marion: Get your hands off me you rotten Russkie son of a bitch!!! [emerges from tent, sees Indy] ...Indiana Jones. 'Bout time you showed up.
First Girl Wins: Given the backstory in "Raiders", Marion WAS Indy's girlfriend before Willie. It was the reason why Indy and Abner had a falling out. Although this relationship takes on a darker tone when one realizes that Indiana and Marion's relationship started when she was 17 and he was 27. When they meet again, ten years later, Marion chastises Jones, stating, "I was a child! I was in love! It was wrong and you knew it!" Jones shows little remorse, and simply replies "You knew what you were doing." It gets worse when you realize that George Lucas originally wanted her to be 11 when they first met.
Grief-Induced Split: Dial of Destiny reveals her marriage with Indy fell apart after Mutt's death. They reconcile at the end of the movie, though.
Hard-Drinking Party Girl: Wins a drinking contest in her bar, then later holds her own against Belloq - who grew up on the high-proof spirits made by his family.
Heroic BSoD: Described as being inconsolable with grief after Mutt's death. At the end of Dial of Destiny she comes back to Indy - clearly still grieving, but now determined to fix things with her husband.
Hot-Blooded: A rare female example.
Marion: JONES, DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE ME HERE BY MYSELF!
I Have Your Wife: She's used as a hostage in Crystal Skull. The Big Bad in that somehow tracked her down, kidnapped her, and delivered her to the prison camp to get Indiana to cooperate. Mutt was willing to sacrifice his life to help Indiana withstand torture, but he and Indiana wouldn't risk his mother's life.
The Lad-ette: Drinks a lot, punches people, and fits perfectly with the boys.
Lady Swears-a-Lot: There isn't a lot of swearing in the series, but an awful lot of it comes out of her mouth.
Ms. Fanservice: In Raiders especially in her white dress and bare feet. Even in The Crystal Skull she hasn't lost her beauty.
Outliving One's Offspring: As revealed in Dial of Destiny, her son Mutt predeceased her, dying in Vietnam.
Slap-Slap-Kiss: More like "kiss-slap-slap-kiss" since she and Indy were an item long before she was angry enough to slug him.
Took a Level in Badass: She starts out capable enough but grows more and more confident as Raiders goes on, and by the time Kingdom rolls around, she's casually driving amphibious trucks off of cliffs to escape pursuers.
Tomboy: is as much of an adventurer and fighter as any of the guys in the series
Tsundere: Throughout Raiders. In Crystal Skull, during a heated argument with Indy, he comments that all the women he has been involved with since Marion had one problem, "They weren't you, honey". Cue Marion immediately grinning like a schoolgirl.
What the Hell, Hero?:
- She is not pleased that Indiana romanced her when she was just a kid; 17 to be precise. Neither was her father, given he went Papa Wolf on finding out. During the movie, she keeps calling out Indiana for being pragmatic to the point of keeping her tied and gagged in a Nazi war camp and only forgives him when he keeps risking his life to rescue her.
- This is why she didn't tell Indiana that she was carrying his child. She was mad that he left her without even a customary phone call to go off on the next adventure and find another romantic dalliance; a man like that wouldn't make a good father. When they reunite and are arguing while tied up, Marion tells him that if he had cared, he wouldn't have left in the first place.
When She Smiles: Marion often has a somewhat cynical outlook, but when she smiles it's downright heartwarming.

Henry Jones Sr.

Dr. Henry Walton Jones, Sr.

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/henry_9.jpg

Played By (film): Sean Connery (old) | Alex Hyde-White (young)

Played By (TV): Lloyd Owen

Voiced By: Lewis McLeod (Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings)

Voiced By (Latin American Spanish): Victor Máres (Last Crusade, first dub) | Blas García (Last Crusade, second dub)

Appearances: Last Crusade | Young Indiana Jones

"This is intolerable!"

Indy's estranged Scottish father, who is also a history professor much like his son. The two of them had a major falling out during Indy's teenage years, due to the death of Anna Jones (their wife/mother) and Indy's decision to run away from home to spend three years in war-torn Europe. However the two of them have to reunite (and reconcile) during a quest to find the Holy Grail.

Action Duo: Ends up forming one with his son out of necessity to survive pursuing Nazis in The Last Crusade.
Action Survivor: Starts out as one, as he's a bumbling professor who is forced to survive Indy's usual violent adventures.
Adventure Archaeologist: In The Last Crusade, Jones Sr. is shocked to see his son ruthlessly gun down Nazi soldiers and is bewildered by their constant brushes with death, but eventually gets into the swing of things.
Ascended Fanboy: A professor of medieval literature, a specialist in Arthurian and Grail lore, and a devout Christian, he gets to retrace the steps of his heroes and confirm that the Holy Grail was real.
Badass Bookworm: He's more bookish than his son, but he has a few instances of daring, most evident when he takes command of a tank gun to blow up a car full of Nazis.
Badass in a Nice Suit: Always dressed in his three-piece and gets a few moments to shine against the Nazis.
Berserk Button:
- He's actually even more of a crusading antifascist than his son (or at least more vocal about it), which is an absolutely remarkable achievement considering his son. According to expanded universe materials, he isn't terribly fond of communists either.
- Committing blasphemy in his presence will get you slapped. Indy learned this the hard way.
- As his epic rebuttal to Vogel shows, he is absolutely enraged by book burning.
  Vogel: What does the diary tell you that it does not tell us?
  Henry: It tells me that goose-stepping morons like yourself should try reading books instead of burning them!
Beware the Nice Ones: He's at least a nominal Christian who doesn't approve of some of Indy's methods, like killing. Or blaspheming, for that matter. Then he makes a Nazi plane crash and blows up an entire truck full of Nazi soldiers simply justifying that "It's war!"
Bumbling Dad: He's a little out of his depth when it comes to hundreds of Nazis trying to kill him and his son. He gets better at it, though.
Bus Crash: He's mentioned in the fourth film to have died sometime after the third. This is because Sean Connery refused to come out of retirement just to make a cameo.
Captain Obvious: Has a tendency to point out the obvious, particularly when things go south.
Henry: These people are trying to kill us!
Indy: I know, dad!
Henry: It's a new experience for me.
Indy: Happens to me all the time!
Casting Gag: Indy's father is played by Sean Connery, famous for playing James Bond. Bond himself was one of the biggest inspirations for Indy's character, making him a metaphorical "father" as well.
Character Catchphrase: Exclaims "This is intolerable!" more than once to exclaim his displeasure with things.
Deadpan Snarker: Runs strong in the Jones family.
Henry: Our situation has not improved.
Establishing Character Moment:
- In the present, he smashes a vase over his son's head, and is immediately more concerned about the vase.
- In the prologue, not being interested in hearing Indy tell him about getting the Cross of Coronado, being wrapped up in writing his grail diary.
Fantasy-Forbidding Father: The proximate cause of his falling out with his son was Indy choosing to attend the University of Chicago rather than Princeton as his father had planned for him. (Though this is the last straw more than the real reason.)
Fatal Flaw: Much like his son, Henry is often single minded in his goals and his interests. This has caused his familial relationships to become strained, but he grows past this as The Last Crusade moves along.
Foil: To Indy.
- Henry is a lifelong academic while Indy, though also a respected professor in his own right, is more of a field man. This also informs their worldviews: Henry runs on Black-and-White Morality, while his son is more of an Unscrupulous Hero and Moral Pragmatist. Notably, when we see Henry in the field during the Young Indiana Jones series, it's in the context of large, well-funded, completely legitimate expeditions, while Indy is much more comfortable robbing an ancient temple before his black marketing rival can get to it or negotiating with a gangster who has an artifact he wants.
- However, their common points are as important as their differences. Both of them are obsessed with the knowledge of long-dead civilizations. Both of them retain a moral compass that many in their field lack, and try to ensure that the artifacts they chase down end up in a museum enriching humanity's knowledge of itself rather than in a private collection. They also share a determination to follow both this obsession and this moral compass wherever it leads them, no matter how much trouble may result. Finally, both of them care a great deal for each other, despite a very troubled past.
The Fundamentalist: A downplayed example. He tends to subscribe to Black-and-White Morality, values his work so highly that he often prioritized it over his family, and is highly and vocally judgmental of people whose politics he views as evil. Though since those people are Nazis, he doesn't get much pushback on that last one.
Hands-Off Parenting: This was his approach to raising Indy, avoiding being overly involved or a disciplinarian and leaving Indy to his own devices. The two have very different views on such behavior. Henry believes he respected Indy's privacy and helped him learn to be self-sufficient while Indy saw him as distant and uninterested in being a parent, preferring to devote himself to his work.
Hidden Depths:
- He's clearly out of his element in Indy's world of fisticuffs and gunfights, but he adapts to it fairly quickly once the initial shock has passed. Bringing down a Messerschmidt by frightening a flock of seagulls into its path is a standout example: even Indy's shocked speechless.
- While his approach to parenting was somewhat questionable, he is surprisingly progressive-minded in that he was never a rigid disciplinarian towards his son, especially notable given the time of Indy's childhood when such parenting was the norm, and generally had a more respectful attitude towards his son than was common at the time.
Indy Ploy: Apparently it's hereditary. He manages to down a plane by scaring a flock of seagulls in The Last Crusade after a random thought. "I suddenly remembered my Charlemagne."
Immigrant Patriotism: Scottish by birth, American by naturalization (and marriage). This trope is why he didn't suspect Donovan until it was too late: he knew the man was greedy and amoral, but it was unthinkable to him that this would extend to selling out his own country, least of all to the Nazis.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's pretty cold, but it's clear he really does love Indy, and he does everything that he can to stop the Nazis from getting the Holy Grail.
The Lancer: To Indy in Crusade, acting as a foil to his son and assisting him in his adventure.
The Load: Do not let Henry Sr. near anything that fires bullets. Subverted later on, regardless of what Indy may think.
My Greatest Failure: It's implied that he thinks of his wife's death as this.
Indy: This is an obsession, Dad, I never understood it! Never! Neither did Mom.
Henry: Oh yes she did. Only too well. Unfortunately. She kept her illness from me, until all I could do was mourn her.
Nerd Action Hero: Unlike his son, Henry Sr. is a more traditional archaeologist, and also considerably older. He's still capable of some brilliant feats.
Never My Fault:
- He has a real problem with admitting his flaws. The novelization notes that even his admission to Indy that he's partly responsible for his wife's death is an enormous moment for him, something Indy had never heard from him in twenty years.
- A humorous example in the airplane chase, when Henry tries to return fire and ends up accidentally blasting his own rudder full of bullets. Since Indy's facing the other way, he doesn't see what happened but can immediately tell that the aircraft's in difficulty.
  Indy: Dad? Are we hit?
  Henry: ...More or less. Son, I'm sorry: they got us.
Not So Above It All: He starts out stern and no-nonsense, reacting with disapproving stares to his son's heroics, and not a bit aghast at the destruction he leaves in his wake; the first time he sees a gunfight, he has to be dragged away by Indy while spluttering "look what you did!" By the time of the tank battle, he's fully embraced the world of an action-adventure hero.
Older Sidekick: Being Indy's father, he's quite obviously his senior. During The Last Crusade, he's clearly out of his depth in an action-packed adventure, and so Indy takes the lead for the most part.
Old Friend: With Marcus Brody, who he has met and befriended when the two were students at Oxford, with Marcus even saying that he and Henry have been friends since forever and when the two reunite they salute each other with their own unique greeting.
Papa Wolf: He was a Disappeared Dad, but once reunited with Junior does everything possible to save Indy.
Parasol of Pain: As the German fighter pilot above found out the hard way...
Parental Neglect: One of the main complaints of his son about his childhood. His Establishing Character Moment has him punishing a young Indy for disturbing his studies by making "Junior" count to twenty in Greek while totaling ignoring that several mooks and the police have just chased his son all the way home. In Henry Sr's, mind, this is subverted since he believes he was a wonderful father for respecting his son's privacy and teaching him to be self-reliant. Indy clearly doesn't share this sentiment and accuses him of caring more about the Grail than he does about his own son.
The Pen Is Mightier: Manages to incapacitate a Nazi with his fountain pen, leading Marcus to bring up the famous quote in response.
Real Life Writes the Plot:
- Had to be written out of the fourth movie due to Sean Connery's retirement from acting.
- His initial casting is itself a minor example: Steven Spielberg has said that he was looking for an actor who could believably intimidate Harrison Ford on screen. There weren't many of those.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: He's very good at these.
Henry: I misjudged you, Walter. I knew you would sell your mother for an Etruscan vase. But I didn't know you would sell your country and your soul, to the slime of humanity.
Took a Level in Badass: In The Last Crusade. He is initially portrayed as a Grumpy Old Man with discomfort and lack of experience in Indy's adventures (he sets the room on fire, he shoots the tail of his own plane with the machine gun, etc.). But moreover he reveals his hidden skills, becoming more like his son and evolving into an adventurer — he manages to crash a Nazi airplane by making a flock of seagulls fly into the air, he blinds a Nazi soldier with ink from his pen and he even blows away a whole truckload of enemies.
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Only in his case, it's rats. He hates them with the same intensity Indy hates snakes. His enthusiasm at learning Indy discovered one of the clues to the grail evaporates when Indy mentions what the catacomb was filled with.

Marcus Brody

Professor Marcus Brody

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brody_tlc_9007.JPG

Played By: Denholm Elliott

Dubbed By: Raoul Guillet (European French, 1981), Jacques Ciron (European French, 1989), Ernesto Casillas (Latin Spanish, 1981), Guillermo Romano (Latin Spanish, 1989), Jesse Conde (Latin Spanish, 2008)

Appearances: Raiders of the Lost Ark | The Last Crusade

"You know Marcus, he got lost once in his own museum."

Indy's friend and a fellow history professor, who is the dean of Marshall College's archaeology department.

Absent-Minded Professor: Smart enough to become the Dean of Archaeology at Marshall University, and yet can get lost inside his own museum, if Indy's word is to be believed.
Ascended Extra: Only appeared at the beginning and end of Raiders. In Last Crusade, he joins Indy on the adventure.
Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Despite his odd traits, he is shown to be quite skilled within his element, namely research and investigation. He thinks to check the elder Jones's mailbox to see how long he was gone, immediately makes the connection between the stained glass in the museum and the one in the Grail Diary (outlining it for the audience), and helps Indy interpret the map within said diary.
The Character Died with Him:invoked Denholm Elliott's death was written into the fourth film.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's quite absent-mindend and comically inept at times, but he surprisingly shows to have some guts like being a Defiant Captive to Donovan and the Nazis and being brave enough to hit a Nazi soldier with a shell showing determination in the process.
Cloudcuckoolander: See Absent-Minded Professor.
Deadpan Snarker: He has one very bief moment in Last Crusade.
Donovan: Care to wet your whistle, Marcus?
Marcus: I'd rather spit in your face, but as I haven't got any spit...
Defiant Captive: Despite being held captive by Donovan and his Nazi cohorts for a good part of the third act of The Last Crusade, Marcus doesn't hesitate to talk back to them.
Walter Donovan: Care to wet your whistle, Marcus? (Holds up a water canteen)
Marcus: I'd rather spit in your face, but as I haven't got any spit...
(...)
Walter Donovan: Well Marcus, we're on the verge of the recovery of the greatest artifact in the history of mankind!
Marcus: (coldly) You're meddling with powers you can't possibly comprehend.
Epic Fail: That "lost in his own museum" bit? The Ultimate Guide reveals that he got lost in the archives room specifically... One single room. Possibly justified, in that museum archives are seldom ever small and sometimes consist of multiple floors.
Expy: Since the first movie was partially Spielberg's attempt to make his own James Bond movie, Brody is essentially Indy's version of M; the protagonist's unflappable boss who provides exposition and sends the main character on his quest.
Flanderization / The Fool: From a slightly absent-minded professor who was implied to have Indy-like adventures himself to someone who needed to be handheld through every situation. Somewhat justified in that, as Indy points out, he is way out of his element.
Hero of Another Story: It was implied in Raiders that Brody used to be an Adventurer Archaeologist, lamenting that he'd be going after the Ark himself if he'd been younger. His bumbling in Last Crusade, however, makes this seem rather unlikely. Given the fact that he can only speak English and Ancient Greek, it gives off the implication that his adventures were restricted to the English-speaking world.
Large Ham: Not so much in the way he speaks, but in the third movie, his facial expressions are hilariously over the top. But it was Denholm Elliott, so that's to be expected.
The Load: Not all of the time, but in The Last Crusade he is quite absent minded.
Nice Guy: A very friendly guy who was something of a father figure to Indy as a child.
Noodle Incident: The incident where he got lost in his own museum. It is never elaborated on so for all we know it happened in the dark of night during a power outage on Marcus' first day there. The Ultimate Guide specifies that he got lost in the museum's archive room specifically making the "where" less ambiguous but the "how" and "why" remains so.
Old Friend: With Henry Jones Sr, who he claims that he have been friends with since forever. Supplementary materials reveal that they have known each other and been friends all the way back to their college years in Oxford. They also have their own unique secret greeting.
Reasonable Authority Figure: The Dean of Archaeology at Marshall University. He is largely supportive of Indy's exploits, to the extent he's willing to try to accept some less impressive artifacts from Indy when Belloq stole his main prize in the form of the Hovitos Idol.
Too Dumb to Live: Acts extremely clueless when being approached by undercover Nazis blatantly telegraphing their intent to kidnap him, to the point Sallah has to repeatedly tell him to run.
Sallah: (smiles to the bad guys) Papers? Of course... (to Marcus) Run.
Marcus: (stands around looking clueless) ...Yes?
Sallah: Papers. (takes out a newspaper) Got it here. Just finished reading it myself... (trying to provide cover for an escape) Run.
Marcus: (STILL clueless) ...Yes?
Sallah: "Egyptian Mail," morning edition. (exasperated, to Marcus) Run!
Marcus: Did you say, uh...
Sallah: (punches one of the bad guys) RUN!
Took a Level in Badass: Though in the first movie he lamented that if he was as young as Indy he would have went on his adventure. Though most people who see Crusade have labeled him a clumsy oaf that got lost in his own museum; he was willing to put his complaint in Raiders aside to help Indy rescue Henry. He even had enough cojones to knock a Nazi out with an Artillery shell.

Sallah el-Kahir

Sallah Mohammed Faisel el-Kahir

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1200_9.jpg

Played By: John Rhys-Davies

Voiced By: Bob Joles (Indiana Jones Adventure)

Dubbed By: Albert de Médina (European French, 1981), Jacques Frantz (European French, 1989), Eduardo Borja (Latin Spanish, 1981), Alejandro Abdalah (Latin Spanish, 1989), Rubén Moya (Latin Spanish, 2008)

Appearances: Raiders of the Lost Ark | The Last Crusade | The Dial of Destiny

"I'm so pleased you're not dead!"

Indy's Egyptian friend, who is an excavator of archaeological sites. He helps him with his quests for the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy Grail.

The Big Guy: Does the heavy stuff for Indy.
Boisterous Bruiser: A large man, fond of singing and beating up Gestapo agents in equal measure. He's very rarely upset.
The Bus Came Back: Despite sitting out Temple of Doom and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Sallah returned for both The Last Crusade and The Dial of Destiny.
Cool Old Guy: He’s a grandfather by the time of The Dial of Destiny, but he still is capable of helping Indy out in his time of need and is willing to go along with Indy on his journey, though Indy shoots that idea down.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's Big Fun and a jolly sort, and comes across as something of Fat Comic Relief in his scenes. But he's also a skilled fighter, and surprisingly observant without drawing attention to himself: he perfectly memorizes the headpiece Belloq makes with only a few glances, and, in the medallion translation sequence, is quick-witted enough to notice the dead monkey on the floor, immediately deduce that the food in the room has been poisoned ("Bad dates"), and effortlessly snatch one of the fruits from mid-air just as Indy is about to eat it. He also knows that the guy who meets him and Brody in Iskenderun is up to no good, as he mentions a museum that doesn't really exist.
Cuddle Bug: Sallah really likes to hug the people that he cares about, and it doesn't make him any less manly!
Cultured Badass: He's fond of Gilbert and Sullivan musicals.
Deadpan Snarker: Of Indy's caliber.
Sallah: Asps. Very dangerous. (to Indy) You go first.
Expy: Inspired by Falstaff.
Fake Nationality: Despite being Egyptian, he's played by the Welsh John Rhys-Davies.
Family Man: He's married and has quite a few kids. He's a grandfather by the time of The Dial of Destiny and appears to be as loving and supportive as he was back in the day.
Gentle Giant: A nice fellow - though one who can survive well in a fight.
The Glomp: Sallah's specialty in Raiders.
Happily Married: Has a loving wife and several children, whom he loves very much. The sentiment very much extends to his grandchildren when he returns in The Dial of Destiny.
Large Ham: John Rhys-Davies portrays Sallah as a very boisterous man large in size and demeanor, capable of delivering some very passionate line deliveries.
Nice Guy: A genuinely friendly and loyal person that saves Indy's hide a few times.