Random Stories That Prove Making Of 'Raiders Of Lost Ark' Was An Adventure Behind Scenes Too (12 items)

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  (#5) They Needed A Female Touch To Make The Tarantula Scene Even Creepier

  When Indy and Satipo (Alfred Molina's first role) explore the temple at the start of RotLA, they find themselves covered in tarantulas. At first, the gentle spiders were creepy but not crawly - they refused to move and frustrated Spielberg who thought they appeared fake. The tarantula wrangler explained the spiders were all males and had no reason to be active. A female spider was introduced, exciting the others and sending them skittering.

  Molina later recalled, "They're running onto my face, and Steven is going, 'Shoot! Shoot! Alfred, look scared!' and [I'm all], 'I'm scared! I'm scared!'"
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  (#12) The Same Actor Pilots The Rescue Aircraft In Both 'RotLA' And 'Jurassic Park'

  When Indy narrowly escapes doom at the beginning of RotLA, he does it with the help of his pilot buddy named Jock. Fred Sorenson, who plays Jock, is a professional pilot who brought the plane into the air. Though Jock doesn't appear for the rest of the film, Sorenson pops up in another Spielberg classic. He's the helicopter pilot who saves the survivors at the end of Jurassic Park.

  When Sorenson filmed the Jurassic Park scene, he apparently sang the RotLA theme off-mic during the helicopter take off.
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  (#1) Spielberg Originally Wanted Toht To Be A 'Heavy-Metal' Villain 

  Toht, an antagonist in RotLA, is already an unsettling presence with his high-pitched giggling and burned hand. But Spielberg originally wanted him to be even creepier with a mechanical hand that could turn into an automatic-firing device or projectile torch - a look he described as "heavy-metal."

  Lucas eventually talked Spielberg out of the idea by convincing him it was too close to science-fiction for what they had intended. 
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  (#7) The Same Dog Inspired Both Indiana Jones And Chewbacca

  George Lucas and his then-wife Marcia owned an Alaskan malamute during the 1970s and '80s. The dog was more than simply cute - it was named "Indiana" and inspired the action hero's nickname. This fact was even referenced at the end of The Last Crusade with the line, "We named the dog Indiana."  

  Indiana also inspired Harrison Ford's beloved counterpart in Star Wars, Chewbacca. Thanks to Indiana's habit of sitting in Lucas's passenger seat, the filmmaker decided Han Solo should have a furry creature for a co-pilot, too. 
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  (#2) Spielberg Extended The Temple Sequence At The Beginning Because He Loved The Boulder Prop

  The opening sequence to RotLA is often hailed as one of cinema's best, and the giant boulder that Indy runs from is part of movie history. The scene was originally supposed to be brief, featuring Indy immediately before he exits the temple. Spielberg, however, loved the boulder so much he delayed filming and requested that its track be extended another 50 feet. 

  The RotLA crew obliged and the extended version made it into the film. 
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  (#11) Several Strange Aircraft Inspired The Plane From The Famous Fight Scene 

  When Indy duels with a mechanic in the desert, they are simultaneously avoiding being hit by a nearby plane. This aircraft was made up just for the movie. Though planes with similar features existed in real life, there was nothing quite like the one in RotLA.

  Prop designer Norman Reynolds created the prop with inspiration from actual aircraft, such as the Horten Ho 229, the Northrop N1M, and the Vought V-173. 

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