Indiana Jones is arguably the franchise that established Harrison Ford as the industry legend that he is, along with his time as Han Solo in George Lucas’ other great venture, Star Wars. When people think about Indiana Jones, they usually reminisce about an adventurous professor, an archaeologist with a heart of gold and a strong, virtuous moral code. However, it appears George Lucas, who contributed toward the creation of the character alongside Steven Spielberg, had a very different characterization in mind.
George Lucas originally envisioned the character as a soldier of fortune, an archaeologist who sells his finds to make large sums of money and fund a lavish, exotic lifestyle, sort of like a classic rogue archetype. However, Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford envisioned the character quite differently, which led to the version of the archaeologist that fans have become familiar with in the films.
George Lucas was against the idea of a ‘goody-two-shoes’ Indiana Jones
As reported in George Lucas: A Life by Brian Jay Jones, the Star Wars creator clashed with Steven Spielberg multiple times when it came to Indiana Jones’s characterization. The book revealed:
It also better defined the character to Spielberg’s and Ford’s liking; while Lucas continued to argue that Indy should be a morally ambiguous soldier of fortune who sold artifacts to finance an exotic lifestyle, Last Crusade’s opening sequence at last showed Indy to be a historical activist at heart, committed to preserving relics in a museum, where they belonged. Lucas could only shake his head in quiet objection. The argument was lost for good.
Spielberg wanted the character to have more noble intentions, and Harrison Ford was able to craft the more rugged aspects of the character without molding him into a complete rogue. However, Lucas was defiant till the end when it came to the character’s original idea, and would only go ahead with Steven Spielberg’s version of the character reluctantly.
George Lucas’ version of Indiana Jones sounded a lot like Han Solo
The Indiana Jones that George Lucas had in his mind was an opportunist, someone who was in the business to make a quick buck and get out fast, while also having an adventure along the way. This is no different from Han Solo, who was also in the business that he was in for the money and nothing else.
It is unknown if Lucas’ Indiana Jones would have had a change of heart as the films went on, but it is safe to assume that there would be some sense of loyalty and honor that would develop in the character as he goes through the films, perhaps even abandoning his ways to become part of something bigger than himself, just like Han Solo. Of course, this is all pure speculation and Jones could have remained a lovable rogue, but audiences will never know, given that that version of the character never came alive.
Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade can be streamed on Disney+
