Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr.

is the title character and protagonist of the Indiana

Jones franchise. George Lucas created the character in homage to the action heroes of 1930s
film serials. The character first appeared in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, to be followed
by Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in 1984, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1989, The
Young Indiana Jones Chroniclesfrom 1992 to 1996, and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal
Skull in 2008. The character is also featured in novels, comics, video games, and other media.
Jones is also featured in several Disney theme parks, including the Indiana Jones
Adventure, Indiana Jones et le Temple du Péril, and Epic Stunt Spectacular! attractions.

Jones is most famously portrayed by Harrison Ford and has also been portrayed
by River Phoenix (as the young Jones in The Last Crusade) and in the television
series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles by Corey Carrier, Sean Patrick Flanery,
and George Hall. Doug Lee has supplied the voice of Jones for two LucasArts video
games, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis and Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine,
David Esch supplied his voice for Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, and John
Armstrong for Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings.[10]
Jones is characterized by his iconic accoutrements
(bullwhip, fedora, satchel,[11][12] and leather jacket), wry sense of humor, deep
knowledge of ancient civilizations and languages, and fear of snakes.
Since his first appearance in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones has become one of
cinema's most famous characters. In 2003, the American Film Institute ranked him the
second greatest film hero of all time.[13] He was also named the 1st Greatest Movie
Character by Empire magazine.[14] Entertainment Weekly ranked Indy 2nd on their list of
The All-Time Coolest Heroes in Pop Culture.[15] Premiere magazine also placed Indy at
number 7 on their list of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. [16]
A native of Princeton, New Jersey, Indiana Jones was introduced as a tenured professor
of archeology in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark, set in 1936. The character is an
adventurer reminiscent of the 1930s film serial treasure hunters and pulp action heroes.
His research is funded by Marshall College (named after producer Frank Marshall), [17] a
fictional college in Connecticut, where he is a professor of archaeology. He also
attended the University of Chicago.
In this first adventure, he is pitted against Nazis commissioned by Hitler to recover
artifacts of great power from the Old Testament (see Nazi archaeology). In
consequence, Dr Jones travels the world to prevent them from recovering the Ark of the
Covenant (see also Biblical archaeology). He is aided by Marion Ravenwood and Sallah.
The Nazis are led by Jones's archrival, a Nazi-sympathizing French archaeologist
named René Belloq, and Arnold Toht, a sinister Gestapo agent.
In the 1984 prequel, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, set in 1935, Jones travels to
India and attempts to free enslaved children and the three Sankara stones from the
bloodthirsty Thuggee cult. He is aided by Short Round, a young boy, and is accompanied
by singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw). The prequel is not as centered on archaeology
as Raiders of the Lost Ark and is considerably darker.
The third film, 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, set in 1938, returned to the
formula of the original, reintroducing characters such as Sallah and Marcus Brody, a
scene from Professor Jones's classroom (he now teaches at Barnett College), the globe
trotting element of multiple locations, and the return of the infamous Nazi mystics, this
time trying to find the Holy Grail. The film's introduction, set in 1912, provided some
back story to the character, specifically the origin of his fear of snakes, his use of
a bullwhip, the scar on his chin, and his hat; the film's epilogue also reveals that
"Indiana" is not Jones's first name, but a nickname he took from the family dog. The film
was a buddy movie of sorts, teaming Jones with his father, Henry Jones, Sr., often to
comical effect. Although Lucas intended to make five Indiana Jones films, Indiana Jones
and the Last Crusade was the last for over eighteen years, as he could not think of a
good plot elementto drive the next installment.[18]
The 2008 film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, is the latest film in the
series. Set in 1957, 19 years after the third film, it pits an older, wiser Indiana Jones
against Soviet agents bent on harnessing the power of an extraterrestrial device
discovered in South America. Jones is aided in his adventure by his former
lover, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), and her son—a young greaser named Henry
"Mutt" Williams(Shia LaBeouf), later revealed to be Jones' unknown child. There were
rumors that Harrison Ford would not return for any future installments and LaBeouf
would take over the Indy franchise.[19] This film also reveals that Jones was recruited by
the Office of Strategic Services during World War II, attaining the rank of Colonel in
the United States Army. He is tasked with conducting covert operations with MI6 agent
George McHale against the Soviet Union.
In March 2016, Disney announced a fifth Indiana Jones film in development, with Ford
and Spielberg set to return to the franchise. Initially set for release on July 10,
2020,[20] the film's release date was pushed back to July 9, 2021[21] due to production
issues.