Steven Spielberg and George Lucas were already two of the most exciting young directors in Hollywood by the late ’70s. Their films Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Star Wars redefined the mainstream and earned critical praise as well. When they joined forces, the result was the first installment in the Indiana Jones saga, Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Initially thought by Lucas as a revival of the early 20th-century serial genre, the film revitalized action films which were in much need of modernization. Along with its nonstop action, it featured great performances by the cast in which not only Harrison Ford delivered great acting work. A surprise hit, the film went on to become the highest-grossing picture of 1981.
Raiders of the Lost Ark introduces archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones into the world, as he fights Nazis in a race to find the long-lost Ark of the Covenant, which could make any army unstoppable. Along the way, Indy teams up with his former love interest Marion (Karen Allen), and faces his archeological rival Dr. René Belloq (Paul Freeman) who is aiding the Nazis in their quest.
6 Harrison Ford
As one of the most important Hollywood legends alive, Harrison Ford is celebrating his eight decades by keeping up a string of stellar performances at the heart of the movie industry. His career which started in the late ’60s has been synonymous with action-packed blockbusters that have captivated audiences for over five decades. His big break with Star Wars was followed by his performances as Indiana Jones in the mentioned Raiders of the Lost Ark and its four sequels, Rick Deckard in the Blade Runner films, and a diverse range of movies from romantic comedies to complicated dramas and thrillers.
Today, Ford is busy as ever, leading the Yellowstone spin-off 1923, which is headed into its second season, as well as the Apple TV+ comedy series Shrinking. The next years will see him become part of the MCU as he will take on the role of Thaddeus Ross left by the departed William Hurt.
5 Paul Freeman
Indiana Jones’ antagonist in Raiders, René Belloq was a charismatic figure who represented the opposite ideals of the film’s protagonist. The actor behind Belloq, Paul Freeman, is a classical-trained theater actor whose career is still very much active. He made his first forays into acting appearing in advertisements and small theater productions of Shakespeare. Through the ’70s, he made his way into TV and by the end of the decade made his feature film debut and had a series of small supporting roles in action thrillers before being cast by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg for the first Indy installment.
After the success of the film, Freeman was mostly cast as a villain for the following decade and continued to appear regularly on the stage and on the silver screen. In the UK he is mostly famous for his role in the romantic TV show Yesterday’s Dreams and as the main antagonist in the fourth season of British soap opera Falcon Crest. Over the past two decades, he has appeared in films like Hot Fuzz, The Man from Rome, and TV shows like Da Vinci’s Demons, and A Very English Scandal.
4 Karen Allen
After her feature film debut in 1978’s Animal House, and her appearance on William Friedkin’s controversial but now appreciated Cruising, Karen Allen had her biggest role to date in Raiders. She followed it with minor roles for the next few years and landed another leading role in John Carpenter’s Starman in which she starred alongside Jeff Bridges.
Allen went on to have minor roles in excellent productions such as Spike Lee’s Malcolm X, In The Bedroom, and returned to the Indiana Jones franchise in 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Ever since her 1982 debut on Broadway, she has been constantly working on theater and as of late has taken lead roles in small indie films. The best of these is her turn in Colewell, in which she plays a post-office worker dealing with a big change in her life. This role earned her a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actress in 2020.
3 Ronald Lacey
Ronald Lacey was a classically trained actor who appeared in a number of BBC series throughout his career. In film, he appeared as a supporting character on a number of successful films such as Roman Polanski’s The Fearless Vampire Killers, and How I Won The War. To this day, his most famous role was as one of the Nazi officers searching for the Ark. In the film, he plays a sadistic Gestapo officer hellbent on obtaining the Ark’s power in order for the Reich to rule the world.
Afterward, he went on to play villainous roles in which he displayed a trademark smile and voice. He is also famous for endeavoring into a couple of drag roles in the films Trenchcoat and Invitation to the Wedding. His ever-busy career was cut short in 1991 when he was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer, which would end his life less than a month later.
2 John Rhys-Davies
John Rhys-Davies’ illustrious career began in the early ’70s when he appeared sporadically on British TV shows. By the end of the decade, his career experienced a breakthrough thanks to his role as Sallah, an Egyptian excavator and old friend of Indiana Jones, and as a Portuguese navigator Vasco Rodrigues on the TV miniseries Shogun, which earned him a Primetime Emmy nomination.
Rhys-Davies, in addition to appearing in two more Indiana Jones films, is mostly famous for his role as Gimli in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. In addition to his other credits in both TV and film, he has specialized in voice roles which have made him a household name in animated productions as well as video games.
1 Denholm Elliott
Roger Ebert once called Denholm Elliott “the most dependable of British character actors,” and he was quite possibly right. Before Raiders, his career spanned three decades of continued brilliance, charm, and wit.
The ’80s marked his last decade of work, and quite possibly his most mature and fruitful one. Elliott would go on to win’ three BAFTA awards for Best Supporting Actor in 1983 for the classic comedy Trading Places, in 1984 for the ingenious A Private Function, and in 1986 for the political thrillerDefence of the Realm.
In addition to this, he received his only Academy Award nomination for his performance in the Merchant-Ivory adaptation of E.M. Forster’s A Room with a View. A year after his last BAFTA win he was diagnosed with HIV and passed away due to AIDS-related tuberculosis in 1992.