In one of the most memorable scenes fromRaiders of the Lost Ark , instead of rent in a full - mature sword fight with an piquant fencer in Egypt , Indiana Jones surprisingly just shoots him - here ’s the tangible rationality why . As an iconic adventure saga from the 80 , IndianaJonesmovies are home to some of the sound loose - hearted , Spielbergian military action , and press successiveness of all time . Indiana Jones , the rogue archeologist who always has a fedora , satchel , and bullwhip in tow , is memorable for exciting combat with foes who strain to stop him from the historical item he seeks .

InRaiders of the Lost Ark , 1930s professor Indiana Jones ( Harrison Ford ) search across the orb for themissing Ark of the Covenant , said to make any U. S. Army unvanquishable . Indy must get and return the Ark to a museum before it can be reached by the Nazis , who want to give its superpower to Hitler . Along the way , Indy is confronted by different agent of the Nazi government that undertake to stop him , include a venerate assassin swordsman in Cairo , Egypt . The swordsman challenge Indy in a crowded Cairo marketplace , think to kill him in a sword fight . The swordsman express joy and brandishes his weapon to restrain Indy before Indy surprisingly pulls out his artillery and shoots him distributor point - blank .

relate : How & Why Each Indiana Jones Movie Opening Is dissimilar

Keanu Reeves looking over one shoulder as John Wick in Ballerina

While the view is still in character for Indiana Jones as he exhaustedly pull out the accelerator pedal because he ’s in a time crunch to findMarion Ravenwood ( Karen Allen ) , the original programme for the succession was markedly different . Spielberg in the first place mean for Indy to prosecute in a blade fight with the instigator , though behind - the - scenes trouble on set change the minds of those involved . At the time of filming the setting , Harrison Ford and much of the crew were extremely sick of with dysentery , so take a long fight scene would have been too tax . Ford evoke Indy just “ shoot the sucker ” instead , to which director Steven Spielberg hold .

The original scene was three - and - a - one-half Page long compare to the less than a minute successiveness seen inRaiders of the Lost Ark , which included a drawn-out and highly choreographed sword fight wherein Indy still came out the winner . The scene would have hadJones , almost play by   someone other than Ford , show off his supremacy and science with his bullwhip as he take on the swordsman , giving audience a exonerated view of its habit in fight added to its other multi - usable function on his adventure . Spielberg also intended to include a laugh in which the Cairo swordsman accidentally use his sword to perfectly cleave a market man ’s meat in one-half , whereafter the vendor thanks the swordsman .

While Spielberg ’s original plan would have been an exciting one - on - one action sequence for Indy , it ’s knockout to imagineRaiders of the Lost Arkwithout the iconic well-worn Indy shooting the swordsman instead . While a playfulness drive when take in , Raidersdoesn’t include too many humorous moments , save for the Cario scene andIndy ’s fear of snakes . The scene plays for the biggest laugh in the film as Indy gives a suspiration that suggests he ’s too tired to fight this guy who require to oppose him so bad , then shoots him and walks off . It sound wrong to say one should thank Ford ’s sickness for one of the most iconic setting , butRaiders of the Lost Arkis definitely better off for it .

Josh Hartnett looking shocked in Fight or Flight

Next : Indiana Jones : How Indy Knew Not To Touch The Ark In Raiders

In a dusty landscape Finn stares out into the distance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Indiana jones raiders of the los ark Indiana shoots swordsman

The shootout in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

Indiana Jones