Indiana Jones (franchise) and Lucas made a deal with Paramount Pictures for five Indiana Jones films. Spielberg and Lucas aimed to make "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" much darker, because of their personal moods following their respective break-ups and divorces. Lucas made the film a prequel as he did not want the Nazis to be the villains again. He had ideas regarding the Monkey King and a haunted castle, but eventually created the Sankara Stones. He hired Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz to write the script as he knew of their interest in Indian culture. The major scenes that were dropped
Indiana Jones (franchise) and "Indiana Jones and the Secret of the Sphinx". McCoy set his books closer in time to the events of "Raiders of the Lost Ark", which led to his characterising Indiana as "a bit darker". The prologue of his first book featured a crystal skull, and this became a recurring story, concluding when Jones gives it up in the final novel. Lucas' involvement with McCoy's novels was limited, although LucasFilm censored sexual or outlandish elements in order to make the books appeal to younger readers; they also rejected the theme of time travel in the final book. Sallah, Lao Che,