Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Sallah escape the temple and then ride off into the sunset. Lucas and Spielberg had intended to make a trilogy of "Indiana Jones" films since Lucas had first pitched "Raiders of the Lost Ark" to Spielberg in 1977. After the mixed critical and public reaction to "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom", Spielberg decided to complete the trilogy to fulfill his promise to Lucas and "to apologize for the second one". The pair had the intention of revitalizing the series by evoking the spirit and tone of "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Throughout the film's development and pre-production,
Indiana Jones original storylines with Indiana Jones in the Lost Kingdom, "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis", "Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine", "Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb" and "Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings". "Emperor's Tomb" sets up Jones's companion Wu Han and the search for Nurhaci's ashes seen at the beginning of "Temple of Doom". The first two games were developed by Hal Barwood and starred Doug Lee as the voice of Indiana Jones; "Emperor's Tomb" had David Esch fill the role and "Staff of Kings" starred John Armstrong. "Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine" was the