Why Sallah Didn’t Return for ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’

Indiana Jones is one of the most popular, iconic, and epic adventure film series loved by many. Many were excited learning that the famous archaeologist in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull after 19 years. However, many fans were left disappointed after watching the film, which many say were lacklustre when it comes to the magic we've seen in the original trilogy.

Probably one of the reasons that the film lacked the old warm feeling of adventure was that it's missing one favorite character – John Rhys-Davies' Sallah.

Apparently, it wasn't the studios' decision. Rhys-Davies himself wanted to not appear in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull at all.

Speaking to Digital Spy, the 71-year-old actor revealed why:

I was asked to be in the last one, but they wanted me to do a bit of green-screen - walk in, sit down and clap - and they were going to cut that into the wedding scene at the end. I turned it down because it seemed to me that that would be a bit of a betrayal of the audience's expectations. Sallah is a popular character - there's a greatness of soul about him that we all love and admire.

I would have wanted to see Sallah saving Jones' ass at some point in the film, but I must admit that Rhys-Davies is right. The character would have lost his "magic" as well if the character had nothing to do but sit and clap at the end.

While the actor opted out of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, he nevertheless expressed interest in returning for a rumored Indiana Jones 5, supposing of course that he would be offered a much more significant scene.

I agree with most fans who claim that the last Indiana Jones film had lost its magic, but I would still love to see Indy 5 made, with Sallah in it.