“A pile of sh*t”: This actor blasted Indiana Jones Script & turned Steven Spielberg down

Steven Spielberg is a filmmaker who has delivered some of the biggest and most influential films for decades in Hollywood. Some of his most popular films include Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Jaws, and Saving Private Ryan, among others. Another popular film series helmed by him is Indiana Jones, starring Harrison Ford.

Raiders of the Lost Ark, which is a successful film in the franchise, has remained one of the most well-received Indiana Jones titles. But there was one actor who reportedly refused to do the film and even blasted its script, calling it

"a pile of sh*t."

Klaus Kinski rejected Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark

A still from Raiders of the Lost Ark | Image via Paramount Pictures

Steven Spielberg directed the 1981 action-adventure film Raiders of the Lost Ark, and it became a critical and commercial success. But there was one guy, a German actor named Klaus Kinski, who did not like its script and turned it down. As per Screen Rant, the actor wrote in his memoir how he turned down that offer from Spielberg. Kinski called the script "a yawn-making, boring pile of shi*t" as well as "moronically shi**y". He even told Spielberg how he felt about the script.

Given the disturbing details of Kinski's personal life that have emerged since his death, Spielberg might be glad thata the actor turned the film down. Otherwise, it would have had a different type of legacy. The role of Arnold Toht was eventually played by Ronald Lacey, who is one of the villains in the film.

More about Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark

The story of Raiders of the Lost Ark was written by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman, while Lawrence Kasdan wrote the screenplay; Steven Spielberg directed it. The film's plot takes place in 1936 and follows an archaeologist who tries to recover the Ark of the Covenant, which would make people invincible. Here's the official synopsis:

In 1936, archaeologist Indiana Jones is tasked by Army Intelligence to help locate a legendary ancient power, the Ark of Covenant, before the Nazis get it first.

Here is a list of its cast members:

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones
Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood
Paul Freeman as René Belloq
Ronald Lacey as Major Arnold Toht
John Rhys-Davies as Sallah
Denholm Elliott as Marcus Brody

The film grossed $389.9 million and kick-started the Indiana Jones franchise, which went on to have four more entries. Steven Spielberg spoke to The Guardian during the time of the film's release and revealed its origin. He said,

“George and I happened to be in Hawaii at the same time. This was before Star Wars had been released and George was hiding out, feeling very nervous and convinced he had a flop on his hands. We started complaining to one another about the problems you get making these big films. He’d tell me about his difficulties with the robots on Star Wars and I’d tell him my nightmare stories about the mechanical shark in Jaws. Then I mentioned I’d always wanted to make a James Bond picture and George said, “I’ve got something better than Bond”. He told me the plot of Raiders and he said the very best thing would be, we wouldn’t have a single piece of hardware in the film.”

Do you feel Kinski's casting would have benefited the film?