In Temple of Doom, Indy encounters the Thuggees, an ancient cult that worships Kali with human sacrifices.

Short Round, who has a great respect for Indy, repeatedly tells Willie, "You call him Dr. Jones!"

In The Last Crusade, young Indiana Jones discovers a group of grave robbers who have found a golden crucifix belonging to Coronado and steals it from them, hoping to donate it to a museum. After a chase through a passing circus train, Indy escapes, but is forced by the local sheriff to return the cross to the robbers. Impressed by Indy's bravery, the leader of the robbers gives Indy his fedora.

Jones frequently runs across snakes in his adventures. He doesn't like them.

When an open casting call was sent out for the part of Short Round for Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Quan's older brother auditoned for the role. During the screen test, the younger Quan kept telling his older brother what to do. Based on this, the producers asked Ke Huy Quan to do his own taped audition for Spielberg, who then invited him to audition directly with Harrison Ford.

Tom Selleck was originally offered the role but was unavailable due to his commitment to the television series Magnum, P.I.. Three weeks prior to filming, Harrison Ford was cast.

There are many tributes to the Star Wars films in Temple of Doom. The name of the nightclub Willie sings in is "Club Obi Wan". Sound effects were re-used: the sound of the lava pit opening is the sound of Darth Vader opening his light saber and the sound of the plane failure is the same effect used when the Millenium Falcoln stalls in The Empire Strikes Back. Indy also wears a vest in his palace room that was made for his character Han Solo.

Although the violence in Temple of Doom was not enough to warrant an R rating, it was not the "family friendly" film that would normally receive a PG rating. Speilberg wrote to the president of the MPAA suggesting a rating between PG and R which would limit or allow certain audience members admittance. The new system was enacted shortly after and the film Red Dawn was the first to receive the PG-13 rating.

In Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indy is informed that his father has vanished while searching for the Holy Grail, the cup Jesus drank from at the Last Supper. Using Henry's grail diary that he receives in the mail, Indy goes on a hunt for his father.

At the end of the film, the Ark is shown being sealed in a crate and stored in a giant government warehouse stacked among countless other crates.