Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)
Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of fantasy swashbuckler films produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and based on Walt Disney's theme park attraction of the same name. The film series serves as a major component of the eponymous media franchise.
Directors of the series include Gore Verbinski, Rob Marshall , Joachim Rønning, and Espen Sandberg. The series is primarily written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio ; other writers include Stuart Beattie, Jay Wolpert, Jeff Nathanson, Craig Mazin. The stories follow the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann. Characters such as Hector Barbossa and Joshamee Gibbs follow Jack, Will and Elizabeth in the course of the films. The fourth film features Blackbeard and Angelica, while the fifth film features Armando Salazar, Henry Turner and Carina Smyth. The films take place in a fictionalized historical setting; a world ruled by the British Empire, the East India Trading Company and the Spanish Empire, with pirates representing freedom from the ruling powers.
The film series started in 2003 with ', which received positive reviews from critics and grossed US$654 million worldwide. After the first film's success, Walt Disney Pictures revealed that a film series was in the works. The franchise's second film, subtitled ', was released three years later in 2006; the sequel proved successful, breaking financial records worldwide the day of its premiere. Dead Man's Chest ended up being the number one film of the year upon earning almost $1.1 billion at the worldwide box office. The third film in the series, subtitled ', followed in 2007 earning $960 million, and Disney released a fourth film, subtitled ', in 2011 in conventional 2D, Digital 3-D and IMAX 3D. On Stranger Tides succeeded in also grossing more than $1 billion, becoming the second film in the franchise and only the eighth film in history to achieve this.
The franchise has grossed over $4.5 billion worldwide; it is the 14th-highest-grossing film series of all time, and is the first film franchise to produce two or more movies that grossed over $1 billion.
Films
''Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl'' (2003)
Blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate Captain Jack Sparrow to save Turner's love, Elizabeth Swann, from cursed pirates led by Jack's mutinous former first mate, Hector Barbossa. Jack wants revenge against Barbossa, who left him stranded on an island before stealing his ship, the Black Pearl, along with 882 pieces of cursed Aztec Gold.''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'' (2006)
Lord Cutler Beckett of the East India Trading Company arrests Will and Elizabeth for aiding Captain Jack Sparrow in the previous film. Beckett offers clemency if Will agrees to search for Jack's compass in a bid to find the Dead Man's Chest—and inside, the heart of villainous Davy Jones—which would give Beckett control of the seas. However, Jack wants the Chest to escape from an unpaid debt with Jones, who made Jack captain of the Black Pearl for 13 years in exchange for 100 years of service aboard Jones' ship, the Flying Dutchman.''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End'' (2007)
Lord Beckett gains power over Davy Jones and, with the help of the Flying Dutchman, he is now executing his plans to extinguish piracy forever. To stand against the East India Trading Co., Will, Elizabeth, Barbossa, and the crew of the Black Pearl set out to rescue Captain Jack Sparrow from Davy Jones' Locker. As one of the Nine Pirate Lords, Jack is needed in order to release an ancient goddess with the power to defeat Beckett's forces.''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'' (2011)
Captain Jack Sparrow is on a quest to find the fabled Fountain of Youth and crosses paths with a former lover, Angelica. She forces Jack aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge, a ship captained by the infamous pirate Blackbeard, Angelica's father. Both are also in search of the Fountain: Angelica to save her father's soul, Blackbeard to escape a prophecy of his demise at the hands of a one-legged man. Joining the hunt is former pirate captain Barbossa, now a privateer in King George II's Navy, who is in a race against the Spanish for the Fountain of Youth.''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales'' (2017)
A group of ghostly Spanish Royal Navy soldiers led by Jack Sparrow's old nemesis, Captain Armando Salazar, escape from the Devil's Triangle, with the goal of killing every pirate at sea, including him. To survive, Jack seeks out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, a powerful artifact whose owner can control the seas, tides, aquatic animals and break curses.Sixth film
Shortly before the release of , it was reported that Disney was planning to shoot the fifth and the sixth films back-to-back, although ultimately only the fifth installment was developed. By March 2017, director Joachim Rønning stated that Dead Men was only the beginning of the final adventure, confirming that it would not be the last film of the series. In September 2017, producer Jerry Bruckheimer indicated that another Pirates of the Caribbean is still in development.In October of the same year, Kaya Scodelario stated that she is contractually signed to return for a sixth film. Shortly after, it was confirmed that Rønning will direct the film. In May 2020, there were reports that the studio were considering Karen Gillan, Daisy Ridley and Emma Watson for the female lead, while Bruckheimer commented that the first draft of the screenplay for the sixth film would soon be finished, adding that he was "unsure" of Depp's role in the movie.
Spin-off film
In June 2020, it was announced that Disney was developing a female-led spin-off with Christina Hodson set to pen the screenplay and Margot Robbie attached to star. The film will be a separate from the sixth film currently being developed. Jerry Bruckheimer will also be attached to the project as producer.Short film
''Tales of the Code: Wedlocked'' (2011)
Wenches Scarlett and Giselle fix each other up for their wedding, in which they would each marry their groom. Upon realizing that both their grooms were the same man—Jack Sparrow—the two wenches find themselves in an auction led by the Auctioneer. The short film serves as a prequel to The Curse of the Black Pearl, explaining just why Jack Sparrow's boat, the Jolly Mon, was seen sinking at the beginning of the whole story, and explaining why wenches Scarlett and Giselle were so upset with him, and it also implies how Cotton lost his tongue. The plot took inspiration from the "Auction scene" from the original Disney park attraction.The short was directed by James Ward Byrkit, and was only included as a special feature in the US 15-disc 3D Blu-ray/2D Blu-ray/DVD + Digital Copy box set that includes films 1–4; and in the similar UK five-disc set.
Byrkit conceived the idea for the project while on sets Rick Heinrichs designed for ' and '. As the pirate cove sets from the feature films—where the short film takes place—were set to be demolished, the short project was prepped in a matter of days and shot over three days. Byrkit based the short film on the Pirate Code Book as it was a device that could tie into other stories later.
Cast and crew
Cast
Additional crew
Production
Development
First film
In the early 1990s screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio conceived a supernatural spin on the pirate genre after completing work on Aladdin, but there was no interest from any studio. Undeterred, the writing team refused to give up the dream, waiting for a studio to pick up their take on a pirate tale. Disney had Jay Wolpert write a script based on the Pirates of the Caribbean, which producer Jerry Bruckheimer rejected, feeling it was "a straight pirate movie". Bruckheimer brought Stuart Beattie in to rewrite the script in March 2002, due to his knowledge of piracy, and later that month Elliott and Rossio were brought in. Elliott and Rossio, inspired by the opening narration of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, decided to give the film a supernatural edge. As the budget rose, Michael Eisner and Robert Iger threatened to cancel the film, though Bruckheimer changed their minds when he showed them concept art and animatics.In June 2002 Gore Verbinski signed on to direct , and Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush signed on the following month to star. Verbinski was attracted to the idea of using modern technology to resurrect a genre, one that had disappeared after the Golden Age of Hollywood, and recalled his childhood memories of the ride, feeling the film was an opportunity to pay tribute to the "scary and funny" tone of it. Depp was attracted to the story as he found it quirky: rather than trying to find treasure, the crew of the Black Pearl were trying to return it in order to lift their curse; also, the traditional mutiny had already taken place. Verbinski approached Rush for the role of Barbossa, as he knew he would not play it with attempts at complexity, but with a simple villainy that would suit the story's tone. Orlando Bloom read the script after Rush, with whom he was working on Ned Kelly, suggested it to him. Keira Knightley came as a surprise to Verbinski: he had not seen her performance in Bend It Like Beckham and was impressed by her audition. Tom Wilkinson was negotiated with to play Governor Swann, but the role went to Jonathan Pryce, whom Depp idolized.
Shooting for The Curse of the Black Pearl began on October 9, 2002 and wrapped by March 7, 2003. Before its release, many executives and journalists had expected the film to flop, as the pirate genre had not been successful for years, the film was based on a theme-park ride, and Depp rarely made a big film. However, The Curse of the Black Pearl became both a critical and commercial success.
Second and third films
After seeing how well the first film was made, the cast and crew signed for two sequels to be shot back-to-back, a practical decision on Disney's part to allow more time with the same cast and crew. Writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio knew that with an ensemble cast, they weren't free to invent totally different situations and characters, as with the Indiana Jones and James Bond series, and so had to retroactively turn The Curse of the Black Pearl into the first of a trilogy. They wanted to explore the reality of what would happen after Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann's embrace at the end of the first film, and initially considered the Fountain of Youth as the plot device. They settled on introducing Davy Jones, the Flying Dutchman and the Kraken, a mythology mentioned twice in the first film. They introduced the historical East India Trading Company, which for them represented a counterpoint to the themes of personal freedom represented by pirates.Filming for the sequels began on February 28, 2005, with ' finishing on March 1, 2006, and ' on January 10, 2007. The second film was also the first Disney theatrical feature film with the computer-generated Walt Disney Pictures logo.
Fourth film
Rossio and Elliot discovered the novel On Stranger Tides during production of Dead Man's Chest and At World's End and decided to use it as the basis for a fourth film. As Gore Verbinski was unavailable, Bruckheimer invited Rob Marshall to direct the film. Elliott and Rossio decided to do a stand-alone film, with a story that would support new characters, and incorporate elements from the novel, such as Blackbeard, the Fountain of Youth and mermaids—the latter two having been already alluded to in the previous films. Depp, Rush, Greg Ellis and Kevin McNally returned to their roles, and the cast saw the additions of Ian McShane as Blackbeard and Penélope Cruz as Angelica, Blackbeard's daughter and Jack Sparrow's love interest. A further addition was Richard Griffiths as King George II of Great Britain. After the costly production of two simultaneous films, Disney tried to scale down the fourth installment, giving a lower budget, which led to cheaper locations and fewer scenes with special effects. However, with a budget of $378.5 million, On Stranger Tides holds the record for most expensive film ever made.Filming for began June 14, 2010 and ended on November 19, 2010. It was also filmed in 3D, with cameras similar to the ones used in Avatar.
It was released in the United States on May 20, 2011.
Fifth film
On January 14, 2011, it was confirmed that Terry Rossio would write the screenplay for the fifth installment, without his co-writer Ted Elliott. On January 11, 2013, Jeff Nathanson signed on to write the script for the film. On May 29, 2013, it was announced that Norwegian directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg were selected to direct. On August 22, 2013, the two revealed that the title of the fifth film would be ', alluding to the line well known from the Pirates of the Caribbean theme park attractions. The film was given an alternative title, Salazar's Revenge, in selected European, South American, and Asian countries for marketing purposes. They also confirmed that they were working on the film, speaking highly of Jeff Nathanson's "funny and touching" script and that they are inspired by the first film, '. On September 10, 2013, Disney pushed back the film's initial 2015 release, with sources indicating that a Summer 2016 release was likely. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer revealed that script issues were behind the delay, and that Jeff Nathanson was at work on a second attempt based on a well-received outline.A spokesman for the Australian Arts Minister confirmed that the fifth installment was set to shoot in Australia after the government agreed to repurpose $20 million of tax incentives originally intended for the remake of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Disney and Ian Walker the Queensland Arts Minister, confirmed on October 2, 2014, that filming was expected to start in February 2015, stating that filming will take place exclusively in Australia, being the largest production to ever shoot in the country. Village Roadshow Studios and Port Douglas were officially confirmed as filming locations. Production began in Australia on February 17, 2015 and wrapped on July 9, 2015.
While Disney originally announced a release on July 7, 2017, Dead Men Tell No Tales was released on May 26, 2017.
Reception
Box office performance
The Pirates of the Caribbean film series was successful at the box office, with each film grossing over $650 million, and all but Dead Men Tell No Tales at some point ranking among the fifty highest-grossing films of all time. It also became the first ever series to have multiple films passing the billion dollar mark in box office revenues with Dead Man's Chest and On Stranger Tides, since followed by other film franchises.The Curse of the Black Pearl was the third-highest-grossing 2003 film in North America and fourth worldwide. Dead Man's Chest was the most successful film of 2006 worldwide, and At World's End led the worldwide grosses in 2007, though being only fourth in North America. On Stranger Tides was the third-highest-grossing film of 2011 worldwide and the fifth in North America. The first three sequels broke box office records upon release, of which the most notable are the opening-weekend record in North America, the Memorial-Day weekend record in North America and the opening-weekend record outside North America.
Critical and public response
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore |
| ' | 79% | 63 | A |
| ' | 53% | 53 | A− |
| ' | 44% | 50 | A− |
| ' | 33% | 45 | B+ |
| ' | 30% | 39 | A− |
The series is noted for its high quality of acting talent, and is one of the aspects of the films that has always been praised. The visual and practical effects are considered some of the best ever done on film, so much so that audiences believed certain CGI elements of the films were real and done practically. However, the plots of the four sequels have received mixed reviews, with the general consensus that they are too bloated and convoluted to follow. Pirates of the Caribbean is noted for reinvigorating the pirate film genre after decades of either no pirate films or failed pirate films. The success of the series saw Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer try to replicate the franchise's success by releasing films such as ' and The Lone Ranger, the latter of which directed by Gore Verbinski. Both films were critical and commercial failures.