Pirates of the Caribbean is a series of
adventure films directed by
Gore Verbinski, written by
Ted Elliott and
Terry Rossio and produced by
Jerry Bruckheimer. They are based on a
Walt Disney theme park ride
of the same name, and follow the
pirate Captain
Jack Sparrow, portrayed by
Johnny Depp. The trilogy was first released on the
big screen on July 9, 2003 with
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. After the unexpected success of the first film,
Walt Disney Pictures revealed that a trilogy was in the works.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest was released three years later on July 7, 2006. The sequel proved to be very successful, breaking records worldwide the day of its premiere. In the end it acquired a total of $1,066,179,725 at the worldwide
box office, becoming the third and fastest film to reach this amount. The last film in the trilogy,
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End was released worldwide on May 24, 2007. Altogether, the film franchise has grossed over $2.79 billion worldwide. In September 2008, Johnny Depp signed for a new movie in the franchise, expected to be released in 2012.
Development
During the early 1990s,
screenwriters
Ted Elliott and
Terry Rossio conceived of writing a film based on the
Pirates of the Caribbean ride. In their original pitch, Will Turner was the lead role, and the villainous pirates were searching for treasure.
Steven Spielberg expressed interest, and wanted to cast
Bill Murray,
Robin Williams or
Steve Martin as
Jack Sparrow. Disney was already making
Muppet Treasure Island at the time and did not give permission for the film to be made because the two had similar storylines.
[Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, B105 FM on July 10, 2006]
Disney had
Jay Wolpert write a script based on the ride, which producer
Jerry Bruckheimer rejected, feeling it was, "a straight pirate movie."
was brought 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 were inspired by the opening narration of the
Pirates of the Caribbean theme park ride, and decided to give the film a supernatural edge.
As the budget rose,
Michael Eisner and
Bob Iger threatened to cancel the film, though Bruckheimer changed their minds when he showed them concept art and animatics.
