See full version: Why pirates of the caribbean died
For example, amidst all its lore and mythology building, the film didn't clearly explain the reasoning behind the death of the second film's scariest antagonist, the Kraken. The Kraken is found washed up and dead by the former rivals and now-uneasy co-conspirators Captain Jack Sparrow and Barbossa in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, but how did the legendary leviathan end up there and what compelled its master Davy Jones to kill it? here
The third Pirates of the Caribbean installment At World's End wrapped up a lot of lingering mysteries, but why did Davy Jones kill his Kraken?
The reason that the octopus-faced villain Jones killed his pet and greatest weapon in controlling the high seas is that his new handler made him. Cutler Beckett is the original trilogy's true villain, a representative of the East India Trading company who is hell-bent on ending the era of piracy. Beckett later remarks that he ordered Jones to kill his "pet", proving he ordered Jones to put the Kraken out of commission for both strategic and symbolic purposes. It's a significant moment not only for Beckett and Jones but also for the franchise as the Kraken's death means the end of Jones' reign and by extension, the world of piracy. more
The third Pirates of the Caribbean installment At World's End wrapped up a lot of the series' lingering mysteries, but why did Davy Jones kill his Kraken? Although the first Pirates of the Caribbean film was adored by both audiences and critics, by the franchise's third outing the series was growing too convoluted and complicated for fans to follow. At World's End isn't the worst film in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as it managed to answer some questions left by its predecessors, but the 2007 outing was still overstuffed with too many villains, double-crosses, and subplots to keep track of. more
The film deprives the audience of the poignant moment Jones carried out the command, instead cutting to the already-dead body. This sort of overly busy storytelling robs the moment of a lot of emotional impact, a problem that recurs throughout the Pirates sequels. Viewers can't be certain whether Jones simply commanded the beast to beach itself or actually had to do the dirty work of killing the thing himself, as the Kraken's fate is left offscreen. Judging by the brief glimpse of its carcass the Kraken died by beaching itself, as the corpse hasn't been beheaded or finned when the heroes come across it.
Hector Barbossa died at the end of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, but was later revived via supernatural means. Portrayed by Geoffrey Rush, Barbossa is one of the few characters to appear in all five Pirates of the Caribbean films released so far. Cunning and gleefully wicked, Barbossa served as the villain in the first movie, The Curse of the Black Pearl, having previously led a mutiny against the eponymous ship's original captain, Jack Sparrow, before taking over himself. However, Sparrow's treacherous first mate got his comeuppance not long after when he and his crew found the treasure of Cortés, only to wind up cursed and transformed into the undead. more
By the end of The Curse of the Black Pearl, Will Turner (the son of Sparrow and Barbossa's former crew-mate, William "Bootstrap Bill" Turner) was able to lift the curse before Barbossa could realize what'd happened, giving Sparrow the chance to finally shoot and kill him. The character was thusly presumed to be gone for good when the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Dead Man's Chest, picked up a year later in the series' timeline. As such, it came as no small surprise when Barbossa popped up in the sequel's final scene, happily chomping on an apple - something he'd been unable to enjoy doing when he was cursed - and asking what had happened to his ship. more
Resurrecting Barbossa is easily one of the best creative choices the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has made. The character was a great antagonist in The Curse of the Black Pearl and an equally perfect foil to the trouble-making Sparrow, both in terms of personality and style. He only continued to evolve in his later appearances, beginning with his transformation into the heroes' unlikely ally in At World's End (having been humbled by, well, dying). Barbossa even found himself working on the side of the law in the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean film, On Stranger Tides, where he served as a privateer to King George II. Death eventually caught up to him (again) in the followup, Dead Men Tell No Tales, but not before Barbossa finished his redemption arc and saved the life of his daughter, Carina Smyth.
The question of how and why Barbossa was back from the grave wouldn't be answered until a year later, when Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End hit the scene. As the film explains, Barbossa was resurrected by Tia Dalma, a Caribbean mystic who, unbeknownst to all those around her, was actually the sea goddess Calypso, having been trapped in human form years ago by the pirates of the Brethren Court. Being a member of the court himself, Barbossa was forced to help Calypso in her quest to free herself from this spell, lest she snuff the life out of him once again. here
If those box-office returns weren't enough to keep Disney on the Pirates of the Caribbean ship, the franchise is still widely popular among fans of all ages. From Jack Sparrow Halloween costumes to the epic soundtrack, to famously quotable lines, it's a world of adventure that is still resonating with audiences. Even at the Disney Parks, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride is among its most successful and iconic offerings. [links]
After five Pirates of the Caribbean franchise films and an expected reboot on the way, Disney doesn't seem to be letting up on its investment in the long-running series. Despite the disappointing reception of the 2017 sequel Pirates of the Caribbean 5, Dead Men Tell No Tales and the franchise's troubled scandal-filled star Johnny Depp, the series continues to grow across films and Disney Parks rides. Should Disney let go of its almost 20-year-old franchise?
The original Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was released in 2003 to a surprising degree of success. There hadn't been many favorable pirate films before then, and the genre was often considered a risk. But the first Pirates of the Caribbean's combination of a witty script, swashbuckling adventure, rising-star cast, and unforgettable music carried it all the way to an over $650 million worldwide box office haul and five Oscar nominations. Audiences have continued to love the franchise throughout its five films, and the movies remain successful from a financial perspective as well.
Pirates of the Caribbean keeps getting sequels, and there are some big reasons why Disney isn't willing to say goodbye to the franchise just yet.
The Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland holds a special place in Disney's heart because it was the last ride that Walt Disney himself came up with before his death just three months before the ride opened in 1967. The Pirates of the Caribbean ride was so popular that it was soon replicated at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, and after the films came out, Shanghai Disneyland Park. The original Disneyland ride didn't feature the same characters as the film franchise, but it did create the song "Yo Ho (A Pirate's Life For Me)," heard in some of the movies. Nowadays, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride has several tie-ins with the film franchise, like including Captain Jack Sparrow and props from the films.
However, the subsequent Pirates of the Caribbean sequels that rounded out the original trilogy failed to recapture the magic of the original movie, with Verbinski opting for a darker, more tragic tone and far more complicated mythology than the first film’s simple story. This said, these first two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels, while convoluted, still enjoyed relative critical success and impressive box office receipts. When the trilogy ended Verbinski left the series aside, being replaced by Chicago director Rob Marshall for the financially successful but critically dismissed fourth outing, On Stranger Tides. Verbinski was approached about returning for the following film but declined the opportunity to direct 2017’s Dead Men Tell No Tales as he saw nothing but money motivating the continuation of the franchise. [links]
The later Pirates of the Caribbean sequels fared poorly with critics, but why did the original movie’s director turn down the chance to return for the fifth film in the series, 2017's Dead Men Tell No Tales? Released in 2003, the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie The Curse of the Black Pearl seemed destined to sink at the box office before the movie arrived in cinemas. The infamous Renny Harlin-directed flop Cutthroat Island had all but ended the commercial potential of swashbuckling pirate adventure films for the foreseeable future when it was released eight years earlier in 1995, and the critical failure of the Eddie Murphy vehicle The Haunted Mansion was evidence that a mid-budget blockbuster adapted from a popular Disneyland attraction did not guarantee the company a hit.
This context made it all the more surprising when The Weather Man director Gore Verbinski’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl ended up being a massive hit with both critics and audiences. The movie made a whopping $650 million at the box office on a budget of only $140 million, making overnight stars of lead actors Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightley and elevating Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow to instant icon status for generations of moviegoers.
Verbinski, who also opted out of directing the 2005 sequel to his earlier hit The Ring, said there was “no reason but financial” to make the fifth Pirates of the Caribbean film. According to the terrible reviews and significantly worse box office of the fourth sequel, he was seemingly correct in his summation of Dead Men Tell No Tales, the movie that all but ended Johnny Depp’s career-defining franchise. Verbinski’s missing influence on the later installments of the Pirates of the Caribbean series was blamed for the failure of Dead Men Tell No Tales at the box office by one Hollywood Reporter piece, which opined that the visionary helmer brought a consistent look and subsequent believability to his films in the series that later directors failed to recapture.
However, while Verbinski’s visual palette is striking in the original trilogy of Pirates of the Caribbean movies, this theory doesn’t account for the success of the Harry Potter movies which changed directors thrice during their record-breaking cinematic run. Another potential reason for the failure of the later Pirates of the Caribbean installments was the lack of fresh faces in the franchise's cast, something that the upcoming Margot Robbie-starring reboot of the series will be relying on to bring in viewers bored by the later sequels.