Cast
- Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow
- Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa
- Orlando Bloom as Will Turner
- Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann
- Jack Davenport as James Norrington
- Kevin R. McNally as Joshamee Gibbs
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is a 2003 American fantasy swashbuckler film directed
by Gore Verbinski and the first film in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures
and Jerry Bruckheimer, the film is based on Walt Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Disney theme parks.
The story follows pirate Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and blacksmith Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) as they rescue the
kidnapped Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) from the cursed crew of the Black Pearl, captained by Hector Barbossa
(Geoffrey Rush), who become undead skeletons in moonlight.
Jay Wolpert developed a script in 2001, and Stuart Beattie rewrote it in early 2002. Around that time, producer
Jerry Bruckheimer became involved in the project; he had Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio work on the script, adding
the plot device of a supernatural curse to the story to bring it in line with the original theme park ride.
Filming took place from October 2002 to March 2003 in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and on sets constructed
around Los Angeles, California.
The first film released under the Walt Disney Pictures banner to be rated PG-13 by the MPAA, The Curse of the
Black Pearl had its world premiere at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, on June 28, 2003. Defying low
pre-release expectations, the film was a huge box-office success, grossed $654.3 million worldwide; making it
the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2003. It received generally positive reviews from critics, with Depp's
performance receiving universal acclaim. The film has been widely cited as the film that launched Depp as
a box office leading man after many years as a cult movie star. Depp won the Screen Actors Guild Award
for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, in addition to Best Actor nominations at
the Academy Awards, BAFTAs, and Golden Globes. The Curse of the Black Pearl was also nominated for four
other Academy Awards and BAFTAs. The film became the first in a franchise, with two back-to-back sequels,
Dead Man's Chest and At World's End, released in 2006 and 2007. Two more sequels, On Stranger Tides and
Dead Men Tell No Tales, were released in 2011 and 2017, respectively.
In 1720, while sailing to Port Royal, Jamaica aboard the HMS Dauntless, Governor Weatherby Swann, his daughter
Elizabeth and crew encounter a shipwreck and recover a boy, Will Turner. Elizabeth discovers a golden pirate
medallion around his neck and takes it. Eight years later, Captain James Norrington is promoted to commodore
and proposes to Elizabeth. Her corset makes her faint and fall into the sea, causing the medallion to emit a pulse.
Captain Jack Sparrow, having just arrived in Port Royal to commandeer a ship, rescues Elizabeth. Norrington
identifies Jack as a pirate, and a chase ensues. Jack encounters Will, now a blacksmith. They duel, and Jack
is imprisoned. That night, the Black Pearl attacks Port Royal, searching for the medallion. The crew of the
Pearl captures Elizabeth, taking her to meet Captain Barbossa. Elizabeth claims her last name is Turner to conceal
her identity as the governor's daughter. Barbossa explains that the medallion is one of 882 gold pieces that his crew
took from a treasure of Hernán Cortés on Isla de Muerta as a payment to stop the massacre against the Aztecs but Cortes,
being too greedy, rejected it, and the Aztec gods put a curse on the treasure. This cursed Barbossa and his crew,
turning them into immortals who appear skeletal in moonlight. Barbossa and his crew have returned all but one of
the pieces, with Elizabeth's medallion being the final piece. Barbossa takes her prisoner, believing she is the
daughter of William "Bootstrap Bill" Turner, Will's father and a previous crewmate of the Pearl, whose blood is
needed to lift the curse
Will frees Jack to rescue Elizabeth, whom Will loves. Jack, the previous captain of the Black Pearl before Barbossa
staged a mutiny, makes a deal with Will to reclaim his ship. The two commandeer HMS Interceptor, a small sloop-of-war,
and head for Tortuga. There, Jack enlists Gibbs to help them assemble a crew. Chasing the Pearl to the Isla de Muerta,
Will and Jack witness Barbossa sacrificing Elizabeth's blood and returning the final gold piece. The curse is not lifted
because Elizabeth does not carry the blood of Bootstrap Bill. Will rescues Elizabeth and brings her to the Interceptor,
while Jack is captured by Barbossa and locked in the brig of the Pearl. The Pearl pursues the Interceptor, destroying the
ship and taking Jack's crew hostage. Will makes a deal with Barbossa to release Elizabeth in exchange for his blood, but
Barbossa exploits a loophole in the agreement, marooning Jack and Elizabeth on an island. Elizabeth makes a smoke signal,
and Norrington brings the Dauntless to rescue Elizabeth and arrest Jack. Elizabeth asks Norrington to pursue the Pearl and
save Will, persuading him by accepting Norrington's marriage proposal.
That night, the Dauntless arrives at Isla de Muerta. Jack tells Norrington he will lure the pirates out to be ambushed by
the crew of the Dauntless, but instead persuades Barbossa's crew to attack the Dauntless before they lift the curse and lose
their immortality. Elizabeth escapes the Dauntless and frees Jack's crew from the brig of the Pearl. They refuse to rescue Jack
and Will, so Elizabeth sets out on her own while Jack's crew depart aboard the Pearl. Jack again switches sides, freeing Will and
dueling Barbossa, while Elizabeth and Will fight off Barbossa's crewmen. When Barbossa stabs Jack, it is revealed that Jack took a
piece of gold from the chest and is likewise cursed and unable to die. Jack shoots Barbossa, and Will returns both coins to the
chest with his and Jack's blood on them. The curse is lifted; Barbossa dies from Jack's gunshot, and the rest of Barbossa's crew,
no longer immortal, are arrested. At Port Royal, Jack is to be hanged for piracy. Elizabeth diverts Norrington's attention
while Will attempts a rescue, but Jack and Will are surrounded. Elizabeth intercedes and declares her love for Will.
Governor Swann pardons Will and gives his blessing for Elizabeth to marry him. Jack dives into the sea and escapes
aboard the nearby Pearl, reclaiming the ship and his new crew. Norrington permits Jack and the Pearl "one day's head start"
before initiating pursuit.