We Have Our Heading! The Decade-Long Quest to Make a Pirates of the Caribbean Movie, Explained

by

Today, it’s hard not to consider the Pirates of the Caribbean film series as commonplace, but back in the early ’90s, when screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio initially proposed the concept to Disney, their pitch raised quite a few questions at the company.

The writers not only aimed to transform a popular theme park ride, but they also sought to revive a genre once deemed unpopular by viewers – except for the case of “Muppet Treasure Island,” which surprisingly came from Disney. However, it was “Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl,” released in 2003, that brought back the charm of pirate life through characters like Will Turner, Elizabeth Swan, and Captain Jack Sparrow, ultimately launching a successful intellectual property still thriving today.

Next week, director Gore Verbinski’s original “Pirates” trilogy will be broadcast on SYFY. Here’s a retrospective on the tumultuous journey Disney’s famous pirate franchise faced during its creation. (Find detailed scheduling info here.)

For More on Pirates of the Caribbean

Johnny Depp Expresses Desire to Revisit Jack Sparrow Character for a Farewell, Family Constructs DIY Pirates of the Caribbean Attraction during Disney Park Shutdown, and Investigating the Legend: Is There Really a Fountain of Youth in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides?

The long development history of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise

about:blank

The journey of transforming Pirates into a big-screen production started in the early 90s when Elliott and Rossio began working with Disney on Aladdin (1992). They shared their fantastic concept for a pirate movie with Disney, positioning it as a companion to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. However, Disney initially rejected their idea, saying, “No, we don’t think so.” This was reported in Creative Screenwriting in 2016 by Elliott himself.

It’s worth noting that the creators behind it penned a unique pirate story, ‘Treasure Planet’ in 2002, which was a science fiction take on Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island’, before the production of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl’ officially began.

Simultaneously, Elliott and Rossio were attempting to loot the treasure chest of the Pirates’ intellectual property, Australian screenwriter Stuart Beattie concurrently devised a script named Quest to the Caribbean. He described it as “Raiders of the Lost Ark” on the open seas, which became a recurring theme in the final version.

Despite visiting various stores throughout town, Beattie struggled to find anyone ready to invest in an expensive project that would ultimately amount to $140 million. It took several years before Disney officials began considering the concept of transforming three theme park rides – the Country Bear Jamboree, the Haunted Mansion, and the Pirates of the Caribbean – into a trilogy of films. Jay Wolpert was initially tasked with writing the screenplay for Pirates, but his version failed to convince the studio to start filming.

In a 2012 interview, Wolpert, who sadly passed away in early 2022 at the age of 79, stated that he added crucial aspects to Jack’s character and the plot, as well as numerous other contributions. These combined efforts were substantial enough to earn him the recognition every writer covets the most – screen credit and its accompanying benefits.

Later on, Beattie returned with a draft of his work, which managed to catch the attention of producer Jerry Bruckheimer. With his extensive industry connections, Bruckheimer was able to attract Gore Verbinski as director and Johnny Depp as the lead actor. From that point forward, Elliott and Rossio were enlisted to finalize the script, with their main contributions being the creation of zombie pirates who had been cursed by stolen Aztec gold.

In 2002, Mike Stenson from Bruckheimer Films posed the question, “Are you open to this idea?” To which I replied, “Definitely! However, let me inform you that we have our own unique approach. It’s the only approach we wish to develop, and it’s the only one with a chance of making a successful film. If this approach doesn’t appeal to you, we wouldn’t want to proceed with the story.” This was shared with Creative Screenwriting, and it piqued his interest. We then presented our concept – the same one we had proposed a decade ago – and everyone agreed. Our idea centered around incorporating supernatural elements. Instead of creating a traditional swashbuckling romance, we aimed to craft a Gothic swashbuckling romance.

Rossio mentioned that it became clear that no one had previously made a supernatural pirate film, so we approached Disney and stated, “Observe, the ride initiates with a conversing skull.

Everyone was convinced by this concept, and in the end, Elliott and Rossio received final screen credit along with sharing story credit with Wolpert and Beattie. After a decade of creative planning, filming on Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl started in the autumn of 2002. Since then, it’s been “yo-ho-ho, a bottle of rum” all the way!

Read More

2025-03-07 00:16