Jack Sparrow

Captain Jack Sparrow

Captain Jack Sparrow is a fictional pirate and main character in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), and the not yet released third installment Pirates of the Caribbean 3 (2007). The character is portrayed by actor Johnny Depp.

Inspirations

Depp claimed Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards who will play his father in the third movie and Pepé Le Pew (from Looney Tunes) were both inspirations for his performance (though Errol Flynn was also an influence Captain Blood, 1935), which earned him a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Actor, a rarity for a comic performance. On the other hand, screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio compared his character to Bugs Bunny and Groucho Marx on the DVD commentary for the first film.

Biography

Early life

In the fictional realm of Pirates of the Caribbean, Captain Jack Sparrow commands the legendary and accursed ship named the Black Pearl. Not much is know about how Jack's early life other than he was Captain of the Black Pearl at the time it was lost to the depths of the ocean, an event which sparked Jack to strike a deal with Davy Jones.

The Curse of the Black Pearl

About a decade prior to the beginning of the film, while in search for a legendary cache of Aztec gold, Jacks crew mutinied and marooned him on an island with a pistol containing a single shot (allowing the deserted an opportunity to kill himself rather than die slowly from starvation, according to some versions of real pirate codes). Sparrow escaped, however (as the island was used by rum-smugglers as a place to store their loot), Sparrow was able to barter with a group of them for passage off the island, and went looking for revenge against the leader of the mutiny: his former First Mate, Barbossa. Sparrow kept the pistol and single shot for the purpose of killing Barbossa.

Arriving in Port Royal eight years later, Jack is arrested for piracy. While imprisoned, Sparrow meets Will Turner, the son of "Bootstrap Bill" Turner (who was the lone holdout from the mutiny, an action which sparked the mutineers to tie a Cannon to "Bootstraps Bootstraps" and drop him to the bottom of the ocean). Sparrow, familiar with the legend of a "heathen curse" that has since stricken the crew of the Black Pearl, knows Turner's child is the only one who can break the curse (Blood must be given to the chest and Will is the only living source of Bootstrap's blood), and sees Will as the means to get back command of his ship. Turner, though fiercely disapproving of piracy, agrees to go with Sparrow to Tortuga to find a ship and crew and sail to Isla de Muerta to track down the Pearl and rescue Will's sweetheart, Miss Elizabeth Swann— kidnapped from Port Royal by Barbossa (after she identified herself as "Elizabeth Turner") in order to reverse the curse.

Once Jack gets a crew he catches the Black Pearl, although he is initially unable to stop Barbossa; a sea battle results in Jack and Elizabeth being left on the island where Jack was originally marooned. Fortunately, Elizabeth uses the long-abandoned rum stockpile to start a fire and attract the attention of the navy, subsequently convincing the ship to 'attack' Isla de Muerta. Jack sneaks in and manages to keep Will alive by informing Barbossa of the naval presence, prompting Barbossa to send the crew out to fight the navy. Jack steals a coin, thus cursing himself, and he and Barbossa engage in a swordfight. In the end, the curse is lifted just after Jack shoots Barbossa with the same shot that he was left with when he was marooned, leaving Barbossa dead and the rest of the crew stuck on the navy ship, now mortal and vulnerable. After the battle, Jack is arrested again and brought back to Port Royal for his "dawn appointment with the gallows", but with the help of Will and Elizabeth he escapes by "accidentally" falling backwards into the sea, where the Black Pearl is waiting for him. In the end of the film, Jack becomes again regains captancy of the Black Pearl.

Dead Man's Chest

At the end of the first film, Sparrow is once again Captain of the Black Pearl. In the second film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Jack returns as his quirky old self, with virtually no difference in personality nor habits. It is revealed that Jack obtained the Pearl from Davy Jones himself, 13 years earlier, and now has to repay his debt for the ship lest he be dragged into the depths of the ocean to be enslaved in the servitude to Davy Jones. Interestingly, Jack loses his beloved tricorne at the beginning of the film.

Jack is found by Will, who is in search of Jack's compass, on a large Caribbean island with cannibal inhabitants who take him as their cheif and god, recalling the line from the previous film, "...and then they made me their chief". Unfortunately for Jack this high position means he must be eaten to have his spirit released, and he makes a break for freedom shortly before he can be cooked alive. Jack manages to return to the departing Pearl just in time to escape with his life.

Jack later comes face to face with Davy Jones and worms his way out of a horrific fate as a member of Davy Jones' crew by promising to bring Davy Jones one hundred souls in exchange of the salvaging of his own. Jack then races to find the Chest of Davy Jones to try and save his life, and is confronted by both former Commodore James Norrington and Will, both of whom wish to claim the Chest for their own reasons. After a vicious, and slightyly humourous battle Jack seemingly escapes with the Chest's contents, the Heart of Davy Jones.

Eventually Davy Jones' ship, the Flying Dutchman, surfaces next to the Pearl, and Jones intends to claim the soul of Jack and his ship. Soon after dropping the jar of dirt supposedly holding Davy Jones' heart, Jack realises that somebody (Norrington) has taken the heart. After Davy Jones' summoning of the beast, the Kraken, the Pearl's crew valiantly fights for their lives, while Jack sails away, only to return to make the shot that saves the remainder of the crew. However, during the crew's escape from the impending return of the Kraken, Elizabeth realizing that the Kraken is only after Jack, deludes Jack by kissing him while also handcuffing him to the Pearl's mast abandoning him to his death. There is a moment of remorse and a sense that the Captain truly feels something for Elizabeth. Their kiss is witnessed by a shocked Will. He says nothing of it as Elizabeth gets into the small boat. He only asks harshly, "Where is Jack?" She tells the crew that the Captain chose to remain to give them a chance to escape. Then realizing what she has done stares at the bottom of the boat.

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Captain Jack faces off with the Kraken

Jack comes to his senses once Elizabeth is out of view. He is able to get free from his handcuffs by lubricating them with lamp oil. Jack is last seen stalwartly standing beyond the gaping maw of the enraged Kraken, somewhat happily reunited with his tricorne and commenting that the legendary odor of the Kraken's foul breath is "not so bad". Jack, unfazed by the oncoming doom within the depths of the Kraken's belly, makes a last stand, grabbing his sword and saying "hello, beastie," before bravely leaping into the mouth of the beast, at peace with whatever fate may await him beyond.

At the epilogue of the film it is revealed to the crew by witch Tia Dalma that there is a hope for reviving (or recovering) their beloved captain. The secret to this apparently lies at "World's End", the most mysterious place on Earth. The crew realizes no matter what Captain Jack Sparrow was to them at first, the loss is much too great to live with. They agree to do what has to be done to bring him back if possible. The film ends with a shot of Jack's old foe, Barbossa, descending a staircase, as he is revealed to be the only one who can lead the crew to World's End. As he bites into a green apple, with the monkey on his shoulder, he says one line before the credits roll: "Now tell me, what's become of my ship?" Template:Endspoiler

Pirates of the Caribbean 3

The continuation of the story arc will apparently see Jack trapped in purgatory while Will Turner, Elizabeth Swan and Jack's mortal enemy Hector Barbossa rush to save him and save the Black Pearl. It is unknown what relationship Jack and Barbossa will have in this film, but it should be noted that Jack killed Barbossa seconds after his 12 year quest to end the Aztec Curse was ended.

Although little is known about this next installment, it has become evident that Jack will cross paths with his father (portrayed by Keith Richards) in a cameo role.

Personality

Captaincy

Sparrow has an unwavering desire to captain the Black Pearl. This is demonstrated in his willingness to barter for it— he offers his subordinance and 25% of his pirates’ earnings to Captain Barbossa should Sparrow be given back his command, although it should be noted that this was likely a ploy to convince Barbossa he was on his side. As Sparrow explains to Elizabeth, "what a ship is—what the Black Pearl really is—is freedom." Also some of these actions may be in regards to the fact that Jack literally sold his soul for the Pearl, and thus is rightly its Captain.

Demeanor

Sparrow's most obvious characteristic is a slightly drunken stagger, accompanied by awkwardly flailing hand gestures that make him look unfocused (or possibly slightly ataxic). Attributed to the heat stroke he was rumored to have suffered while marooned—he actually spent that time cavorting with the rum runners who helped him escape and was unlikely to have suffered anything worse than a severe hangover—Sparrow's gestures are believed to be a ploy to help keep his enemies off-guard. His perpetual drunkenness could also lead to his tendency to slur his speech. Jack possesses a distinctive tattoo on his right forearm of a sparrow flying in front of a setting sun over the ocean. This is apparently a well-known identifying mark for the infamous pirate as Commodore Norrington seemed to recognize it immediately. He also has had the letter "P" (for pirate) branded on his right wrist by the East India Trading Company. Cutler Beckett later mentions in the second film that he and Sparrow had "marked" one another, while playing with a P brand.

Jack's effects

Jack carries a number of items on his person at all times (including his tricorne, pistol, sword, and coat, collectively known as "his effects"), most notably his compass. Apparently received in a barter (or quite possibly stolen) from the voodoo doctress Tia Dalma, Jack's compass points towards whatever the person holding it desires most, instead of the usual behavior of pointing North. Generally, it points to a treasure or valuable item, but it can also point to people, and works for anyone who picks it up, as evidenced in Dead Man's Chest.

Jack's compass begins to fail him at the start of the second film; however, it works later for Elizabeth because she is focused on saving Will. Jack convinces her that the only way to do that is by finding the Dead Man's Chest. Later, when the compass is held by Elizabeth, it points towards Jack, leading her to complain that the compass is broken. She sits down in the sand and, when Jack picks up the compass, it points towards Elizabeth; he says, "You're sitting on it", and motions for her to move off of the spot.

In a comedic turn of events, Jack loses his tricorne and spends the length of the film searching for an adequate replacement, at one point stopping a pub fight to try on the one of the fighters tricorne.

Traits

While atypical for a pirate, Sparrow is also known for his altruistic nature; he often puts himself in harm's way to save other people, most notably Will and Elizabeth. The film's script suggests Jack's kindness is part of the reason why his crew mutinied—when Jack offers a nonviolent way to find a piece of the cursed Aztec gold on the Navy ship Interceptor, Barbossa claims, "Now, y'see Jack, that's exactly the attitude that lost you the Pearl. People are easier to search when they're dead." Additionally, he appears highly adept at employing game theory to achieve his ends.

Jack is oftened accused of fabricating stories to glorify his escapades, however several scars and pirate brandings would lend to proof to the concensus that Jack has had his fair share of dangerous outings.

Jack apparently suffers from extremely bad breath. He caused Norrington to take a step back when he got a little close, and made Governor Swann gag at the end of the first film. (On the DVD commentary, Gore Verbinski quoted his breath resembling, "the inside of a donkey's ass.")

Jack Sparrow in popular culture

• Jack appears in a Disney Press book series for young readers from June 2006, chronicling his adventures as a teenager. Written by Rob Kidd, the first three books follow Sparrow and a young, motley crew in a continuing search for the legendary Sword of Cortés. Along the way, they must battle pirates, ancient curses, sirens and the power of the sea.

• Jack Sparrow is considered to be a ladies' man, and appears as Terri Clark's fantasy lover in the video for her country music song, Girls Lie Too. (Sparrow is not played by Johnny Depp in the video.)
• Sparrow appears in Kingdom Hearts II as an optional member of the party in the Port Royal world. James Arnold Taylor voices Jack Sparrow in the English release of the game; Hiroaki Hirata (who voiced Jack Sparrow in the Japanese dub of Pirates) plays the character for the Japanese release.
• Tuomas Holopainen had an action figure of Sparrow attached to his keyboard when he played with his band Nightwish in the Hartwall Areena for the recording of End of an Era.
• Sparrow's name makes an appearance in the game Fable and Fable: The Lost Chapters on a tombstone in the Lychfield Graveyard. The grave reads "Cpt. J. Sparrow: May the wind always be at your back sir", perhaps a reference to the toast Depp shares with his father while playing George Jung in Blow.
• WWE wrestler Paul Burchill until recently used a pirate gimmick when performing, using mannerisms and an appearance very much like those of Sparrow.
• Sparrow is the protagonist of the video game titled Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow for the PC, and PS2 platforms. The game follows the events of Sparrow's past, including his escape from the island on which he was marooned and how he sacked Nassau Port without firing a shot.
• In the spring of 2006, Disney retooled their Pirates of the Caribbean ride to include more references to the film. Jack Sparrow makes three appearances in the attraction looking for the town's treasure. The final scene sees Jack victorious in his efforts, sitting on a throne surrounded by treasure, singing the "Yo-Ho" song happily.