How Johnny Depp Brought Captain Jack Sparrow To Life

The character of Captain Jack Sparrow is one of the most famous and beloved in modern film. His crazy, off-the-wall way of thinking and doing things transformed the classic pirate character into something we didn’t know we needed.

Johnny Depp created this character through years of acting experience and thinking outside of the box when it comes to what a persona should be, compared to what it can be.

Earlier Roles

Depp didn’t start his career as a swashbuckler sprouting all manner of pirate lingo nonsense, but he has always been an actor that has had a way of turning fairly “normal” characters into something with many more layers than you might think.

While his roles before PotC can be classed as “normal,” it’s hard to forget his 1990 role as Edward Scissorhands. This role showed us very early on that being weird and breaking acting molds was something Depp could do very well.

Acting Style

Johnny Depp’s earlier acting style can be described as “classic,” as he was able to be serious and romantic, convey emotion, and draw audiences in. As his career progressed, he began to dive deeper and deeper into the realm of adding strangeness and wackiness.

Considering he played more serious roles in the two films preceding the first PotC, Blow, and From Hell, the change in character and acting he used for Captain Jack Sparrow was met with mixed reviews at first.

However, it became very clear that Depp had the ability to make characters feel more real by making them seem out there and almost unbelievable. Jack Sparrow is a lunatic that has a strange way with words, isn’t very serious at all, and, more importantly, isn’t like pirates we have seen on screen before.

Preparation

Depp’s preparation for Captain Jack Sparrow was relatively simple; he stated that he took the script into a sauna and turned the heat up as much as he could handle. He suggested that since this character spent most of their life at sea in the Caribbean, they had probably spent far too much time in the sun, something that could have caused them to reach the point of a mental breakdown.

He also thought about Sparrow’s body language in a rather ingenious way. He stated that at sea, Sparrow would be able to hold his own and move with his boat and waves. However, on land, his sea legs would take over, and he would struggle to walk “normally” on solid ground; this is where we get all the clips of his somewhat eccentric way of walking and running.

Jack Sparrow Persona

Using this idea, Depp created a character that is seemingly suffering from “brain melt.” He doesn’t make intelligent decisions, he does things fearlessly even though they could easily lead to his death, and he talks in riddles if he is being coherent at all.

This is a world away from the other pirates in Pirates of the Caribbean, as well as the pirates we have seen in films before. They are often more violent and angry and are more like soldiers in a way. Depp broke this mold in one of the best ways possible.

What makes the character better is that it is still balanced by emotion, touches of empathy, and selfless actions even though Captain Jack is on the hunt for something that would only benefit him; once again, characteristics that aren’t associated with pirates.

Lasting Impact

Pirates of the Caribbean not only transformed the world of action and adventure films but also cemented Depp as one of the most eccentric yet brilliant character actors of his generation.

There is a very big difference between Depp and someone like the Rock; the Rock plays strong, macho characters in almost all of his movies, with his motivations and story changing with each new film.

However, Depp may be whacky in a lot of his films, but it isn’t the same kind of wacky and strange each time. Captain Jack Sparrow and Willy Wonka are both strange, but for vastly different reasons and in different ways.

The same can be said for his role as the Mad Hatter, compared to his role as Gellert Grindelwald. Depp is an actor that can play characters with multiple personalities, motivations, thoughts, and emotions.