The addition of comprehensive lore was a big change toPirates of the Caribbean,and it originally saved the franchise from being too repetitive. However, it was also the very thing that ruined the later films. With fivePirates of the Caribbeanmoviesin total, and another film in development, the swashbuckling franchise has proven itself to be a fantastic success, both commercially and critically. In fact, there’s no doubting its reputation as one of the best-loved and highest-earning franchises in the industry, with thePirates of the Caribbeanmovies amassing $4.5 billion at the box office worldwide.
The success ofPirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearllaunched the 2006 sequelDead Men Tell No Tales, which was also a box office hit. As a result,Pirates of the Caribbeanbecame a prolific multimedia franchise with an impressive legacy. However, this may not have been the case ifPirates of the Caribbean’ssequel had not changed after the first movie. Introducing ever-expanding lore and newtreasures inPirates of the Caribbeanmoviescreated a well-rounded and rather enjoyable universe, but this big lore change soon wore thin and arguably ruined the later films.
The Sequel Expanded Pirates Of The Caribbean’s World
Released in 2006,Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chestintroduced a lot of intriguing lore to the established world. A year after the events of the first film,Dead Man’s Chestfollows Captain Jack Sparrow’s debt to Davy Jones, and Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann’s quest for freedom from the East India Trading Companyin exchange for Sparrow’s compass. The introduction ofDavy Jones inPirates of the Caribbeanwas a brilliant step forward afterThe Curse of the Black Pearl, as it expanded the pirate universe and mythologies, especially with elements like the Kraken and the Black Spot.
Furthermore,Tia Dalma was also introduced inPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest; a pivotal character in the third film. With everyone out for their own interests,Dead Man’s Chestexplored a new and interesting dynamic between characters, while also expanding on the lore.In contrast toThe Curse of the Black Pearl, which centered around a single curse,Dead Man’s Chestshowcased an open world full of possibility, and stopped the sequel from being a retread of the first movie. However, its positive reception also created a lore trend for subsequent movies that would later harm the series.
At World’s End Went Too Far With New Lore
Pirates Of The Caribbean’s Third Movie Was Too Busy
In 2007,Pirates of the Caribbeanreleased a third movie titledAt World’s End. Earning $963.4 million on a $300 million production budget,At World’s Endwas also a massive hit for the franchise, solidifyingPirates of the Caribbean’sreputation as a big name franchise. Following on from the previous film, Jack Sparrow is rescued from the afterlife to gather thepirate lords and their nine pieces of eight, forming an alliance in preparation forAt World’s End’s all-out war between the Brethren Court and East India Trading Company’s Lord Beckett, who controls the sea’s biggest adversary, Davy Jones.
Considering there was already a war planned,At World’s Endcould have done without all of the added lore on top.
While the war itself was a welcome conclusion to Gore Verbinski’s trilogy, the introduction of even more lore made it feel likeAt World’s Endhad taken things too far. ContinuingJack Sparrow’s immortality arcto the afterlife,the addition of the Brethren Court and its rules, Tia Dalma’s secret backstory as the goddess Calypso, and Calypso and Davy Jones’ love story were only side stories inAt World’s End, yet they made the film feel way too busy. Considering there was already a war planned,At World’s Endcould have done without all of the added lore on top.
Only A Few Elements Of Pirates Of The Caribbean Lore Received Satisfying Conclusions
There Are Many Unanswered Questions In The Franchise
With so much lore added toPirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, the side stories and the mythology somewhat overshadowed the main action of the film. However, it didn’t stop there, as subsequent movies also added their own lore to the pirate-focused universe. Unfortunately, as a result,thePirates of the Caribbeanfranchise suffers from quite a few unsolved mysteries. There are plenty of questions that have not been answered, likethe issues of Jack’s compass, what happened to Jack Sparrow’s parents, and how Davy Jones and the pirate lords even managed to trap Calypso in her human form.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s Endhas a deleted scene which explains Lord Beckett and Jack Sparrow’s history, Jack’s debt to Davy Jones, and the Black Pearl’s appearance.
Some of the answers to these questions lie in scenes that were cut from the final film, such as the backstory between Jack Sparrow and Lord Beckett -a deleted scene which would have improved our understanding ofPirates of the Caribbean. However, most of these mysteries are yet to be solved.With eachPirates of the Caribbeanmovie expanding its lore and mythology even more, the series never really had time to conclude the things it had started. Therefore, while the additional lore was welcome in makingPirates of the Caribbeanso well-rounded, only a few elements received satisfying conclusions.
New Lore Additions Quickly Made Pirates of The Caribbean Confusing
Pirates Of The Caribbean Suffers From Too Much All At Once
The constant addition of lore quickly madePirates of the Caribbeanmore confusing as a whole.Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearlwas very straightforward with its plot and the rules of the cursed Aztec gold, which meant the film was easy to followand highly enjoyable. WhileDead Man’s Chestexpanded on this with Davy Jones, it still felt quite subdued and simple enough to follow. Yet, subsequent films introduced too much lore for the franchise and audiences to keep up with, and this led toplot holes inPirates of the Caribbean’smovies.
These lore additions inPirates of the Caribbean’s third movie felt more like big plot points that deserved their own films as opposed to being side stories.
At World’s Endis, unfortunately, where this falls apart. On top of a complex war between parties of unsteady alliances,At World’s Endintroduced some rather significant pieces of lore, like the Brethren Court and Calypso. These lore additions inPirates of the Caribbean’s third movie felt more like big plot points that deserved their own films as opposed to being side stories.Therefore, while the world-building is fantastic in the films overall, theharsh reality is thatPirates of the Caribbean’sfranchisesuffers from way too much lore all at once, despite its addition being the sequel’s saving grace.
The Last Two Pirates Of The Caribbean Movies Exacerbated The Problem
The last twoPirates of the Caribbeanmovies only exacerbated the problem with lore. The fourth film in the franchise, a standalone sequel calledOn Stranger Tides,follows Jack Sparrow’s quest for the Fountain of Youth, which some felt disregarded the end to his immortality quest arc inAt World’s End. However,the movie also suffered from lore dumping that, while extremely fun, never really got resolved, with the introduction of mermaids and Blackbeard being able to physically control his boat. Furthermore,Will and Elizabeth’s somewhat unnecessary cameo inPirates of the Caribbean’sfifth filmwas also not elaborated upon.
$654.3 million
$1.066 billion
$960.9 million
$1.045 billion
Pirates of the Caribbean:Dead Men Tell No Tales(2017)
$794.8 million
In fact,Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Taleswas generally negatively received by critics, with a 30% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite trying to capture the same tone ofThe Curse of the Black Pearl, the fifth movie introduced a complicated backstory about Jack’s compass which only added more plot holes with its lore. Therefore, it’s obvious there’s a trend forPirates of the Caribbeantrying to introduce too much complex lore in such a short span of time, andPirates of the Caribbean’snext moviewould benefit from letting the movie breathe to be fun again.
