Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is in wide release today. In the fifth instalment of the billion-dollar Pirates franchise, Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) searches for Poseidon’s trident while pursued by evil Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem).
Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites), Joshamee Gibbs (Kevin McNally), Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) and Carina Smyth (Maze Runner’s Kaya Scodelario) round out the characters. Most of principal photography was done on Australia’s Gold Coast.
Captain Jack is back and we’re not letting him go. pic.twitter.com/m6VVRTyFQm
— JERRY BRUCKHEIMER (@BRUCKHEIMERJB) April 21, 2015
[sz-youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrGyD4kHTSE” /]
Additional photography for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales took place last Spring in North Vancouver, mainly in North Shore Studios and a new set constructed at Seaspan Shipyards. This new set piece was a showcase for a cameo by music legend Paul McCartney as Sparrow’s Uncle Jack.
That makes two iconic 1960s rockers in the franchise — Paul McCartney of The Beatles as Uncle Jack and Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones as Captain Teague, Jack Sparrow’s father.
Update: How did the cameo come about? Producers had hoped to get Keith Richards back as Jack Sparrow’s father but he was unavailable. Who else would work as a Sparrow family member. Top of the list: Paul McCartney. But how would they get in touch with him? Johnny Depp had his phone number and texted him.
They meet in a Caribbean jail where Depp’s Captain Jack is waiting execution. McCartney is a fellow prisoner and even sings a sea shanty.
“One of the best moments of the whole shoot was at the end of the shooting day with him,” the director told EW. “The scene starts with him singing a song, and at the very end of the day, we needed to do a wild take to just record him singing. Nobody else is working on the set so on the soundstage, it’s completely quiet, and we’re only rolling sound. So I’m sitting there behind the monitors, listening in with earphones and basically recording Paul McCartney. That was a big, big moment.”
#PiratesLife pic.twitter.com/9GXS5QB931
— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) May 13, 2017
Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg directed the film and Jerry Bruckheimer produced it.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is in theatres today.