How Many Pirates of the Caribbean are There and Where Were They Filmed?

Quick Facts of Pirates of the Caribbean

In 2003, the film Pirate of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was released and it has since gone on to form the basis of more films. These Pirate of the Caribbean films belong to a much bigger world in The Walt Disney Company referred to as the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and because they are the most popular in this media franchise, they are commonly believed to be the foundation upon which the franchise was built, however, they are actually not.

In Tokyo Disneyland, there is a Pirate of the Caribbean attraction that has been there since 1967. This attraction was the inspiration behind the making of four of the five films in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise while one is based on the 1987 Tim Powers novel titled On Stranger Tides.

Although the Pirates of the Caribbean films have been the biggest media from this Disney franchise, it might interest you to know that it (Pirates of the Caribbean franchise) also encompasses spin-off novels, video games and more tourist attractions in different Disneyland locations in the world. Keep reading to learn about the creation of the films, the temporal sequential release of the films and the locations where each film was made.

How Many Pirates of the Caribbean are There?

As earlier mentioned, the first film in this franchise was released in 2003 and four more films have followed after its release. All of the films tell the pirating adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow, which is played by .

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

The first film titled Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, written by Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio, features the cursed pirate crew of the ship named the Black Pearl, who stole the treasure of the Hernan Cortes and consequently, became cursed to be undead. Meanwhile, Jack Sparrow, the actual owner of the Black Pearl, lost his ship to Hector Barbossa in a mutiny.

The crew, led by Barbossa, kidnapped Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) believing that she is the child of a pirate whose blood they need to break the curse and in an attempt to save Elizabeth, Will Turner (played by ), her fiancé proceed to chase the ship.

For Sparrow, he wants his ship back and also needs the curse to be lifted as he is one of the cursed people while Turner just wants to get the love of his life back. This film was a global financial success and it also had immense success with award bodies.

2. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest

The success of the first film served as a motivation for the continuance of the Pirate of the Caribbean story and thus, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was born. It featured the same cast but with the inclusion of members of a new ship, the Flying Dutchman and the tyrannical Lord Cutler Beckett.

In the film, Will Turner and Elizabeth are finally getting married but their wedding gets interrupted by Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander), who wants Captain Jack Sparrow’s compass and requires the groom to get it for him in an attempt to find the Dead Man’s Chest. Jack Sparrow on the other hand, also finds out that his debt to Davy Jones () is due.

3. At World’s End

The story in Dead Man’s Chest is continued in At World’s End, which follows the nature of the first and second film and features the characters trying to rescue one another. In the first film, there is the chase to defeat Davy Jones who controls the sea and the only way to do this is by finding his heart and gaining control of him. One of the characters from the first film succeeds at this and for his efforts, he is reinstated into the Navy, defeating Will Turner and Jack Sparrow who also wanted the heart. Turner wanted it to save his father while Sparrow wanted the power that comes with controlling Jones.

In the fourth film, the battle to claim Davy Jones’ heart is still going on as the man who has the heart now is ordering the assassination of pirate ships, the goal is to kill him but whoever kills Davy Jones is bound to his ship forever and can only come to land every ten years. Turner ends up in another battle, this time he is mortally wounded and the only way he can live is to stab the heart and take Jones’ place on the ship, which he does.

4. On Stranger Tides

On Stranger Tides is the fourth film in the series and the only characters from the first three films that feature in this film are Jack Sparrow, Hector Barbossa, and Joshamme Gibbs, who is Sparrow’s, first mate. In the same vein as the other films, the story involves a long journey and the search for treasure. This time, it is the search for a fountain that can grant immortality. Unlike the other films in this franchise that are based on the Disneyland attraction, this film is based on a novel.

5. Dead Men Tell No Tales

Six years after the release of On Stranger Tides, Dead Men Tell No Tales hit the cinemas. Jack Sparrow is down on his luck and has lost faith in his skills as a pirate but he meets the daughter of his arch-enemy, Barbossa, and the son of his old friend, Will Turner. All three go on a quest to find the Trident of Poseidon which has the power to break all curses on the sea which includes the one that afflicts Will Turner. By the end of the film, it is hinted that another sequel might also follow.

Pirates of the Caribbean Movies in Order of Release and Their Box Office Performances

Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was screened for the first time on the 23rd of June, 2003. This screening took place in one of the Disneyland resorts, the exact one being the Disneyland that is located in Anaheim, California. It was made on a budget of $140 million and from global box office sales it made $654.3 million.

The next film, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest holds the position of the highest-grossing film from this franchise with the $1.066 billion it made from the box office. This film, just like the first, was screened at Disneyland first on the 24th of June, 2006 before it was released to other cinemas in the United States on the 27th of July of the same year.

Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End is the direct sequel of Dead Man’s Chest and because of this, it was released less than a year after the release of its predecessor. On the 19th of May, 2007, audiences saw it in Disneyland and six days later, it was released nationwide in the country. By the beginning of the following month, it was already showing in other countries.

The next film, Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, was released much later and it came to cinemas on the 20th of May, 2011. On Stranger Tides was another huge box office success with its $1.046 billion, making it the film with the 3rd highest amount of sales that year.

The last and most recent film is Dead Men Tell No Tales which was the first film from the franchise that did not have its first screening in a Disneyland location or in the United States. This film was released on the 11th of May in 2017 and by the 26th of May, it was already showing in the United States.

Where Were They Filmed?

All five Pirate of the Caribbean films features grand fighting scenes and spectacular journeys on the sea, all of which required shooting on a man-made set or happening in real-life locations. For Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, the franchise’s first film, primary filming took place at St. Vincent. This is the largest island of all the islands that make up the country Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The decision to shoot on the island was made because of how quiet it was.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was filmed in five locations. The first was at the Walt Disney Studio in Los Angeles, for the next location the crew moved to the set of the first film in St. Vincent. Dominica, White Cay, and Grand Bahama Island were the last three locations used for this film.

Filing for Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End took place at the same time as the film before it, using the same locations but Utah and Palmdale, California were additional locations where the film was shot.

Just like the two films before it was shot in multiple locations, On Stranger Tides was also filmed in more than two locations. Filming began in Hawaii and then was moved to a studio in Long Beach. Locations in Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom were also used for shooting. 

The last film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, is the only film to be shot in one country, filming took place only in Australia and this was made possible because of the incentivized tax law that the Australian government was willing to offer. The film set was the largest to have been built in the country. Before shooting was moved to Australia, there had been talks of filming taking place in South Africa and Mexico but the tax incentives changed those plans.

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