Keira Knightley Thought ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Was Going to Flop, Says ‘Love Actually’ Director

Back in his day Gore Verbinski, director of “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” said Hans Zimmer didn’t give a penny for the saga. According to the famous composer no one would watch a movie about pirates, an opinion which, we now find out, is shared by Keira Knightley.

Richard Curtis, director of Love Actually, tells us about it during the special that celebrates the 20th anniversary of this romantic Christmas film. The director, in conversation with ET online, assures that the female lead of the highly successful franchise led by Johnny Depp, I didn’t give a dime for the pirate project.

“I remember [durante el rodaje de ‘Love Actually’] I sat down with Keira and said, ‘What are you going to do now?’ And she said, ‘I don’t think it’s going to work. It’s a movie about pirates and they always fail'”. Knightley, like Zimmer, was very clear that Disney’s attempt to turn one of its most beloved Disneyland attractions into a blockbuster film would be in vain.

What they both predicted as an epic sting became one of the biggest wins in studio history with a first film grossing over $650 million worldwide and give rise to a saga with five films (for the moment). 794 million grossed worldwide for his latest installment, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge’, a film that currently does not have a continuation on the horizon. Margot Robbie was going to lead a project that eventually went downhill, and Depp’s return as franchise leader has remained a rumour.

“Worst Idea Ever”

What many would describe as “worst idea ever” hit the target, but not before getting nervous “to all the world”. “It involved making a film in a genre that literally doesn’t work, or there’s a lot of historical evidence that it’s not going to work. So you make everyone nervous. The studio was nervous. Everyone was nervous about Johnny Depp’s performance and the story… He had a crazy spirit”recalls Verbinski, assuring that it sounded like a challenge to him.

Almost two decades later, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ remains among the favorite sagas of many viewers, especially adventure fans who defend themselves by not finding that unique spirit in other proposals of the style. Will we see a sixth episode one day?