Johnny Depp has a lot of roles that add to his fame but none as prominently as Captain Jack Sparrow. One of the many reasons the franchise stayed afloat for so long was how much spirit he added to the character. No matter how many other roles line up in his iconic roster, it is the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise that stands out the most.
Although he may no longer be a part of the franchise, it can just as easily be said that perhaps it died with his departure. The dedication fans have shown towards him and the life he brings to the franchise is uncanny. Even if the character was meant to be differently portrayed, Depp’s intervention changed everything.
Johnny Depp Was Ready To Go Through Anything For The Role Of Captain Jack Sparrow
Johnny Depp once revealed that to get into the role of Captain Jack Sparrow, he had to first better understand just who his character was. The pirate was initially supposed to have a very mundane personality, someone who would simply go on adventures and save the day, getting the girl in the end as well. The actor even defined Sparrow as a swashbuckler.
“I was looking at various aspects of the character and I figured this guy has been on the high seas for the majority of his life and therefore has dealt with inescapable heat to the brain,” Depp stated. “So I cranked the sauna up to about 1000 degrees and sat in there as long as I could until it started to affect me mentally. It was very, very hot, as was my brain.”
Depp also added that in order to see what best fits his character, he went to a sauna. In the sauna, he tried to recreate the conditions that a pirate would interact with on a daily basis. So, the character was born with the actor’s mind being pushed through excruciating heat and unbearable pressure.
Johnny Depp Perfected His Character Because Of His Children
Johnny Depp knew that to better understand his character he had to test his ideas out. One method he found to do so was to practice in front of his kids. He would use different voices while playing with them and wait for the way they reacted.
“I started out secretly testing characters on [my kids] to see how their reactions would be,” Depp added. “With my daughter, we’d be playing Barbies and I’d try out these voices on her and she’d just say ‘stop.’”
He then kept what his children liked and tried changing what they didn’t. It helped him greatly. Whether it was the places he got his inspiration from or the help his children gave him, it all helped him bring one of the greatest characters to life.
Source: Collider
