Note: I was a guest of Walt Disney Pictures for this junket. All opinions are strictly my own.
Photo courtesy of: Louise Bishop Momstart.com
It’s easy to get swept away by the stories that Geoffrey Rush tells. Once he begins, there is never a doubt that this man landed right where he belongs…a triple crown winner, having won the elite awards of stage, screen and television. A group of bloggers sat down with him to find out JUST what he thought about his role in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales….
GR: Well, it’s sort of something that happened over the first four films, you know. I think in the first one, before I actually entered into the story, he was described rather fearfully by the two pirates that are now my assistants. He’s spat out from the mouth of hell. To me that was the key line. He was pretty much the dark villain of the piece, and he had to break the curse.
“PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES”
The villainous Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem) pursues Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) as he searches for the trident used by Poseidon
Ph: Film Frame
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It’s all about the style
Like the British rock stars of the ‘60s , the pirates always had sort of clear-cut identities. The real Backbeard used to have fuse wire burning in his beard that when people saw him they thought he was the devil. With Barbossa I wanted to make him very arrogant, and very pompous, and very superior, and maybe a bit slightly self-diluted about how bright he actually is.
Penny Rose, the Costume Designer, gave me this great kind of flamboyant outfit from another time, I was a bit more like a glam rock star I liked that in Pirates 4, and I said, I really insist that I have a very elaborate wig and lovely makeup and a beauty spot.
Barbossa wouldn’t care if he mixed checks with stripes, what else does he spent his money on? I love the fact that the wooden leg is a great way to show how ridiculously wealthy he is. It’s a bit like Saddam Hussein having gold everywhere on the bathroom taps and probably shaped like fish or something.
On Barbossa’s Role
I sort of became like a politician. I was the guy getting the global pirate G20 meeting. And that was fun to play, because he’s a control freak and he loves thinking he’s the most powerful person on the planet.
Photo courtesy of: Louise Bishop Momstart.com
Monkey Business
The monkey’s great, it’s trained to really have no relationship with me. It would be looking for things to eat in my wig. They’re very loyal to their owner if trained correctly, so, when I pulled a sword or somebody yelled fire or whatever, the monkey would just go. They’re very head strong. He would lead the way and do all that sort of stuff.
The monkey is completely in the hands of the trainer, and the trainers are brilliant. They’re able to sort of throw in all the instructions in and around the dialogue.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales opens in theaters on May 26.
- For more about the film visit Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
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