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Johnny Depp has played many iconic characters in his career, but his most iconic is Captain Jack Sparrow. Depp played Jack in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, one of Disney’s most successful properties. However, Depp doesn’t like to watch his own movies, and the Pirates films are no different. He recently shared that he has never seen the first movie, but that may not be entirely true.

Johnny Depp played Jack Sparrow in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movies

Johnny Depp is dressed as Jack Sparrow while onstage at the 2015 D23 EXPO for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
Johnny Depp | Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney

Based on the popular Disney attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl debuted in 2003. The movie was immediately successful with audiences and critics and performed well at the box office. Jack Sparrow became a beloved character and earned Depp an Academy Award nomination in 2004. 

In the series, Depp is joined by other cast members, including Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Geoffrey Rush, Kevin R. McNally, and Jonathan Pryce. Depp reprised the role of Jack for five films in total, including Dead Man’s Chest, At World’s End, On Stranger Tides, and Dead Men Tell No Tales. In total, the franchise has made over $4.5 billion at the worldwide box office, according to Box Office Mojo, making it one of the most profitable franchises of all time. 

Johnny Depp has never seen the first ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise

Depp has recently been in the news over his legal troubles with his ex-wife, Amber Heard. In 2020, Depp lost a libel lawsuit against The Sun after the UK media outlet published a story that featured accusations from Heard of Depp being abusive. This lost case caused a downfall in his career, leading him to be removed from Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and replaced with Mads Mikkelsen.

Currently, Depp is in court in Fairfax, VA, for his defamation suit against Heard. Matthew Belloni, the founder of Puck News, shared a tweet with the surprising revelation from Depp that he has never seen the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Here is what Belloni tweeted:

“Johnny Depp just said in court he never saw the first PIRATES movie. Remember, he was nominated for an Oscar for that film. Just a baller move right there.”

However, a 2017 interview on Ellen contradicts that slightly because he said that he has seen part of the first movie, but he has never watched it in its entirety. 

“I saw part of, maybe the first one. I ran out anyway, it doesn’t matter,” Depp told Ellen DeGeneres. “I ran out like a scared rat.”

Depp has only seen the fifth movie where he plays Jack Sparrow

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Johnny Depp Improvised a Hilarious Scene in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Franchise: ‘I’ve Got a Jar of Dirt’

Depp has openly said that he doesn’t watch many of his own movies. That’s a shame because he’s been in some great ones like Ed Wood, Edward Scissorhands, and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

“I can’t stand watching myself,” Depp stated. “If you’re not in it, you should see it.”

Still, the Black Mass actor admitted that he did watch the fifth movie, Dead Men Tell No Tales, because he wanted to make sure it delivered a satisfying ending if indeed it is the last one. 

“I thought, ‘If this is the [last one], I want to make sure that we’re delivering what we need to deliver to the people … because the people, you guys went and saw the [other movies] three, four, five times,” Depp told Degeneres. “You deserve to not be spoon-fed formula. So, I tried to up the stakes a little with some of the jokes.”
Based on the current rift between Disney and Depp, it doesn’t seem like we will see Captain Jack Sparrow helm the Black Pearl ever again. You can watch all of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies now on Disney+.