While the Pirates of the Caribbean series isn't one of the more critically acclaimed film franchises, the first movie, The Curse of the Black Pearl, is still an enjoyable standalone movie adapted that capitalized nicely on the Disneyland attraction. Among the 2003's movie's most notable elements was its score, composed by Hollywood icon Hans Zimmer. It's hard to imagine Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann's first outing with Zimmer's musical accompaniment. However, when director Gore Verbinski originally told Zimmer about his work on Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Zimmer was less than impressed. The composer recalled:
Pirates was a complete accident. I was working with [director] Gore [Verbinski] on something, and I said to him, 'So, what are you doing next?' He's going, 'Well, I'm thinking of doing this Pirates movie.' Okay, Pirates movie... really? Seriously? This is the worst idea I've ever heard. ...I got a phone call from Gore on a Sunday going, 'Come over, have a look at this thing.' He showed me a movie that I couldn't possibly have imagined when he was talking about it. And I loved how wrong I was and how right he was.
Let's be thankful that Hans Zimmer changed his tune upon seeing what Gore Verbinski had created with Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. It's one thing to have preconceived notions after just hearing an idea, but with actual footage in his head, Zimmer realized this was a project worth contributing to. However, because Zimmer was replacing Alan Silvestri, the original composer, he didn't have as long as he usually does to put together a score. He continued with Vanity Fair:
There was very little time left by the time I got onto this. I was going, 'Okay, I better go home and write a theme.' And I started at 7:30 in the evening. I'm just exploding with ideas, except I'm starting to be so tight. So the playing gets worse and worse and worse. And it's just like my fingers aren't moving properly anymore. Now it's 5 o'clock in the morning. So, that's sort of how that movie came about.
Hans Zimmer went on to score the next three Pirates of the Caribbean movies, passing along comprising duties to Geoff Zanelli for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. For now, it seems that his time with the franchise is over, but among the many movies he's composed for over the decades, his music on Pirates of the Caribbean (especially that theme) ranks as particularly memorable.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD, and while making Pirates of the Caribbean 6 has been discussed, the project has yet to be officially greenlit. To keep track of movies will be released this year (including X-Men: Dark Phoenix, which Hans Zimmer is scoring), look through our 2018 premiere guide.
