Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) was resurrected at the end ofPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, but his return was actually foreshadowed much earlier in the film than most people realized. Barbossa, who is one of thePirates of the Caribbeancharacters who was inspired by a real person, died at the end ofPirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearlafter Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) lifted the curse, turned the pirate ship’s crew back into mortals, and shot Barbossa in the chest.
He wouldn’t stay dead for long, however, as Tia Dalma (Naomi Harris) brought him back to life in the sequel, ironically, to save Jack from Davey Jones' locker. Barbossa’s resurrection was a major surprise forDead Man’s Chest, but the film actually set up Barbossa’s return, albeit quite subtly, long before he was revealed. One detail not only proves that the pirate captain was soon to make his grand reentrance, it also completely changes another character’s motivation and her plan for the second and thirdPirates of the Caribbeanmovies.
Barbossa’s Hats & Boots Are Seen In Tia Dalma’s House When Jack & Will Visit Her
When Jack, Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), and the rest of the crew of theBlack Pearlfirst got to Tia Dalma’s house, there was a clue at what she was planning.After exchanging Barbossa’s undead monkey as payment, it ran over to a pair of boots laying horizontally on Tia Dalma’s floor that belonged to none other than Barbossa himself. There are only three reasons Tia Dalma would have had Barbossa boots: she collected them to get ready to resurrect him, Barbossa’s corpse was still wearing them, waiting to be resurrected, or Tia Dalma had already resurrected Barbossa, and he was simply sleeping.
Tia Dalma Was Already Plotting To Manipulate The Pirate Lords, Specifically Barbossa, Into Freeing Her
Tia Dalma Is Secretly The Goddess Calypso, & She Needed All 9 Pirate Lords To Free Her
InDead Man’s Chest, it seemed like Tia Dalma resurrected Barbossa specifically to save Jack from Davey Jones' locker.However, the fact that she already had at least Barbossa’s boots, and potentially even the pirate captain himself, during her first meeting with Jack proves that Tia Dalma had been planning to use him for a while. The nextPiratesmovie,At World’s End, revealed why she wanted Barbossa alive even before Jack had fallen to the kraken: Tia Dalma neededPirates of the Caribbean’s nine pirate lordsall together to free her from her imprisonment.
Barbossa was still considered one of the pirate lords even after his death, so Tia Dalma would have had to revive him no matter what happened to Jack in Dead Man’s Chest.
As she revealed inAt World’s End, Tia Dalma wasn’t a normal person, she was actually the imprisoned form of Calypso, the goddess of the sea. The first pirate council, with help from Davey Jones, imprisoned Calypso in a human body.The only way Calypso could be freed and return to her full power over the ocean was if all nine pirate lords used their pieces of eight and agreed to release her. Barbossa was still considered one of the pirate lords even after his death, so she would have had to revive him no matter what happened to Jack inDead Man’s Chest.
Tia Dalma Needed The British To Threaten Pirates So The Brethren Court Would Convene
Even though Calypso, or Tia Dalma, could have resurrected Barbossa earlier inDead Man’s Chest, she couldn’t have freed herself that early.The reason Tia Dalma didn’t free herself inDead Man’s Chestis because she couldn’t, not without the eight other pirate lords in addition to Barbossa. The pirate lords imprisoned Calypso for a reason, and even though Barbossa owed her his life, none of the others did. Calypso needed an opportunity for the Brethren Court to convene and for a threat to them to become so great that they would be willing to free her.
Pirates Of The Caribbean: How Jack’s Compass Works & Why It’s Way More Complicated Than It Should Be
Jack Sparrow’s compass becomes a major plot point in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, and also makes things very confusing at time.
Calypso had a bit of luck inAt World’s End, as she found the only opportunity to escape the pirate lords' captivity thanks to Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) after he started attacking pirates. The initial plan was for Barbossa to convince the other pirate lords to free Calypso willingly and have her fight off the British, but Jack and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) convinced them to fight.Then, Barbossa switched plans, stole all the other pieces of eight, and released Calypso. That moment paid off a plan Tia Dalma had been working towards since the start ofPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
Cast
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest is the second installment in the swashbuckling franchise directed by Gore Verbinski. Johnny Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow, who must settle a blood debt with the legendary Davy Jones, portrayed by Bill Nighy. As Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) are drawn into Jack’s perilous quest, they face new dangers on the high seas and encounter the fearsome Kraken.
