When looking at the biggest and most loved movie franchises of all time, it's hard to ignore the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. The franchise came close to not being made, but after the first film took off at the box office, it was able to generate billions of dollars. Sure, it's not what it once was, but there is no denying its place in history.
Johnny Depp's time as Captain Jack Sparrow in the franchise helped cement his place in Hollywood, and we've learned that it took some changes to his diet to get in shape for the role.
Let's see how Depp pulled it off!
Johnny Depp Transformed For Several Roles
Since becoming a recognizable face in entertainment back in the 1980s, Johnny Depp has been a performer that people love seeing in major projects. The charismatic actor has taken on challenges of all sizes, which has been a hallmark of his career.
Though he's best known as a movie star, Depp was a featured performer on the hit TV series 21 Jump Street, which was pivotal in getting his mainstream career started. Making the shift to focus on films in the 1990s, however, changed everything.
During his storied career, Depp has been featured in cult classics, powerhouse franchises, and offbeat films that have a loyal audience. Not only that, but the actor has played a range of oddball characters that have made their way into the pop culture sphere.
While others performers might have done a good job, it's hard picturing someone else as Edward Scissorhands, Raoul Duke, or as Cry-Baby Walker. That's just part of Depp's charm, and it's largely why he has been such a successful performer for the last few decades of his career.
Again, Depp has played many amazing characters, though few are as famous and as beloved as Captain Jack Sparrow.
He Was Brilliant As Captain Jack Sparrow
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl marked the first time that Johnny Depp played Captain Jack Sparrow, kickstarting a massive film franchise in the process. Depp would play the character for a total of 5 films, making insane amounts of money along the way.
Though Depp is great as the character, he has not taken the time to watch the movies.
"I didn’t see it. But I believe that the film did pretty well, apparently, and they wanted to keep going, making more and I was fine to do that. It’s not like you become that person, but if you know that character to the degree that I did – because he was not what the writers wrote, so they really weren’t able to write for him. Once you know the character better than the writers, that’s when you have to be true to the character and add your words," the star said.
It does not appear that he will reprise the character again, but there is no taking away from the character's legacy in Hollywood.
Depp was truly mesmerizing as Captain Jack Sparrow, but he had some work to do to get the swashbuckler's look just right.
How He Got In Shape For The Role
To be fair, normally, Depp is pretty strict about his diet.
According to Koimoi, "The Golden Globe Award-winning actor has been very prudent about his diet. He astutely thinks about the nutrient density of food items and includes them in his diet. As per Celebrity Daily Routine.com, Johnny includes copious food items in his diet such as white fish, lean protein such as chicken breast, cottage cheese, green veggies, wheat pasta, soy products etc."
The site notes that when trimming weight, Depp changes things up just a bit.
"When a certain role demands to shed his weight, Johnny Depp eats low-calorie food like less sugary fruits, green veggies, whole grains, nuts, seeds etc. He consciously avoids sugary and alcoholic beverages. Instead, he prefers green tea to any other beverage. He nourishes his body with six small meals a day."
It's not uncommon to see major stars shave off a few pounds for a role, though some have gone overboard for a character. Vin Diesel is known to get back into shape for any of his Fast & Furious films, while Christian Bale has become skeletal for movies like The Machinist.
It's unlikely that Johnny Depp will ever play Captain Jack Sparrow again, but if he ever needs to cut some weight for a role, it seems like he has an effective plan in place that he can implement at any point.