Hector Barbossa

Hector Barbossa, more widely known as Captain Barbossa, is a fictional character in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, being the primary antagonist in the first film of the series Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. When Barbossa is first introduced, he is the captain of the cursed pirate ship named "The Black Pearl". His character returns to the screen in the third film of the trilogy, becoming a major ally to main protagonist Captain Jack Sparrow.

Barbossa is portrayed by Australian actor Geoffrey Rush in all the films.

Development

Captain Barbossa's first name was revealed in a director's commentary on the DVD, but actually mentioned by Sparrow in the third film. His last name is both a pun on the Spanish/Portuguese surname "Barbosa" and is based on Barbarossa, the dreaded pirate also known as "Redbeard".

Fictional Biography

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Main article: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

In Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Barbossa is the captain on the pirate ship the Black Pearl, but he was originally the ship's first mate under Captain Jack Sparrow. Barbossa persuaded Captain Sparrow to reveal the bearings leading towards the Isla de Muerta to him and the crew. The island is the hiding place for the Chest of Cortez, containing Aztec gold. Sparrow divulged its location, but that night, Barbossa led a mutiny and commandeered the Black Pearl. Sparrow was marooned on a tiny island, with only a single-shot pistol with which to commit suicide. Jack escaped three days later and spends the next ten years seeking revenge.

Barbossa and the crew stole the cursed Aztec treasure, which bestowed each member of the crew with the same curse. The crew had become undead pirates, unable to live in the world of the living, but also unable to join the world of the dead. Their true, decayed forms were only visible in the moonlight. To lift the curse, the crew must return all the Aztec gold to the chest on Isla de Muerta and offer their blood. The pirates also need the blood of their former shipmate, "Bootstrap Bill" Turner, the lone hold out against the mutiny. Believing the crew deserved to remain cursed for what they did to Jack, he sent away a piece of the treasure to his son, Will Turner. In retaliation, he was tied to a cannon and thrown overboard. For years, Barbossa has searched for the last coin. It has since come into the possession of Elizabeth Swann, the daughter of Governor Weatherby Swann. Barbossa sets sail for Port Royal when he detects a "signal" from the coin when it makes contact with the water in the sea. Unknown to him, Jack Sparrow is also in Port Royal.

File:Barbossa Skeleton.jpg

Barbossa's cursed-skeleton form.

Believing Elizabeth is Bootstrap's daughter (and thus, the way to breaking their curse), Barbossa makes off with her and the Aztec medallion. He reveals their cursed state to Elizabeth en route to Isla de Muerta. Upon arrival, Barbossa performs a ritual offering a small amount of Elizabeth's blood to break the curse. It does not work, and Elizabeth escapes with Will Turner and the medallion. Jack Sparrow is left behind in the cave, and he is taken prisoner aboard the Pearl. Barbossa and his crew pursue Elizabeth aboard the Interceptor. Catching them, Barbossa maroons Jack and Elizabeth and imprisons the rest of the crew, including Will, and prepare for the ritual again. This time, Barbossa will offer Will's blood. Sparrow makes another unexpected return and strikes a bargain with Barbossa with the intent of betraying him.

While the pirates of the Black Pearl battle The Dauntless's crew at Isla de Muerta, Jack duels Barbossa. Jack secretly took an Aztec coin while bargaining with Barbossa beforehand, and now both are immortal and neither can claim victory. Cutting his palm while Barbossa is recovering from a hit, Jack throws the bloodied medallion to Will. Jack then shoots Barbossa with the same pistol Barbossa marooned him with ten years before. Will drops the two final coins and blood into the chest, lifting the curse. As Barbossa looks at the blood pouring from his wound, he says he feels cold. It is the first sensation he's experienced since the curse was put upon him. After he falls dead, a close-up shows an eerily content expression on his face. A green apple rolls from his hand, a symbol of his lost life - and what he never again tasted.If you watch the scene more after he dies you see that his body disappears.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Main article: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Although Barbossa does not appear until the final scene of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, he can be seen lying on a bed in the next room when Jack and the crew first visit Tia Dalma and offer Jack the monkey as payment. However, it's still unclear that this is Barbossa because only his boots are visible. It can be assumed it is him because, once released from the cage, the monkey scurries over to him. Other clues foreshadow his return: Jack picks up a hat that belonged to Barbossa, and he steals a ring from Tia Dalma that is like the one Barbossa wore in the first film.

File:Hector Barbossa.JPG

Hector Barbossa's Return.

In the final scene, Will, Elizabeth and the crew return to Tia Dalma's shack, mourning the loss of Jack Sparrow. Tia tells them that Jack can be returned from the World's End, but they will need a captain who knows those waters. A shadowy figure descends the staircase; it is Barbossa restored to life. He asks, "So tell me, what's become of my ship?", takes a bite of an apple and starts laughing.

It is uncertain how or why Tia Dalma resurrects Barbossa, or even how she knew where to find his body as he died in the chamber which held the chest of Aztec gold. It is questioned in the third film why she couldn't resurrect Sparrow in the same manner that she did Barbossa, she replied that it was because Barbossa was only dead, and Jack on the other hand was imprisoned in Davy Jones' Locker. However, we learn in At World's End, Tia Dalma is Calypso and may be attempting to obtain all the Pieces of Eight, and therefore had to ressurect Barbossa to learn where his piece of eight is, which we learn is Ragetti's eye. Also, she needed Barbossa to get to Davy Jones Locker for Jack's Piece of Eight.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Main article: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

In this installment, Barbossa joins Elizabeth, Will and the crew of the Black Pearl to rescue Jack from Davy Jones' locker.

The beginning of the movie sees the crew in Singapore where they try to steal navigational charts from the Pirate Lord Sao Feng. Barbossa and Elizabeth meet with Sao Feng to request a ship and crew while the rest of the crew break into the bath house to act as back-up. Regardless, Sao Feng denies their request, revealing the coincidence that a thief had come to steal his navigational charts earlier that day. The thief turns out to be Will and both Barbossa and Elizabeth try to hide their surprise at his getting caught. Both deny knowledge of Will, but Elizabeth cries out just as Sao is about to stab Will. Sao Feng stops, knowing he has caught them. Barbossa then takes on a conciliatory note. Sao Feng asks why they wanted a ship and a crew to go to the World's End and before Barbossa could say anything, Will tells him of their intentions to rescue Jack from Davy Jones's locker.

At the name, Sao Feng flies off the hook, but manages to spot a man with a fake dragon tattoo. Swords are drawn and Barbossa tries to calm Sao Feng down, but to his and Elizabeth's surprise (and consternation) swords from below the floorboards are thrown up for their use by the Black Pearl crew who all managed to break in. Sao Feng then draws his sword against the fake tattooed man's neck, threatening to kill him. Barbossa tells him to kill the man, as he is not a member of his crew. It is then revealed that a third party is present, and members of the East India Trading Company burst in through the door firing their guns. A fight between the pirates and the Company ensue. During the fight, Sao Feng and Will manage to negotiate a deal where the Pirate Lord offers them a junk ship and crew.

Barbossa, Elizabeth, Will and the crew journey through a frozen ocean, with the help of Sao Feng's maps which were stolen after the fight. They continue sailing until an enormous waterfall is spotted on the horizon. The crew are alarmed, but Barbossa dismisses their fears and shouts for the crew to let the ship run "straight and true". They fall down the waterfall and into Davy Jones' Locker.

Washing up on 'a shore', the crew of the junk ship gather to see Jack and the Black Pearl sail over a sand hill on a wave of tiny crabs. They greet him warm heartedly, and Jack greets Barbossa as Hector, (the only time in the series) but after hearing their story (and finally believing they weren't figments of his imagination) he retorts, asking why he should sail with them when four of them tried to kill him and (only) one had actually succeeded. This statement surprises everyone, most of all Will. At this reaction, Jack concedes and he then chooses a crew which consisted of everyone except Barbossa, Will, Elizabeth and the two most loyal to Barbossa. This leads to Barbossa revealing he had the charts that would lead them out of the Locker, therefore, Jack is inclined to take them all on.

During the voyage out of the Locker, Jack and Barbossa form an alliance when they discover Cutler Beckett possesses the heart of Davy Jones and has been purging piracy with the commanded assistance of Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman ship.

Once out of the Locker, they sight land to stock up supplies. Although still not trusting each other, the two captains agree to hand over the running of the ship to Will until they get back from land. A handful of the crew and both captains go ashore.

While on the island, Barbossa explains what he thinks they should do. He is adamant that as two of the nine Pirate Lords of the Seas, both he and Jack should attend the gathering of the Brethren of the Coast. But Jack doesn't want to go and the two began to argue.

Sao Feng and his men appear, taking both captains and the crew back to the Pearl, claiming the ship and names Will as captain. Everyone is taken by surprise, especially Elizabeth. Barbossa tries to negotiate a deal, claiming he has Calypso, goddess of the sea, in her human form. Sao Feng looks at Elizabeth thinking she is Calypso and captures her to his ship, the Empress, leaving the rest to continue on. Barbossa is pleased because it is Tia Dalma who is Calypso and who is still part of his crew. He then manages to convince Jack to go along to the gathering of the Brethren at Shipwreck Cove and this is where they head to.

At the Brethren of the Coast, eight of the nine pirate lords discuss the threat of Beckett and the release of Calypso from her imprisoned human form. Expecting Sao Feng to show up and reach a decision, they see Elizabeth instead. They are all surprised to hear she is the captain of the Empress, therefore, one of the nine. Every pirate argues over the matters at hand and Jack proposes they make a king. Since every pirate lord only has one vote, and that they would only vote for themselves, everyone is taken by awe when Jack votes for Elizabeth instead of himself, making her the Pirate King of the Brethren. Against Barbossa's persuasion, Elizabeth orders the pirates to fight against Beckett and leave Calypso be.

As all the pirates get ready to fight they see the horizon filled with Lord Beckett's massive fleet and are dumbstruck. Barbossa then frees Tia Dalma/Calypso and ask her to help in the battle between pirates, Davy Jones, the Royal Navy, and the East India Trading Company. To his horror, Calypso refuses to help and instead produces a massive whirlpool.

In this climactic battle in a maelstrom, Barbossa takes the Black Pearl into the whirlpool to battle the Flying Dutchman and Elizabeth and Will are joined in matrimony by Captain Barbossa whilst fighting the crew of the Flying Dutchman. Soon after Davy Jones stabs Will in the heart, but Jack takes Davy Jones' heart and Will stabs it, killing Davy Jones.

After the battle, the Black Pearl returns to Tortuga. Barbossa takes the ship and leaves both Jack and Mr. Gibbs behind. However, as he takes the charts to find the location of the fountain of youth, the entire middle section is cut out and he utters "Sparrow." The crew also protest in leaving Jack Sparrow behind, and suggest a possible mutiny, with reasons similar to those originally given, when Barbossa originally mutinied on Jack.

Background

Little is known about Barbossa before he joins the Black Pearl. His name indicates a possible Portuguese and/or Spanish ancestry though he speaks with an English West Country accent. In the "Becoming Barbossa" featurette on the "Lost Disc", Rush shared his personal take on Barbossa's history; his family was very poor, and he ran away from home when he was 13. He went to the sea, saw how well the captains and officers lived and decided to become a captain himself. At first, he wanted to be an honest seamen, but later he recognized that it would be easier for him to make a career if he broke laws, and so he became a pirate.

Barbossa has a fondness for apples which appear throughout the film. He offers one to Elizabeth and later tells her that when the curse is lifted he wants to eat a whole bushel of them. There are also apples on the table in his cabin, and when he dies at the end, an apple rolls from his hand as he had brought it along to eat when the curse was about to be lifted. His cameo appearance in Dead Man's Chest also shows him with his favorite fruit. This representation of the apple could have a number of symbolic meanings: the deadly fruit that Eve partook from a snake, or the devil's apple (referenced in a comment in the film, "A man so evil that Hell itself spat him back out"). Or perhaps from Disney itself with the infamous apple from their cartoon classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in which the evil queen attempted to kill Snow White with a poisoned apple. Indeed, when Elizabeth is offered an apple, she mistakenly believes it's poisoned. Most obviously it is a Vanitas style reference, particularly apt for a character incapable of dying. Apart from symbolism, it may be that one of Barbossa's greatest pleasures is apples and years of being unable to feel, smell, or taste has turned a pleasure into a constant craving.

According to the audio commentary from the first Pirates of the Caribbean DVD featuring the scriptwriters, Barbossa and Norrington are equally skilled with a sword. They tie as second-best, after Will Turner. (This was evidenced in the first film as the crew were hesitant to attack Barbossa, even all at once.) Geoffrey Rush comments that Barbossa supposedly used a sword from a very young age, possibly as early as 13.

Barbossa's Jolly Roger, which was originally the flag of pirate Calico Jack.

He uses the same flag as the notorious pirate John "Calico Jack" Rackham. Template:Endspoiler

It was revealed in the essential guide to Pirates of the Caribbean that Barbossa is very interested with his appearance, as his clothing shows. He has vanity rings on his fingers, and the feathers of a blue ostrich in his hat, and coat buttons made from melted Incan silver. Also, his pistol was taken from a Spanish pirate, won in a duel which the Spanish pirate had lost. [1]

Other appearances

• Barbossa is one of only four Disney villains ever nominated for the MTV Movie Award for Best Villain, the others being Davy Jones, Scar from The Lion King, and Jadis the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
• Barbossa (along with another Black Pearl crewman) are pictured on the cover of WAS IST WAS band 71 Piraten. [2]
• Barbossa appears as a villain in the Pirates of the Caribbean world of Kingdom Hearts II. In that game, he recreates his role in the first movie with the exception of his crew's alliance with Pete. During a confrontation with Sora, Donald, Goofy, Jack and the others, Barbossa agrees to leave with Will Turner, but allows the Heartless to stay on board with the explosives placed on the Interceptor. In the final confrontation with Jack Sparrow and Sora's group, Barbossa makes use of a Gecko-type Heartless named Illuminator, which Pete summons for him, that can hide Barbossa in darkness, as well as his own sword skills and grenades. After being defeated by Sora, Jack and the others, Jack drops his sword and shoots Barbossa with the pistol the renegade captain left him upon his exile. Barbossa laughs it off at first, but Will calls his attention and drops the last two Aztec coins back into the chest, both smeared with his and Jack's blood. Barbossa, his curse broken, feels the pain of his gunshot wound, which struck him directly in the heart. His last words are, "I feel... cold." (the same lines from the film) He then falls backwards, dead. Due to the filming of the two sequels back-to-back which resulted in the cast being unavailable, Barbossa was voiced by Brian George in the English version. In the Japanese version, he is voiced by Haruhiko Jo.

External links

• Hector Barbossa at the Pirates of the Caribbean wiki