Davy Jones (Pirates of the Caribbean)

For other people named Davy Jones, see Davy Jones (disambiguation).

Davy Jones is a fictional character in the Pirates of the Caribbean film trilogy. Jones was introduced as the primary antagonist in the second film of the series Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), and was also featured as a major antagonist in its sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. The character is portrayed by actor Bill Nighy. Jones is the captain of the feared ghost ship featured in nautical lore, The Flying Dutchman.

Character development

The legend of Davy Jones' Locker is hundreds of years old, and originally not connected to the Flying Dutchman. References to Davy Jones may be found in many old works, such as Robert Louis Stevenson´s 1883 classic Treasure Island. Other sources are:

• The sea lore of the Flying Dutchman and its captain. As a reference to this legend, Jones can go on land only once every ten years, prompting Jack to carry a jar of dirt as an apparent preventative measure.
• Davy Jones' act of removing and concealing his heart draws on a well-established theme in which the villain is rendered immortal by sacrificing his or her humanity. Examples of this range from ancient mythology to modern concepts of the Undead and Demons.
• The Bible. Davy Jones' speech before waking the Kraken for the first time in the film ("Let no joyful voice be heard! Let no man look up to the sky with hope! And let this day be cursed by we who ready to wake...THE KRAKEN!") is a paraphrased version of chapter 3, verses 7 and 8 of the Book of Job.
• The Secret of Monkey Island. Like the ghost pirate LeChuck in the classic computer game The Secret of Monkey Island, Davy Jones is a villainous undead pirate captain whose immortality is a curse resulting from his broken heart.

Characteristics

It is said that if someone owes Davy Jones their soul, he has the ability to take it by any means. Even a cursed pirate that is undead could lose their soul, but only if there was an agreement. In the second and third films, Captain Jack Sparrow owes a debt to Jones; Jones had raised the legendary Black Pearl ship from the ocean depths and made Sparrow captain for thirteen years, in exchange for Sparrow's servitude on the Flying Dutchman. Now Sparrow must find another way to pay off the debt or else forfeit his soul for one hundred years. "Bootstrap Bill" Turner is also indentured to Davy Jones. Jones saved Bootstrap from the bottom of the ocean where he was tied to a cannon.

Like his crew, Davy Jones' body is a mixture of various aquatic flora and fauna features. His head is cephalopod-like and his "beard" is composed of squirming octopus-like tentacles. A prominent sac bulges from under his barnacle-encrusted hat. In addition to his "bearded" face, he breathes through siphons located on either side of his face. Jones has a crustacean-style claw for his left arm, a long tentacle index finger on his right hand, and the right leg of a crab (resembling a pegleg). He also speaks with a clearly distinguishable Scottish accent.

Jones uses the octopus-like arms of his "beard". If Jones is feeling calm his tentacle beard remains fairly still; only twitching slightly, but whe he's angered or tense the tentacles wriggle rather rapidly. He can also use it to manipulate objects, such as a key (he shows this during a game of Liar's Dice), his hat, (when his ship submerges) and the keys of his vast pipe organ. He plays the organ with his "beard" because one of his hands is a claw. Since his claw consists of only two parts (neither of which can move horizontally), he can only strike one key with that hand. However, his "beard" plays more than 20 keys at once, meaning he can play as about 2–3 other organists at once. The melody Davy Jones plays on his pipe organ is the same as the one played on his locket (It should be noticed that he and Tia Dalma have the same lockets, suggesting an ambiguous relationship). It is also his character’s theme, and can be heard throughout the film's score.

According to legend, supported by Tia Dalma and Jones himself in the film, and further confirmed when Will Turner takes control of the 'Flying Dutchman', the captain of the ship cannot set foot on land, "but once every ten years."

Powers and Abilities

Jones possesses a large arsenal of supernatural abilities at his disposal. Though normally relying on the strengh of his crew, ship, and the Kraken, Jones has proven quite powerful on his own. While fighting Jack Sparrow, he showed impressive prowess as a swordsman, and was able to destroy Jack's sword with his large crab claw. Jones is also capable of teleportation,(but only at night) and can phase through objects such as parts of his ship. By removing his heart, Jones became immortal, capable of surviving fatal wounds. However, he is not indestructable, as Jack was able to cut off some of his face tentacles during their battle. Jones can also track any soul that is owed to him via the black spot, which he can give and remove.

Jones' ship, the Flying Dutchman, is extremely powerful, possessing a large amount of cannons, including two "triple guns" at the bow. The ship is capable of travelling underwater in a manner akin to that of a submarine, allowing him to hide underwater and take a ship by surprise. His crew are, due to their curse, strong fighters, and until they have served their debt are nearly impossible to kill. They also possess advantage of the creatures they transform into, such as one with an eel's head that he can extend to attack, or one whose body can move after being decapitated using his hermit-crab like head.

Jones' greatest asset is the Kraken, which he can summon at any time using a device on the Dutchman. The Kraken is capable of easily destroying ships using its massive tentacles, though it will never attack the Dutchman. It can be wounded, but since it's main body is always below the water, it has never been mortally wounded by a defending ship. Jones killed the Kraken under Beckett's orders, though it isn't clear how.

Davy Jones has only two real weaknesses: His inability to come on land and his removed heart. While before Beckett used the heart to control him, he kept the heart locked in a box buried on a small island with the key kept inside his tentacle beard. Though formidable protection, his heart was still found and stabbed, finally killing him. As for never coming on land, he usually sends his crew to do whatever task on land he needs, but can move onto land by using water filled buckets. It is never clearly explained what will happen if Jones sets foot on land.

Life

Early life

Davy Jones, born David Jones in Scotland, the Devil of the seas, buried the Dead Man's Chest on Isla Cruces. Within the chest is his heart, carved from his chest when he was unable to bear the pain of losing his one true love. Jones has since inflicted cruelty and pain onto others, even his crew. Jones is invincible as long as his heart is not destroyed. Anyone possessing the heart controls Jones and the seas.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Jack Sparrow

In the book series about the earlier adventures of Jack Sparrow, Davy Jones shows interest in the Sword of Cortez. He is a minor character, but finally appears in the cliffhanger ending to book 7 when Jack and his crew encounter the Flying Dutchman. He also apparently rules over many siren and mermaid kingdoms in the ocean.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Despite Jones' determination to inflict pain and suffering, he appears to have a soft spot where love is concerned. When Jack tells him of Will Turner's love for Elizabeth, Jones' expression softens noticeably. While playing a certain tune on his pipe organ (a more complex version of the tune played by his heart-shaped music locket), Jones' face twists in tortured emotion. While on the Flying Dutchman, Will Turner challenges Jones at a game of liar's dice.

Jones and some of the Dutchman crew after Will challenges him to Liar's Dice.

The stakes, Turner's soul for an eternity of service, against the key to the Dead Man's Chest, where Jones keeps his heart locked up. Turner's father joins in the game, matching the wager, and purposely loses.

Will is free to go to port, while Bootstrap is entrapped on the ship forever. While Jones is asleep at his organ, Will sneaks in and steals the key. He then escapes the ship with help from his father. Jones sends the Kraken after the ship that had picked up Will. The crew is killed, but Will escapes and makes it to Isla Cruces, where the chest is buried. Jones arrives there as well, but he cannot set foot on land for a decade, and sends his crew after the chest. They retreive it, and now Jones only has to collect Jack's debt. He summons the Kraken to attack the Black Pearl and claim Sparrow. Jones grimly watches as the Kraken destroys the ship and apparently devours its captain. Turning his attention to the chest now back in his possession, he demands the crew open it. An anguished Davy Jones curses Jack Sparrow when the chest reveals itself to be empty. Jones believes Sparrow has the heart, but it is actually Lord Cutler Beckett who now possesses it, given to him by James Norrington in an effort to bargain back his career.

Davy Jones collects dying sailors and offers them an opportunity to serve aboard his ship for one hundred years in order to delay their final judgment. However, if someone willingly sells their soul to Jones in exchange for something, they also owe him one hundred years of servitude unless, as in the case of Jack Sparrow, they can attempt to buy off the debt by some other means. Jack Sparrow bartered his soul to Jones to raise the Black Pearl from the depths of the ocean and be made captain for thirteen years.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

File:Jones and jack.JPG

Jack prepares to shoot the distracted Jones from behind.

Due to Norrington bringing his heart to Beckett, Davy Jones was forced to kneel to Beckett's commands. Beckett used Jones to combat the enemy pirate ships and deliver the defeated pirates to Beckett which Jones it seemed disobeyed; laying waste to ships through the unstoppable power of the Flying Dutchman. In retribution for this violation of orders, Beckett ordered Jones to kill the Kraken which was under his control and another powerful weapon that could be used against Beckett and later the threat of destroying Jones' heart which Beckett brought aboard the Dutchman; Jones it seems was emotionally affected by having the heart aboard but caved in to Beckett's command and was put under the authority of Admiral James Norrington. Upon the escape of Jack Sparrow from Davy Jones' Locker and his escape from Beckett's ambush with Sao Feng, he commanded Jones to seek out and destroy the Empress and recapture Feng and Elizabeth Swann and he was a Pirate Lord who owned a piece of the nine. Jones attacked the Empress which subsequently killed Feng and captured Swann, who was spared by Norrington and ordered her to be taken to his quarters; though she demanded to remain with her crew. Upon Norrington's attempt to free Elizabeth and his stabbing by a derranged 'Bootstrap Bill', Jones claimed his old sword and hoped to reclaim the heart; though it was under the guard of many of Beckett's men who answered to the ruthless Mercer.

Beckett summoned Jones later on to his ship where Jones confronted Will Turner again and part of his back story was revealed to Beckett and Will. Turner taunted him for loving her which made Jones enraged and stated that he hated her for betraying him though he betrayed her by requesting the Pirate Lords of the Brethren Court lock her away, he also learned of Jack Sparrow's survival at the hands of the Kraken. He would later confront Calypso in her guise of Tia Dalma about his emotional feelings and she temporarily showed him her powers; he returned as she touched him to human form. Jones lied to her and persuaded her to turn against her captors and aid him in the battle to come.

At the start of the fight between the Black Pearl and the Dutchman, he mistook the oncoming storm as an aid to his side. He engaged the Black Pearl in the malestrom that it seemed Calypso had formed and during the cannon-fire skirmish, Mercer's guard were destroyed. Jones subsequently killed Mercer by choking him with his tentacles through the mouth and nose and claimed the key of the chest back. The chest however had been stolen by Jack Sparrow again, who Jones had seen trade at the parlay between the two sides and engaged Sparrow in battle. Sparrow was able to slice some tentacles from Jones' beard and it seemed at one point Jones had the upper hand by having the chest, though this changed as Jack shot him from behind causing the chest to slip to the Dutchman's deck. He reclaimed his sword by killing an officer who picked it up and was then engaged in fighting Elizabeth, however she was easily defeated. Jones also saw in the conclusion to the fight between Will and his father, that the two were in love and hoped to divide them forever, though Jack threatened Jones with stabbing his heart which he had been able to unlock from the chest. Jones then proceeded to stab Will through the heart, leaving Jack to have Will stab the heart which killed Jones. His last word were 'Calypso' as he fell overboard and into the oblivion of the malestrom.

Filming

From reel to reality: Davy Jones is brought to life.

The entire crew of the Flying Dutchman, except "Bootstrap Bill," is completely CGI, including Davy Jones. Their performances were recorded using motion capture during actual filming on the set, rather than in a motion-capture studio during postproduction. It was at one time thought that Nighy’s actual eyes might be used, but that idea was later dropped.

Because of the computer-generated character's photorealism, many reviewers mistakenly identified Nighy as wearing prosthetic makeup. The Davy Jones lead animator was Marc Chu of Industrial Light & Magic. ILM's webby nominated The Show website features an interactive look into the making of the Oscar winning Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest visual effects.

The result won them an Academy Award for Visual Effects.

Merchandise

• Davy Jones was part of Series One of the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest action figure set produced by NECA. Although the initial run of figures had a sticker on the box that proclaimed that the figure came with the Dead Man's Chest and Jones' heart, both props (as well as the key) were released with the Bootstrap Bill figure in Series Two.[1]

• Jones also made an appearance as a smaller figure with some of his crew members: Angler, Wheelback and Penrod.

• Davy Jones was issued as a plush toy as part of Sega's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" plush assortment.

• Jones was part of a 3 figure pack as a 3.75 inch figure with Barbossa and a limited edition gold Jack Sparrow for the At World's End film.

See also

• Davy Jones' Locker
• The Flying Dutchman (Pirates of the Caribbean)
• Kraken (Pirates of the Caribbean)
• Davy Jones' Locker (Pirates of the Caribbean)
• Dead Man's Chest (Pirates of the Caribbean)

External links

• Davy Jones at the Pirates of the Caribbean wiki