Geoffrey Rush Reveals Condition For Him to Return to 'Pirates of the Caribbean'

Geoffrey Rush commented on the possibility of returning as Captain Barbossa in a new Pirates of the Caribbean film. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly during the Toronto International Film Festival, the actor stated that he wouldn't want to return to the character just for the money and wants any eventual return to have a truly important function within the story.

Barbossa is one of the most memorable characters in the franchise and appeared in all five previous films. The pirate started as one of Jack Sparrow's main enemies, played by Johnny Depp, but ended up becoming an ally of the protagonist. Throughout the saga, the character died twice: first, after being killed by Jack in The Curse of the Black Pearl, and then by sacrificing himself to save his daughter, Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), in Salazar's Revenge.

Rush acknowledges that a new appearance would be possible, even after the second death. "I don't want it to be too cheesy and too easy, like me coming back and saying, 'Give me another paycheck,'" he stated. The actor also emphasized that he respects the scale the franchise has built over two decades.

For Rush, the return would need a good justification. He even compared the possibility to the ghost of Hamlet's father, from Shakespeare, and joked about the idea of ​​Barbossa returning to torment Jack Sparrow once more. "It'll need a good script, but just coming back to annoy Jack Sparrow one more time, you know?", he said.

The actor also suggested that the fans themselves could help imagine this possible return. "I would even say let the fans write what they would like to see happen," he commented.

Released in 2003, Pirates of the Caribbean has grossed over $4.5 billion worldwide. Even with the lukewarm reception of the sequels, the studio remains interested in rebooting the franchise, but so far we don't have an exact date for when that will happen.