Brenton Thwaites has starred in Maleficent, Gods of Egypt and now he has joined the Pirates Of The Caribbean franchise. We sat down to talk with him about his new roles – in such an iconic franchise and as a new dad. He also shares with us how he drives fear into the hearts of those he works with by skateboarding on set. I kid. 😉
Brenton Thwaites Interview: On Joining Pirates, Johnny Depp & Skateboarding
[Brenton Thwaites shares with us a little about how he got involved in the film, he auditioned a few times and then was thrilled when he got it, and about his character’s background – very important in the movie, so pay attention when you watch it – no spoilers here! And then we dive into how he liked working with Johnny Depp and his thoughts on joining such an established franchise.]
What was it like working with Johnny Depp? "It was terrifying!" – Brenton Thwaites #PiratesLifeEvent
— Eat Play Rock (@eatplayrock) May 20, 2017
Brenton Thwaites: It was terrifying. It’s always terrifying because you never know what he’s gonna say or do and it always results in humiliation for me. This guy now is five movies worth of Jack Sparrow. And he’s on the ball and kind of irreverent and impulsive. It kind of improves your acting in the sense that you’re always open and free and relaxed to go with the flow, but [it’s] also pretty terrifying.
[Brenton Thwaites is a new dad, so he shares with us a little about this adventure.]
Brenton Thwaites: It’s great being a part of Disney because, as a studio, it really, plays for the younger audiences. I did a movie released in 2014 called Maleficent which is something I can’t wait for my daughter to see. Pirates may take a while just because it’s quite scary, you know? Maleficent is, as well, but there [are] moments in Pirates where I kinda even get scared. So I think it might take a while. I don’t know when, maybe until next year when she’s two.
[So you came in the fifth movie. As a real newcomer to this whole universe, do you ever feel like they valued your input as a newcomer, as an actor?]
Brenton Thwaites: You know, I think they did value my input as an actor. I think [everyone] really wanted to make it fresh and exciting [thing] they hadn’t done before. So Javier coming on board, myself, Kaya, and the two new directors who supported and encouraged this one.
My first day on the set, it had been pouring for months or weeks. But I had a scene where my character, Henry, is hiding behind a pillar, and he’s spying on Jack Sparrow, and I remember thinking, “Wow, what a perfect way to start the movie, and to see Jack Sparrow drinking rum in the middle of the street, and the whole parade of red soldiers trying to catch him.”
[We also asked him about the amazing visual effects that are such an important part of this movie.]
Brenton Thwaites: The visual effects side of things was, for this one, mostly kind of behind the actor’s consciousness. In Maleficent, it was a lot of work that we would have to do with our imaginations to, to kind of be specifically creating creatures that weren’t there. On Gods of Egypt, we did the same thing, but on Pirates, we were lucky because all of Javier’s makeup, all the ghosts were there. They looked fantastic. The sets were real. They had beautiful set pieces that allowed us to play and feel, like we were actually in the space.
[Then he shared with us what a typical day on set is like.]
Brenton Thwaites: I get picked up eight o’clock, get out of the house at seven; I run down for a quick surf. I get out of the work at eight; rush home; I’m half an hour late. So my driver speeds down the highway and risks our lives trying to get to work on time. And then I get made up and sit in the trailer for five hours, and then we start working.
[It took five hours for makeup?]
Brenton Thwaites: Just for, you know, the logistics, sets change, and everyday there was something crazy happening. For this one they just, they like to give the directors all the tools to play around with and so Javier would get, made up; Geoffrey would get in makeup, and we would all be ready in case they wanted to do some improvised shot or something. They could kinda use any actor at any time. So it was cool way of shooting, but it meant that I got better at [acting] very quickly.
[Did you bring your skateboard at all?]
Brenton Thwaites: No, I didn’t bring my skateboard on this one. I wish I did. We were mainly in rocky fields and the studio. There was a guy there – a swords master – Thomas DuPont, who had an electric skateboard, and I tried it once, and you could kind of sense the whole studio thinking, get Brenton off that skateboard.
"Johnny Depp made me and Kaya laugh every scene." – Brenton Thwaites #PiratesLifeEvent
— Eat Play Rock (@eatplayrock) May 20, 2017
[Brenton Thwaites also shared with us how he did 3 weeks of combat and sword fighting training to prepare for the role as well as getting training in British dialect and accents. He also shared a little more about working with Johnny Depp and how his method of acting kept Brenton and Kaya Scodelario laughing all the time. Then we asked him what it was that he hoped audiences would take away from the movie.]
Brenton Thwaites: I just hope they’re entertained, you know? It’s the kind of movie that never loses its drive and has so many action pieces, set pieces, comedic elements, romance, supernatural, there’s kind of something for everyone in this movie. So, I hope everyone takes something from it and connects with the characters.
Brenton Thwaites: We shot [in St Martin] for a good month and a half, and we shot in Northern New South Wales. And my favorite location was up on Hamilton Island, shooting out on the Great Barrier Reef. We had some days we shot at a beach called White Haven Beach which is beautiful. When you walk on the sand, it squeaks which is not so good for the sound, but it’s great for effect, and it looks beautiful, and I think we had the most fun right there.
Javier’s like a five year old kid. As soon as he finishes a scene, he strips off, like, jumps in the sea, playing, and like fighting in the sand. It was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.
*Thanks to Louise at MomStart.com for the epic pictures. 😉
He sounds like a very interesting young man! I would love to be able to get up go surfing and then go to work every day! Man that would be cool. I cannot wait to see this movie! It looks like he will one to watching the movie.
I love him! We are so looking forward to seeing this movie! I love hearing what they have to say about working with the other actors. It’s always so telling. I can’t imagine working with Johnny Depp just because he is SO amazing and quirky. You’d really have to be on your game.
What a amazing opportunity to meet the cast in person. I’m heading this weekend to see the movie. Can’t wait!
I can’t believe he’s old enough to have kids. I’m looking forward to seeing the movie.
I like the Pirates Of The Caribbean movies! Admittedly, there’s a couple of them I haven’t watched and I really want to catch them before seeing this one. A great interview!
You should binge watch them all. Although I had seen them all, it had been a few years, so I binge watched them again before going to see the new one. 🙂
I haven’t seen the movie but I seriously loved Maleficent! It’s one of my favorite movies and now I want to watch it again!
I am so excited for this movie. I have always been a huge fan of Pirates of the Caribbean, so this is exciting.
Aw what an awesome interview I bet his daughter will be so proud when she watches him in the films when she is older.
What a great interview! Now I want to see Pirates even more! I’ve seen them all and can’t wait to see this one.
This is such a great interview. I so loveeeee the entire Pirates catalog of movies. I cant wait to see this one.
I am so excited for this movie! I have loved every other movie from this story and this one seems to have a great story. I always enjoy hearing about the behind the scenes things that goes on.
What a wonderful opportunity. We are going to see the moving tomorrow morning with a group of school pals! That actor looks way too young to have a child though! ☺
What a neat opportunity to interview Branton! I saw the movie this week and really loved it! He was the perfect addition to the franchise.
5 hours for make-up!?! That’s crazy! But, he got to be in a Pirates movie. I’d say that’s a win! Should be a fun movie to watch!
How exciting that you get to interview him! I absolutely love Pirates of the Carribean and cannot wait to see this one! He seems like a wonderful young man. Thanks for giving us a behind the scene look at an actor’s life.
Such a good interview, I am so excited for this movie, I’m planning on seeing it next week x
I am rather excited to go see this movie! I have a friend who went already and loved it! I just need to get a babysitter and take a night to go lol I could imagine working with Johnny Depp would be terrifying and amazing all at the same time!
Such a good interview. We have seen all the Pirates of the Caribbean movies and we cannot wait for the new one!!!
This is a great interview with Brenton Thwaites. It sounds like it was an amazing experience for him as an actor. We have seen all the Pirates Of The Caribbean movies. The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales we can’t wait to see. Thanks for sharing a great interview.
I have been dying to see this movie!!! My hubby and I were dating when we watched the first one.
What a handsome young man! Great interview. I can’t wait to see this movie. It looks gerat!
i am an amazing fan of all this he has done, It’s so good to meet the cast. I am going to watch the pirates of Caribbean this weekend.
What a fun experience to be able to chat with one of the stars. I can’t imagine what it must be like to work with Johnny Depp, especially as Jack Sparrow. Seems like Brenton handled it pretty well.
That’s such a great thing to meet up with him! He doesn’t look old enough to be a dad. And, those eyes!
I wasn’t that much aware of his previous work and it would be nice to see how he does acting along side Johnny Depp and other veteran actors. I’m sure the movie is amazing! I haven’t had the chance to see it yet.
That was quite an interview. He sounds like his really full of energy and very proud of this new movie. I can’t wait to see it. I’m sure they all did great though.
Ha! I can only imagine what it would be like coming into acting on the cast with masterminds like Johnny Depp (I’d be intimidated for sure!) I can’t wait to see the movie : )
He’s a cutie! What a nice addition to the franchise.
This is such an impressive interview. It was nice to hear Brenton Thwaites tell us his side of the movie and how he got involved in with the film.
Great interview! So cool to get to k ow the fresh new face in this movie series.
Wow what an amazing opportunity, loved the interview. Now I want to see it as bad as my kids. My kids are dying to see this movie.