Captain Jack Sparrow

Captain Jack Sparrow is a fictional character and the protagonist of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. He first appeared in the Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) and later appeared in Dead Man's Chest (2006), At World's End (2007), On Stranger Tides (2011), and Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017). During the initial development of the film series, Jack Sparrow was conceived as a supporting role, but as the storyline of the series progressed, actor Johnny Depp gained recognition as the breakout performer in the role of Captain Jack Sparrow, largely becoming the franchise's central figure.

The character is based on a combination of the Rolling Stones' guitarist Keith Richards, Groucho Marx, and Looney Tunes cartoons, specifically the characters Bugs Bunny and Pepé Le Pew. An early iteration of the character was created by screenwriter Jay Wolpert, with later drafts by Stuart Beattie and writing partners Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, but the final version of Sparrow was created by actor Johnny Depp, who also portrayed him.