Every franchise needs a breakout character to establish itself, and Pirates of the Caribbean had its star-making performance in Captain Jack Sparrow. He has been so popular that the series has exclusively relied on the audience draw that comes with the character with each film.
Jack is such an interesting figure that even his very first appearance had everything you needed to know about him - in a scene where he didn’t even speak. But his strongest suit remains his fast tongue, and here are the best quotes that we heard Captain Jack Sparrow say in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.
Updated by Saim Cheeda on October 4th, 2020: While franchises have become very common in the last decade, the practice of introducing breakout characters has somewhat settled. This makes Jack Sparrow more noteworthy, as his penchant for charming people with his words is an ability that needs to be appreciated more.
There’s still a lot of clarity needed with where the future of this series lies, but that shouldn’t stop you from checking out the best that Jack Sparrow has to offer. In order to give fans more reason to like Jack than they already do, this list has been updated with other quotes that give further insight into Jack’s characterization.
“I’ve Got A Jar Of Dirt!”
Among the many things that make Jack Sparrow such a great pirate is his ability to use humor simultaneously with his wit. This quote was uttered in as ridiculous a fashion as it is in reading, yet conveyed to Davy Jones that he should be afraid of Jack.
Sparrow had earlier hidden Jones’ heart in the dirt so the latter couldn’t reach it, making it a guaranteed bargaining chip for Jack. Not knowing that Norrington had stolen the heart earlier, Jack hilariously danced around uttering this quote, believing himself to be safe.
“I’m Dishonest, And A Dishonest Man You Can Always Trust To Be Dishonest.”
Being a pirate, there’s no doubt that Jack did a lot of bad things. And yet, you have to respect how open he was about his life. He didn’t make any claims that he was a good man, meaning there was a level of honesty even in his dishonesty.
At least one would know what to expect from Jack, no matter if it was deception. Jack was what he wanted to be with no regrets, something the outright heroes of the franchise couldn’t boast. Plus, the way he says this quote is somewhat of a funny tongue twister.
“My Tremendous Intuitive Sense Of The Female Creature Informs Me That You Are Troubled.”
Many fans feel that Elizabeth should have been with Jack rather than Will. Those hopes aren’t all that great, though, as Jack was a complete scoundrel toward women. This quote isn’t one that’s supposed to be taken seriously, with Jack saying it when the situation was abundantly clear.
He had a habit of getting slapped by girls he’d earlier ditched, and this quote was more as a reference toward his cluelessness with women. While Jack liked to believe otherwise, viewers can tell he really was out of his element in this regard.
“Mate, If You Choose To Lock Your Heart Away, You’ll Lose Her For Certain.”
Will and Elizabeth make for the best couple in the series, and it seemed as if Jack was a shipper on board as well. He understood that being immortal was more a curse than a means to become stronger. When finding out that Will had plans to kill Davy Jones, Jack had wisdom to give.
He argued that Will would definitely lose Elizabeth this way, with the couple already on the rocks at the time. By going on a quest for revenge, Jack was certain that Will would lose Elizabeth for sure.
“Drink Up Me Hearties, Yo Ho!”
You won’t find many movies that are similar to this series. It comes down to the protagonist being such a breakout character. Viewers love watching Jack Sparrow in all his style, with each films’ ending always having a scene dedicated to an awesome quote from the character.
This was his most recurring one yet, being a common wording of pirates of old. The best instance of Jack saying this was at the end of the first movie, where Jack finally got the Black Pearl back and was intent on setting sail for many more adventures.
“But You Have Heard Of Me.”
Jack has a personality that brims with confidence, and he finds positivity even in the worst of positions. During the first part, everybody tended to underestimate Jack’s worth, who only proved them wrong every time.
In this scene, Commodore Norrington looked to take the mickey out of Jack by listing down all the things that made him the worst pirate that Norrington had ever heard. To this, Jack pointed out that, while Norrington’s assertion might not be wrong, the latter had still heard of him, meaning Jack was still someone worth knowing.
“Why Fight When You Can Negotiate?”
Talking your way out of a bad situation is a much more valuable technique than fighting out of it, as it avoids needless conflict and an easy getaway. We all know that Jack isn’t supposed to be Superman who can just punch his way around, but his effectiveness was perhaps just as great.
Jack’s method of putting the other person in a false sense of security by playing the fool meant he could wiggle his way to freedom and even walk away with something in return. This allowed him to catch weaknesses in his enemy that he could use later on.
“The Problem Is Not The Problem. The Problem Is Your Attitude About The Problem.”
Many wondered how Jack remained on top of his game even though it appeared as if everyone was out to get his head. The answer would be that Jack was always mentally prepared for his battles. He did things on the fly rather than have it premeditated.
He did this by having the right attitude to approach his problems, as Jack would take the situation in stride rather than rue over it. This quote was actually one of the rare glimpses in Jack’s mind, which told us that he improvised his solutions each time.
“If You Were Waiting For The Opportune Moment, That Was It.”
Jack was clearly a shipper on deck in the matter of Will and Elizabeth, providing one-liners as his pieces of advice for the two of them to get their act together. Will, being the shy guy that he was, never knew when to make his move on her.
Jack inwardly decided he would look out for when Will would have his opening where the moment arrived. Catching onto it, he informed Will that his opportune moment with Elizabeth had just passed. He didn’t say this to mock him; rather, it was Jack telling Will that Elizabeth loved him too and there was nothing to fear.
“This Shot Is Not Meant For You.”
Pirates are those without honor, and they look for openings where they can cheat and win their fights. While Jack was of the same mold, he wasn’t one to take an innocent’s life this way. After he defeated Will through his cheating, Jack found him still standing in the way.
Anyone such as Barbossa would’ve instantly shot and killed Will, but Jack insisted Will move out; he even used “please” as a request. With a solitary bullet in his gun - that was meant for Barbossa - Jack confessed that he only had one target for that bullet.
“No Survivors? Then Where Do The Stories Come From, I Wonder.”
Playing the fool and being a fool are two very different things, and Jack fell in the former category easily. While incarcerated, he heard the Black Pearl approaching as the other inmates started freaking out over the undead crew.
Jack proved he was hardly as gullible and foolish as the other pirates when he scoffed at the idea that the undead crew never left anyone alive. He made the very true and hilarious point that it wasn’t possible for there to be any stories about the Black Pearl if nobody who encountered it was allowed to live.
“Not All Treasure Is Silver And Gold, Mate.”
Jack’s superhero equivalent would definitely be Tony Stark, as he had the same level of wit and snark that Tony had. In between his many rants, Jack would generally throw in words of wisdom that ultimately were profound and meaningful.
Unlike the other pirates, Jack’s idea of treasure wasn’t the silver and gold kind as he was above such worldly pleasures. It was by knowing where the limits of “treasure” began and ended that Jack knew when to fold and walk away rather than lose his life for something that ultimately was a superficial prize.
“Why Is The Rum Always Gone?”
Perhaps we spoke too soon on Jack’s idea of treasure, seeing as he did seem to value rum above everything else in the world. If you were to ask him if he wanted world peace or rum, then Jack would easily give the world away for a bottle.
Unfortunately for him, he had horrible luck when it came to keeping said rum within his reach as circumstances around him always led to Jack being devoid of his favorite drink. At one point, in his exasperation, he asked this very question to the universe.
“I Do That Quite A Lot Yet People Are Always Surprised.”
Never trust a pirate because they always lie, but poor Jack doesn’t get trusted even though he doesn’t lie all that much. If you notice, Jack tends to skirt around the truth rather than tell an outright lie. He plays the other’s distrust in him to his advantage.
However, Jack himself didn’t seem to understand why people didn’t consider him a truthful person, as when Norrington confessed his surprise that Jack really was telling the truth during a particular situation, the latter voiced his exasperation that his honesty is always met with surprise.
“This Is The Day You Will Always Remember As The Day You Almost Caught Captain Jack Sparrow.”
The funny thing is that whenever Jack says this line, things end up going very badly for him. Even funnier is how he tends to say it after he’s managed to pull off a great escape, only for karma to come roaring back at him the next moment.
And yet, it still ranks as Jack’s finest line because it tells you most of what his characterization is. The quote conveys that Jack is a confident man capable of talking his way out of any given situation, and that those who encounter him would always remember him for the larger than life person that he was.
