“How lucky we are to make this kind of film”–Rob Marshall talks about PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

In a recent interview with the Associated Press, director Rob Marshall talked about his experience stepping in as the new director of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. When first approached about taking the helm from Gore Verbinski, Marshall was finishing work on the musical Nine, for which Penelope Cruz would receive an Oscar nomination. “Right towards the end of Nine is when I met with Jerry [Bruckheimer] and Johnny,” Marshall said, “and they asked me to do the film.” Marshall started to wonder about his current leading lady also sailing on a pirate ship. “[W]e talked about Penelope and they thought it was a great idea,” Marshall recalled.

“So then I was able to ask Penelope while we were doing Nine, and she went crazy. We were in a restaurant, actually, and she just jumped up out of her skin, out of her seat, she was so thrilled. You know, we pinch ourselves, I mean, I did, and I know Jerry does, too,” Marshall said. “How lucky we are to make this kind of film! It’s this grand adventure,” he declared. “And how often do you actually get to actually live an adventure while you’re making one?”

Part of the adventure was the fact that Ms. Cruz was pregnant during the filming; she and husband Javier Bardem welcomed their first child, son Leo, in January. “We tried to shoot a lot of her first, before she got too big,” Marshall said. The logistics were complicated, and Marshall admits he “had to use a lot of ingenuity. But it was worth it in the end, because she’s such a great actor. And that’s one of the joys of working with someone like her.”

Rob Marshall was onstage for the presentation of Penelope Cruz’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame yesterday; to see a picture of the director with his leading man and leading lady, CLICK HERE. The Zone thanks Emma for sharing the interview and Evochka for the photo; you can read more about Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides on the Zone’s News & Views forum.

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