‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star Keira Knightley says she was ‘publicly humiliated’, traumatized after film
It’s a strange thing – common in Hollywood – when something that brings you so many opportunities at the same time rips you apart.
Keira Knightley knows this well.
After suffering through the perils of heroism combined with the pressures of being in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, the English actor, who is months away from turning 40, reflects on how he handled it all.
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Keira Knightley and Johnny Depp in the first movie “Pirates of the Caribbean”. (Image 12 / Alamy Stock Photo)
“It’s a funny thing when you have something that makes you and breaks you at the same time,” Knightley told The Times about the “Pirates” team. “I was seen as a —- because of them, however, because they did so well, I was given the opportunity to make films for which I ended up being nominated for an Oscar.”
Keira Knightley attended the Academy Awards in 2006 as an actress nominee. (Ian West – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)
In 2005, Knightley, who was 20 years old at the time, received her first Oscar for Best Actress. She was nominated for her role of Elizabeth Bennet in “Pride and Prejudice”. She was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 2014 for her portrayal of Joan Clarke in “The Imitation Game.”
“They were the most successful films I’ve ever been a part of, and it was the reason I was released publicly,” he continued in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series, which also starred Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom. “So they’re a very confused place in my head.”
“I was seen as a —- because of them, however, because they did so well, I was given the opportunity to make films for which I ended up being nominated for an Oscar.”
Johnny Depp, left, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom starred in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, starting with “The Curse of the Black Pearl” in 2003. (Photo by Eric Charbonneau/Wire for Disney Pictures/Getty Images)
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Because of this, Knightley said that he will no longer work on the franchise project. “The hours are crazy. Years of your life, you can’t control where you film, how long you film, what you film.”
Along with her film success, her looks and personality have been criticized. He was wanted by the paparazzi since he was young – he started acting at a young age and he was only 17 years old when he started acting in the films “Pirates of the Caribbean” – which Knightley shared in 2018 when he was 22 years old, he suffered a mental breakdown again. she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I don’t remember that kind of old trauma,” he admitted at the time. “There was a complete removal, and then other things would come up, and suddenly I would have a lot of body memory because, in the end, it’s a public shame, right? It’s obviously part of my psyche, given how young I am. I was there when it happened.
Keira Knightley is pictured attending the world premiere of “Pirates of The Caribbean: The Curse of The Black Pearl” in 2003. (SGranitz/WireImage/Getty Images)
Knightley came under a lot of scrutiny for her weight, and was accused of struggling with an eating disorder.
“I knew I wasn’t. I knew I was eating,” he said of the rumours. At the time, other young stars were facing similar, but again, very different situations. “I vividly remember one of the Olsen twins having anorexia, and she went into the clinic,” Knightley said, referring to Mary-Kate Olsen, who received treatment shortly after graduating high school in 2004.
“I don’t remember that kind of old trauma.”
Keira Knightley attended the European premiere of “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” in London. (Ian West – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)
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“I remember being asked about it on a press tour, like it was a joke. He was meant to be shamed for seeking help for anorexia. I remember just sitting there and feeling like, ‘Wow, this wild.’ Can you imagine?…That made me really bitter.
He also knew exactly what the media wanted from him: to fall.
“I saw 100% and I saw people’s careers being disrupted because they were being photographed leaving clubs. The money on my head at that time, if you get a picture of me drinking, was huge,” he recalled. “I wouldn’t give up [paparazzi] the satisfaction of getting rid of that, so I was incredibly mean.”
Keira Knightley stuns on the carpet in March 2023. (Photos by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty)
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Now, as a married mother of two young girls, Knightley feels like she is in control of her narrative.
“I am always given things about the death of children or about the death of mothers. I will not do that,” he said. “I’ve been really surprised a few years ago by what I said. I wanted it to be pure entertainment and maybe it’s because I needed that.”
