6. Jack Sparrow – Pirates of the Caribbean
Is Jack Sparrow a “bad pirate”, or is he secretly brilliant? That was the burning question that fuelled much of the excitement surrounding the character after he first appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. Unfortunately, he went on to become one of those movie characters who changed unexpectedly between films, and arguably not for the better.
Though he started out as a thoroughly unpredictable rogue bathed in rugged pirate charm, future movies slowly washed away his most charismatic qualities. Subsequent movies saw Sparrow written to garner laughs rather than respect, and he soon became the franchise’s biggest source of comic relief. Gone was the opportunistic streak that made him so magnetic, replaced with generic heroism (albeit somewhat reluctant).
On the one hand, the change damaged the character’s overall appeal. On the other, it improved the franchise considerably by making Sparrow the main character. Overall, it’s hard to feel too upset about this one, but it still stings a little.