Greg Ellis alternated his time on the red carpet at the World Premiere of Disney’s third – and maybe final – Pirates movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, between signing autographs and talking to the mass of press lining Disneyland’s Main Street. Ellis reprises his role of Officer Groves from the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie in the third film of the series, but his character has undergone a couple of changes since we last saw him in The Curse of the Black Pearl.
“In the first movie I was a Royal Navy officer. Then I switched allegiances to the East India Trading Company and I’m one of Cutler Beckett’s lieutenants. I got a promotion as well from officer to lieutenant, which was nice,” explained Ellis. As a member of Cutler Beckett’s squad Ellis’ Groves has joined the dark side, fighting against Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and the rest of his swashbuckling pirate brethren. Ellis totally approves of the direction his character has taken. “It’s always fun to play the bad guy. (Laughing) Much more fun.”
So how did the working environment change from his time spent on the set of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl to At World’s End? Ellis answered, “It was bigger, just as friendly. Different locations – many different locations. Probably even more fun because it was like getting back together with old friends, you know?”
Ellis’ thoughts on whether At World’s End will be the last Pirates of the Caribbean film echoed what other cast members said about the possibility of this one being the last film of the franchise. “I don’t know. I think it might be the last but decisions are made way above my head whether it’s going to be the last. It would be nice if there’s going to be another.”
Audiences have gobbled up the Pirates movies and Ellis credits that to our ongoing fascination with the colorful characters from history. “I think people have always had a fascination with pirates. You can be fun and devious and naughty and commit crimes and get away with it and have fun. It’s everything that a little boy wants to be.”
We’ll next see Ellis in Beowulf, the performance capture production from filmmaker Robert Zemeckis. The film’s set for release in November 2007. Reflecting on his time on the set, Ellis said, “It was amazing. Amazing director and amazing cast as well. I mean day after day to be having lunch with John Malkovich and Sir Anthony Hopkins, just listening to the stories. It was fun.”
Ellis described the experience of actually working on the set of a performance capture film: “We would all be in these body suits with dots all over us, which was kind of strange because we’d all look the same. Even Angelina Jolie in a whole body suit with dots all over her face…”
Wearing suits with dots sounds strange but didn’t affect Ellis’ approach to his character. “You don’t change the way you act necessarily. I think it makes it… in some respects it’s easier. It frees you up because you don’t have the natural elements of, say, shooting outside with snow or wind or rain. But then you don’t have the costume. It’s nice to actually have the weight of the costume and feel the characters, so it’s just different. It’s a different way of filming.”
The actors were able to use props on the set. “We had props. There’d be tables and swords and the horses. If we’d ride horses, then the horses were there. The horses would have dots on as well.”
Just how closely does this Beowulf follow the origin story? “I think the story is similar in my respects to the original,” responded Ellis. “But it has been contemporized a little bit. It’s Roger Avary.”
