Ezekiel

Ezekiel was a wizened pirate who operated during the mid-18th century. An old pirate, this weathered warrior had seen enough, some from pirate lore, to know if he was doomed or not. During the quest for the Fountain of Youth, Ezekiel joined the crew of the Queen Anne's Revenge, where he served under Blackbeard. After the defeat of Blackbeard, Ezekiel and the other crewmen joined Hector Barbossa.

Biography

Early life

Not much is known about Ezekiel's early life, but it is known that he took a life of piracy prior to the mid-18th century. They say time wear down the faces of mountains, but old pirates like Ezekiel just get craggier.^[2] Several years after the War Against Piracy, Ezekiel went to the pub called the Captain's Daughter, located in Londontown. It was here that Ezekiel, along with a number of sailors and pirates, signed on to sail under Jack Sparrow.^[3]

Quest for the Fountain of Youth

Aboard on the Queen Anne's Revenge

Climbing aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge, Ezekiel worked as one of the ship's deckhands for the next five days, where he would work with a shanghaied Jack Sparrow. He later met with Jack and some of the other crewmen, who were not satisfied with sailing under Angelica and her zombie crew, and took part in Jack's mutiny aboard the Revenge. Jack's crew were soon victorious until Blackbeard himself came out of his cabin. Blackbeard, in response to being told that this was a mutiny, hung all of the crewmen, including Ezekiel, with the rigging of the Queen Anne's Revenge. Ezekiel and the rest of the crewmen were let down to witness the Cook's punishment.^[3]

Whitecap Bay

The Queen Anne's Revenge soon arrived to Whitecap Bay for the hunt for a mermaid, which Blackbeard needed. Ezekiel was put into one of the longboats, along with Scrum, Philip Swift, Gunner, the Cabin Boy, and Derrick. As soon as the bay's lighthouse was lit, shining its man-made light on the crewmen, Ezekiel realized that they were the bait for the mermaids. Cabin Boy asked if sharks would come, but Ezekiel explained that they were the bait for mermaids. When one mermaid, Tamara, appeared to the crew, Ezekiel attempted to kill her, but was stopped by Scrum.^[3]

Shortly after more mermaids came to the crew, the mermaids attacked the crew. Ezekiel kept the mermaids at bay as they jumped from the water to catch their prey and tear their longboat apart, succeeding at stabbing one through the gut as she lunged at him from the water. After the attack was finished, Blackbeard and the crew was successful in capturing a young mermaid.^[3]

Search for the Fountain

Later, Ezekiel joined the crew that accompanied Blackbeard in finding the Fountain of Youth. At the Jungle Pools, Ezekiel was present when Blackbeard and the crew successfully attained a tear from the mermaid, whom Philip Swift named Syrena. The Revenge's crew soon arrived to the Fountain of Youth, where they met Hector Barbossa and his crew, and a battle ensued between the two crews. Ezekiel fought bravely against the British soldiers until the Spaniard and his men arrived to destroy the Fountain.^[3]

Serving Barbossa

Hector Barbossa was able to fatally wound Blackbeard, and then claimed Blackbeard's ship, crew and sword as payment for his missing leg. Ezekiel and the rest of the surviving members of Blackbeard's crew joined him. Ezekiel started to serve Barbossa, his new captain, aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge. He took his post as helmsman as Barbossa had the Revenge set sail for Tortuga.^[3] His further fate is unknown.

Personality and traits

Ezekiel was a paranoid sailor, and superstitious. They say time wears down the faces of mountains, but old pirates just get craggier.^[2] But this weathered warrior was undeniably competent and has some level of experience of pirate lore, being the most knowledgeable of the threat posed by the mermaids when Blackbeard sent him and his crewmates as bait. When he saw Tamara at Whitecap Bay, he immediately attempted to kill her because of the dangerous nature of mermaids. He was a pessimistic man who always expected the worst. Ezekiel was also a bit cruel though, as the crew tried to think of ways to get Syrena to cry a mermaid's tear, he suggested they cut off her fingers one by one.^[3]

Behind the scenes

Ezekiel was portayed by Christopher Fairbank in the 2011 film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.^[3]

One of Derrick's lines in James Ponti's junior novelization prior to the mermaid hunt was "They be drawn to man-made light". This line was originally Ezekiel's as it was written in Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott's screenplay draft^[4] as well as said by the character onscreen.^[3]

In the 1700s, Ezekiel was a common Jewish name. It is possible that he was of that faith.

He shares his name with Ezekiel Rott, a villain in Pirates of the Caribbean Online. He also has some resemblance to him.

In Terry Rossio's original 2012 screenplay draft for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Ezekiel was present along most of the Queen Anne's Revenge's crew in the story.^[5]

Appearances

The Pirates of the Caribbean Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Ezekiel.

• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Sources

• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (junior novelization)
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: The Visual Guide

Notes and references