For the roguish yet charming Captain Jack Sparrow (Depp), the crystalline waters of the Caribbean, like the high seas the world over, present a vast playground where adventure and mystery abound. But Jack’s idyllic life capsizes after his nemesis, the wily Captain Barbossa (Rush), steals his ship, the Black Pearl, and later attacks the town of Port Royal, kidnapping the Governor’s (Pryce) beautiful daughter, Elizabeth Swann (Knightley). Elizabeth’s childhood friend, Will Turner (Bloom), joins forces with Jack to commandeer the fastest ship in the British fleet, the HMS Interceptor, in a gallant attempt to rescue her and recapture the Black Pearl. The duo and their motley crew are pursued by Elizabeth's betrothed, the debonair, ambitious Commodore Norrington (Davenport), aboard the HMS Dauntless. Unbeknownst to Will, there is a curse that has doomed Barbossa and his crew to live forever as the undead, where each moonlight, they are transformed into living skeletons. The curse they carry can be broken only if a once-plundered treasure is restored.