“Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” World Premiere Wrap-up Report [Part 4]
Welcome to Part 4 of our Pirates Premiere report! This is a continuation of our full Wrap-up report of the Pirates 4 pre-release festivities. Be sure to read from the beginning to get the most out of our coverage!
EDITOR’S NOTE – Our full interview videos have been posted! Check them out on our YouTube page! Thanks for your patience!
DEs Official Full Wrap-up Video
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The crowds were cheering. The thunderous chant – that of a “Yo Ho” went through Main Street like a cannon.
Time to roll out the red. Red velvet. Red velvet ropes. Photo by Harrison Butac.
This guy. Had to be the weirdest of them all. Great entertainer though!
Perk # 3 when covering premieres? Space. Really. No longer were we behind the metal barricades, but actually past them. With space! Space to put everything. Even power outlets too. I couldn’t believe it! DE was about to cover a premiere movie event!
Posted. Bring it on!
… or maybe I spoke too soon. Marcos was setting up our two cameras : one was to be stationary and getting an “aerial” view of the happenings (and our what we’d use for our LIVE STREAM) and one was to be handheld so we could get close-ups of the celebs and interviews. I thought that we had everything…we discussed it days before, but dark clouds began to surround DE.
My MacBook Pro had the wrong output for the cord that was to be used with our LIVE STREAM CAM. That had to be the darkest part of all of coverage days. Forget about the car troubles. This troubled me big time.
We rushed around asking if anyone had another cord in order for our live stream to work. No one had anything. I was terrified. Here we are advertising that we’d have a LIVE STREAM from the Black Carpet these past days leading into the Premiere and we had nothing to show. Things did not go according to plan…see?
5 PM was fast approaching and we conceded to the fact that we weren’t going to be able to get the live stream up. The cord wasn’t just the problem either. There was no internet. My mobile hotspot failed me. I was so bummed.
But then! (the greatest words signifying a turn in the storm!) Harrison offered to use his phone as our LIVE STREAM CAM! He had unlimited data and ran 3G speeds. Technology came through. So that’s what we used! I do apologize to our viewers of the live stream for the delay and technical difficulties. I hope you understand now. It’ll be better next time…I promise!
We do have archived video/audio footage of the LIVE stream. It can be found on our UStream page.
On with the show! – As that same mouse would say again.
It’s time to get to the interviews my friends! Now, interviews will be posted on a separate page hosted by YouTube. All of them will finish uploading soon, so stay tuned for the live link.
For the continuation of this report though, I will be posting some AWESOME pictures we got during the interviews and just of the surroundings so you can get a true feel of how it was like to be there.
So here we go! First up :
Aaron, Glory, Emily, and Ella. This picture perfect pirate family are just one of MANY families and individuals who took part in a charitable cause. As Disney has done in the previous premieres at Disneyland, they offered the regular public the opportunity of a lifetime! You get to walk the Black Carpet alongside the celebs and other special guests, plus eat a hearty pirates buffet dinner with dessert, watch the full movie in a especially designed outdoor 3D amphitheater (first of it’s kind!) and enjoy all the rides and attractions in Adventureland, and New Orleans Square! The price of a single ticket was $1000, but this was NOT to cover the cost of an event like this! No, no, all the ticket sales and the money they generated went directly to the Boys and Girls Club of America. 100% of each and every ticket sale. Multiple that by hundreds of people…you get a lot of money…going to a terrific cause. Job well done to all who fall into this category. I’m so very glad that we had time to chat with you all…it was also your time to shine that night for your generosity!
Next was Eric McCormack and Family. (Will from Will & Grace).
Next was Martin Short (Unfortunately, we did not get an interview from him…the guy RAN down the carpet). It’s ok…still a funny man…as seen in this photo of him bowing to the crowd just for walking.
Coming down the carpet next was Rebecca Budig (from ABC Daytime’s recently cancelled show “All My Children” – wish her the best as she pursues new paths in her career)
Two for the price of one! Here is Sophie Simmons and her brother Nicholas Simmons (known from their reality TV show with their mom and dad “Gene Simmons : Family Jewels”). Quite the characters.
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Nick was showing us his ‘talking’ skull ring that his grandma gave to him…thanks grandma!
Here we have the Chairman of Disney Parks and Resort Tom Staggs. Wonderful man that has done wonderful things for the Parks ever since stepping in. Need proof? Take a look at the $1 Billion expansion taking place in DCA. Here’s the man behind it all. Thanks Chairman Staggs!
Next we had the opportunity to speak with Breanne Beth Berrett, a very nice, yet “killer” Mermaid in the movie. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you watch it on May 20.
Next was Zachary Gordon (from Diary of a Wimpy Kid). His favorite ride? Everything.
Then we had great pleasure of talking to David Cook (American Idol Winner, Season 7). Out of all the winners of Idol, I did enjoy David the best. Great to talk to him!
Next was Chiquita the Monkey! The bloody monkey as Captain Jack would say. Remember his terrific pose he did on Barbosa’s shoulder at the end of Dead Man’s Chest? DisneyExaminer made him do it LIVE in front of all the next work camera and ours too! This is a DE EXCLUSIVE and video will be posted shortly!
Next up we had Brandon Tyler Russell (from “The Exemption of Hunter Riley”). I was quite honest with him. See his reaction in video.
Down the carpet, we were approached by Kimberly Locke (from American Idol). Didn’t get to interview her, but glad to see she hasn’t shied out of the spotlight yet.
Next was Iron Chef Cat Cora (from Food Network’s hit Iron Chef America). We asked her what would the secret ingredient be if tonight’s feast as an Iron Chef Challenge. What do you think her answer was? Remember to think Pirate!
Next down the carpet was Ashley Benson (from ABC Family’s “Pretty Little Liars”). Didn’t get an interview, but Mike and Harrison sure liked starring at her.
Up next we had Imagineer Tony Baxter. This guy has been very gracious and kind every time I’ve bumped into him. He has such an insight into how rides at Disney rides come about…and just Disney in general! We got him to talk about the NEW Blackbeard Waterfall Effect in Pirates at Disneyland and WDW, as well as talk about Start Tours 2.0.
Next up we had a brief chat with Joey Lawrence. He liked the movie the screen.
Next we had Daniel L. Boyer, who plays the Yeoman on Blackbeard’s ship the Queen Anne’s Revenge. What’s a Yeoman?
Coming up next, we had Lisa Rinna. Harry Hamlin was there too, along with the kids. She liked talking about her shoes.
Up next, we had George Kalogridis, President of the Disneyland Resort. Why hold a movie premiere at Disneyland?
Next we had Noah Ringer (Aang from “The Last Airbender”). No, he can’t outwit Calypso. Or maybe I’m wrong…
Here is Tim Powers. Tim actually wrote the book “On Stranger Tides” back in 1987! It was his original book that the screenplay was based off of. How did feel when he found out that his book (and title) will now be on the big screen?
Ah…oh boy. This one is embarrassing. If anything folks, this had to be the laugh of the night. Not just for me, but for all the other outlets and networks covering next to me. Despite the fact that the special guests and VIPs were still coming down the carpet, lo and behold I see the hat, I see the long hair, I see the glasses. IT WAS JOHNNY DEPP!
As the strikethrough predicts, this indeed was NOT Johnny Depp. We got duped. Sad day. But he was pretty convincing. Props for duping CBS too!
For all you Twilight Fans, we bumped into BooBoo Stewart, from The Twilight Saga : Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2. When was his last time going to Disneyland?
Next up we had Yuki Matsuzaki, who played Garheng in the movie. He spoke about what a joy it is seeing Asians and Asian-Americans are now being sought after in major films. I whole-heartedly agree!
Time for a three-for-one deal, folks! We were joined by Kyle Massey (Disney Channel’s “Corey in the House” and “That’s So Raven”), his brother Christopher Massey, and ABCs “Dancing With The Stars” pro dancer Lacey Schwimmer! This had to be the most laid-back interview I had all night. I even let my guard down a little and just had a casual chat with them. So cool.
Next we saw Andy Garcia (from the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy). Loved the guy in every single one. Unfortunately, those are the only movies I know he’s in.
Up next we had Blake Lewis, another Idol contestant. He beat-boxed his way through the night.
Then came Bob Iger, President and CEO of The Walt Disney Company. Not an avid fan of the media, but very gracious and honest when it comes to the interviews he does grant. Hope to chat with him one day soon…
Walking swiftly down the carpet was current American Idol judge and rocker Steven Tyler.
Next up was Cheryl Burke, Pro dancer on Dancing With The Stars.
Here comes Rick Fox, NBA Pro playing for the Boston Celtics and of course the LA Lakers!
Up close and personal with Taboo from Black Eyed Peas. Where’s the filipino one?!
Next up we had Chelsea Kane (formerly Staub), a Disney Channel Star. You may remember her from Jonas L.A….or better yet, when Mike too a picture with her at the World of Color Premiere last year.
Keith Richards, Ladies and Gentlemen! Captain Sparrow’s dad in the movie.
Up next was Barry H. Waldman, Executive Producer of the film. We talk to him about how it was like bringing the 3D experience out of the studio and out in the open during filming.
This is a big league interview friends! We got director Rob Marshall to come and talk about what feel he wanted to get at when directing a new kind of film genre like Pirates 4.
Right after Rob, we got Bruno Tonioli, a judge on Dancing With The Stars! I remember seeing him for the first time…I had to get his take on having Rob as a director for a non-dancing film!
Up next we had Orlando Brown, Hip-Hop and R&B Artist. You may also know him from “That’s So Raven” on Disney! We talked to him about his time at the Premiere so far. Really humble and down-to-earth guy.
FINALLY! The moment you ALL have been waiting for…the main cast! First up : Kevin McNally, who plays Gibbs in the movie(s)!
Next down the carpet was Mitchel Musso, Disney Channel star known for being in Hannah Montana.
Next came Eva Longoria Parker from ABCs “Desperate Housewives.” By this time, all the stars were racing down the carpet to make it in time for the screening, which was running roughly 30 minutes late by the time Johnny Depp came near us.
Unfortunately, the main cast and crew that came last followed suit when it came to rushing the carpet and refusing time with the press. Penelope, Johnny, Geoffrey, Astrid, Sam, and even Jerry Bruckheimer made a sprint for it. So to that end, we were unable to get that many shots of these stars! We are sifting through all our shots to see which ones to post…but in the meantime…
[It’s now YOUR time to shine, DE fans! Have you got a photo of the main cast?? We’ll post it here on this page and give you credit of course! Send it to us with your name to webmaster@disneyexaminer.com.]
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UPDATE 5/17 – DE Staff Member’s parents are awesome! Harrison Butac’s dad was with us at the Premiere except on the other side of the Black Carpet and was able to take these short videos of Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz! Thank you so much, Henry! Our coverage is complete.
Johnny Depp in the raw, matey!
Penelope. There you go, Brett Garrett!
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Johnny being handled.
I apologize for not being able to get that many of the main stars, but I do hope you did enjoy the interviews we did get and the pictures we did get as well! Be sure to check out our YouTube page for the full interviews. Rave reviews so far. Don’t forget to subscribe if you likey!
… but that’s that. That’s a wrap everyone! We truly hope that you found treasure in our coverage mateys! Furthermore, we hope that you found treasure in us here at DE. We loved bringing you every moment we experienced when covering all these Pirates 4 events, and we hope you took as much treasure away from it as we did!
Special thanks to my team from DE. You guys did a wonderful job and I am super blessed to have you part of my lives and part of this website.
I also wanted to take the time to thank our Media Host for the entire length of this event Jon. Thanks for escorting and helping us and being a great sport!
We headed back to the media center to get some dinner and talk with friends. I grabbed water and sat. I literally had to reflect on what just happened. It’s still gets me that we were there. And after this whole report, I now you were there with us too.
It was time for us to go. It was around 10 PM and as we were exiting the media center, just like that, the Park clean up crew was already taking down the Premiere atmosphere. The carpet was rolled up, the barricades were gone. The magic of a movie premiere all faded away…but not before I got some shots.
Goodnight, media center! You’re always a joy to be in.
Gone.
Bye.
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*Oh by the way. Right as we were about to leave, Romeo stopped by to greet the disappearing crowd and media. We got a picture of him, so we figured to post it here, after the fact.
And with that, we conclude our coverage of the events surrounding the world premiere of “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.” It was something that we’ll always treasure. Being able to cover a world premiere of ANYTHING would be something to treasure for anyone and we’re beyond grateful that we had the opportunity to do so. We’re also happy that we had a platform the be able to share this “treasure” with all of you, our wonderful readers and supporters. We look forward to bringing even more events like these in the near future, so be sure to stay with us!
Lastly (but not least-ly), we want to thank our friends at the Walt Disney Studios for allowing us to take part in this event!
Want to relive your day in Pirate history? Go back and check it out again!
*Click HERE to go back to Part 1
*Click HERE to go back to Part 2
*Click HERE to go back to Part 3
*Click HERE for all our interviews on the Pirates 4 Black Carpet on our YouTube Channel – be sure to subscribe!
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