"I wondered how they would top the Pirates and skeletons and moonlight, because that's a pretty cool concept"
About this Quote
The subtext is affectionate skepticism. “Pretty cool concept” is deliberately modest, almost boyish, and that understatement does two things at once: it keeps Bloom from sounding precious about a blockbuster, and it signals genuine respect for the film’s pulp alchemy. He’s praising the vibe, not the screenplay. That’s telling. Pirates didn’t win people over by being plausible; it won by being legible and maximal, giving you instantly graspable ingredients and letting the spectacle do the persuasion.
Context matters because Bloom is both participant and audience surrogate. As an actor in a mega-franchise, he’s expected to sell confidence about the next installment. Instead, he leans into curiosity and doubt, which reads as honest and, paradoxically, better marketing: if the guy inside the ship is impressed by the first voyage, you trust the waters were actually choppy and thrilling. The line captures early-2000s franchise culture before “cinematic universe” became a mandate: surprise still mattered, and topping yourself still sounded like a creative challenge rather than a quarterly requirement.
Quote Details
| Topic | Movie |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Bloom, Orlando. (2026, January 18). I wondered how they would top the Pirates and skeletons and moonlight, because that's a pretty cool concept. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-wondered-how-they-would-top-the-pirates-and-18093/
Chicago Style
Bloom, Orlando. "I wondered how they would top the Pirates and skeletons and moonlight, because that's a pretty cool concept." FixQuotes. January 18, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-wondered-how-they-would-top-the-pirates-and-18093/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I wondered how they would top the Pirates and skeletons and moonlight, because that's a pretty cool concept." FixQuotes, 18 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-wondered-how-they-would-top-the-pirates-and-18093/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.





