Orlando Bloom has spoken out after his former co-star Keira Knightley admitted to undergoing 'many years of therapy' after a 'horrific' experience surrounding the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.
Knightley was just 17 years old when she took on the role of Elizabeth Swann in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, after which she returned to the role for sequels Dead Man’s Chest, At World’s End and Dead Men Tell No Tales.
The actor has spoken a few times over the years about her time on the movies, telling Variety in 2016 that she 'found that level of scrutiny and that level of fame really hard'.
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Two years later, she said she was 'unbelievably lucky' and better able to 'deal with' the fame, but added: "At the time, it was not so great, and took many years of therapy to figure it out."
Now, Bloom has spoken out in support for Knightley as he prepares to appear alongside Drew Barrymore in an upcoming Super Bowl ad.
Previously, he starred in the Pirates movies as Will Turner, a blacksmith who finds himself swept aboard life on the ocean after his love interest, Knightley's character, is kidnapped by pirates.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor reflected back on their time working on the Pirates of the Caribbean movies and said: "It was such a huge moment in time that is almost like… it feels almost like another lifetime now.
"But it certainly was unique and, you know, I’m always grateful. But I definitely understand where Keira was coming from, and she does wonderful things.… I have a lot of positive takeaways."
Though Knightley described her rise to fame as 'traumatic', she admitted the success of the franchise did 'set up the rest of [her] career'.
Bloom seemed to agree as he said he was 'happy that [he] got to be a part of something that feels like it's standing the test of time'.
As for a potential return to the franchise, which producer Jerry Bruckheimer has indicated will continue, Bloom told Entertainment Weekly: "Listen, it was a wild and fun experience so, you know, never say never. I have a lot of respect for that experience, and Jerry, and the whole thing. But who knows? I mean, it's sort of one of those things I really haven't thought about it, really."
"I’ve heard he's pretty excited about it," Bloom said of Bruckheimer, adding: "It'll be interesting to see. Jerry always brings out the big guns, as it were - pardon the pun. Cannons, I should say."
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Mental Health, Orlando Bloom
Emily Brown