Karl Urban & Priyanka Chopra Jonas Unveil The Genre Icons Behind Their R-Rated Pirates Of The Caribbean Replacement Characters

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Karl Urban and Priyanka Chopra Jonas are venturing into pirate adventures with their new movie, The Bluff, and they’ve drawn inspiration from some unexpected sources.

A new Prime Video thriller follows Ercell, a woman in the 1800s Cayman Islands, whose peaceful life with her son and sister-in-law is disrupted when a pirate from her past appears. The film stars Jonas as Ercell and Urban, known for his roles in Prime Video’s The Boys and the upcoming Mortal Kombat II, as the dangerous Captain Connor.

Starring alongside Urban and Jonas (who also produced the film), The Bluff boasts a talented cast including Ismael Cruz Córdova (from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power), Safia Oakley-Green (Anemone), Vedanten Naidoo, Temuera Morrison (The Wrecking Crew), and Zack Morris (Goosebumps). This project also reunites Jonas with the Russo brothers, following their work together on the Prime Video thriller Citadel, which is currently preparing for a second season.

Before the release of their new movie, The Bluff, Ash Crossan from ScreenRant spoke with stars Karl Urban and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. They talked about the action movie heroes who influenced their performances, how playing their characters let them explore exciting ideas, and what props or items they wished they could have kept from the set.

The Bluff Stars Turned To Everyone From Lara Croft To Harrison Ford For Inspiration

Because of its pirate setting, many are already comparing this to Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean series. The intense fight scenes, meanwhile, bring to mind the action style of 87North and the John Wick films. The actress playing Ercell, Jonas, shared that she always loved the character of Lara Croft growing up, and this role allowed her to finally explore some of those childhood fantasies.

You know, I was really struck by how strong and cool she seemed. Angelina Jolie still has that presence, but back then, she just radiated confidence and really knew who she was. I think that’s the most amazing thing about someone you admire – that sense of self.

Jonas explained that she was drawn to direct and produce The Bluff because of its central question: how far would someone go to protect their family? She wondered if she, and the audience, were ready to discover what they were capable of when family is threatened. Having recently become a mother when filming began, she brought a fierce intensity to the role – she felt she could literally tear someone apart if her family was in danger. She was also excited to play a female pirate, a role she noted very few women have had the chance to portray.

I was really interested to hear what inspired Karl Urban for this film. He talked about how much he admires New Zealand actors like Sam Neill and Temuera Morrison – he actually got to work with Morrison on The Bluff, which he felt incredibly lucky to do! He also mentioned growing up loving adventure heroes like Jack Nicholson and Harrison Ford. He said Han Solo and Indiana Jones were huge when he was a kid, and those characters really shaped the kind of fun, adventurous performance he wanted to give.

He mentioned being inspired by Sigourney Weaver’s portrayal of Ellen Ripley in the Alien films, particularly admiring her as a strong female character. He felt this archetype was rare and saw Jonas’ character, Ercell, as a natural extension of it, expressing his enthusiasm for audiences to experience her performance.

When asked to compare Captain Connor to his other villainous roles, Jonas jokingly described the character from The Bluff as “the boyfriend from hell.” Karl Urban then explained that his acting process involves understanding a character’s motivations – why they do what they do – whether they’re the hero or the villain.

Karl Urban explained that the story of Connor is fundamentally about a man deeply betrayed – by his country, his partner, and someone he loved. He’s now driven to find them, as it’s the only way he can exist in the world he helped create. Urban sees the story as a tragic love story at its heart, and he’s particularly drawn to the question of why this person abandoned him.

Jonas Took 1 Thing From The Set…And Promptly Returned It

The filmmakers put a lot of effort into making The Bluff historically accurate, and the realistic props caught the eye of stars Urban and Jonas. Jonas admits she initially tried to keep a gold bar from the treasure chest as a souvenir, but quickly returned it the next day, feeling too anxious about the possibility of getting in trouble.

Jonas was allowed to keep the impressive armor her character wears in the final part of the movie. She described it as the result of three months of detailed work and really wanted to wear it to the premiere, eager to show off the incredible craftsmanship that went into creating it.

I really wanted to highlight how much skill and thought went into creating our costumes, and how realistic they were. They were truly beautiful, and I made sure to preserve them.

I was so excited when Urban hinted he might’ve snagged a prop from the movie, but I felt just as disappointed as he did when he confessed he didn’t get to keep Captain Connor’s jacket! It sounds like he was really hoping to wear it to the premiere – Jonas even tried to reassure him the studio probably still has it. I would’ve loved to see him rock that jacket on the red carpet!

Be sure to dive into some of our other Bluff-related coverage with:

  • Karl Urban reflecting on how Xena: Warrior Princess‘ Lucy Lawless inspired his time on The Boys
  • Co-writer/Director Frank E. Flowers addressing the chances of The Bluff 2

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2026-02-26 00:12