When it comes to a performer as prolific as Bill Nighy, it’s hard to focus on merely one title among the sea of projects he’s taken part in, but there’s no denying that the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has had quite a pop culture impact over the years.

Starring as the infamous Davy Jones, the captain of the Flying Dutchman, Nighy joined the franchise for its second voyage at sea, featuring as a leading antagonist in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, which debuted 20 years ago on July 7, 2006. While talking with the actor ahead of his debut in Prime Video‘s Ride or Die, TV Insider couldn’t help but ask him to share some thoughts on his role, two decades after his onscreen debut as the fearsome swashbuckler.

“I loved being in Pirates of the Caribbean, and those films are kind of beloved,” Nighy recognizes. “They’ve entered the language in a way that not many films do. I’m not saying that because I was in them, but I was part of it, and I was very pleased to be part of it.”

Walt Disney / courtesy Everett Collection

“Starting that film was one of the toughest things I’ve ever done because you’re on a big film set in Los Angeles and they hand you a pair of computer pajamas with bubbles all over them, and then they put 250 white dots all over your face and give you a skullcap with a bubble on the top, and trainers, which I’ve never worn in my life, and then they say, ‘Now be the the scariest thing on the ocean waves,’” Nighy recalls.

“I think for those first couple of days walking around where nobody would have lunch with you… You look too sad, you know? And then they introduce you to Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom, who look about as good-looking as a man can look, and it’s a lonely place to be in those pajamas, I tell you,” Nighy adds jokingly.

“They ran out of jokes after a couple of weeks. Once I got going, it was fine, and it was one of the nicest jobs. It was a long thing because we did two films back-to-back,” he shares, referencing Dead Man’s Chest and the film’s follow-up, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, which was released in 2007. “So, it was like 18 months or something, and it was a very great and very important experience in my life.”

Relive Nighy’s performance as the lovelorn Davy Jones by streaming Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest and At World’s End anytime on Disney+, and let us know your favorite memory of the actor’s performance in the franchise in the comments section below.

Pirates of the Caribbean, Movie Series, Streaming now, Disney+