Taika Waititi to play Blackbeard on HBO Max series Our Flag Means Death

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Taika Waititi will be taking on even more duties on the HBO Max period comedy Our Flag Means Death. In addition to taking on executive producer duties and directing the pilot, Waititi will also be starring on the show opposite Rhys Darby.

Waititi will be playing Blackbeard on the series, described as "history's most feared and revered pirate." Created by David Jenkins, with additional writing duties coming from Garret Basch and Dan Halsted, Our Flag Means Death is based loosely on the true adventures of Stede Bonnet (Darby), a pampered aristocrat who abandoned his life of privilege to become a pirate. Jenkins had this to say about Waititi taking on the role of Blackbeard on the series:

"Our Blackbeard is a legend, a lover, a fighter, a tactical genius, a poetic soul and quite possibly insane. Only one man could play this role, and that is the great Taika Waititi. We’re thrilled beyond measure he’s decided to don the beard.”

Our Flag Means Death will loosely look into the adventures of Stede Bonnet but, for those who are unaware, Bonnet was often called "The Gentlemen Pirate" because he was a moderately wealthy landowner before turning to a life of crime as a pirate. Bonnet inherited his family's estate after his father's death and married Mary Allamby in 1709. Due to marital problems, and despite his lack of sailing experience, Bonnet decided he should turn to piracy in the summer of 1717. He purchased a sailing vessel, named it Revenge, and traveled with his paid crew along the Eastern Seaboard of what we know now as the United States. 

This project seems VERY much in Taika Waititi's wheelhouse so I'm curious to see how this all turns out. Waititi has been very busy as of late and, coming off his Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay for Jojo Rabbit, he has jumped into various projects including directing episodes of The Mandalorian, starting production on Thor: Love and Thunder, and finishing post-production on Next Goal Wins, a film he co-wrote with Iain Morris where he also serves as director and producer. Waititi will be seen next with Ryan Reynolds in Free Guy, opening August 13, 2021.

Will YOU be watching Our Flag Means Death?