Post-credits scenes in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise have historically had little to do with the plot of future films. They're more like funny tags than teasers of what's to come, but that's all changing with the Pirates 5 post-credits scene — spoiler alert. The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales post-credits scene teases the return of Davy Jones and sets up a sequel with both Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann. In other words, it's a way bigger deal than the dog getting ready to be sacrificed in the post-credits scene of Dead Man's Chest.
The Pirates 5 post-credits scene stars a reunited Will (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth (Keira Knightley). After nearly two decades spent apart, the lovers that started it all are finally back together, sleeping peacefully in their bed. Outside the bedroom door, a tentacle creeps out of the shadows, making a small noise and causing Will to wake up. But, when he looks around the room, he sees nothing out of the ordinary and goes back to sleep. On the floor beside his bed lies a small puddle of water surrounded by octopus sucker marks. The appearance of tentacles can only mean one thing: the return of Davy Jones.
Fans of the Pirates saga will recognize Davy Jones' tentacled face from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and At World's End. Davy Jones' return to the franchise in this post-credits scene is important for multiple reasons, but mostly because of what that might mean for Will and Elizabeth. The sweet couple was torn apart in At World's End when Davy Jones killed Will, causing Jack to cut out Will's heart and kill Davy Jones, essentially making Will the new Davy Jones and captain of the Flying Dutchman. If Davy Jones really is back from the dead, you can bet he wants revenge.
Should Disney greenlight a potential Pirates 6, then it seems likely that Davy Jones (as played by Bill Nighy) would return as the main villain. It also looks like whatever Disney is planning involves making Will and Elizabeth main characters in the franchise again, a relief for those of us who aren't so into Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow. That said, plans teased in post-credits scenes are not always carried out. For example, the post-credits scene of the last Pirates movie, On Stranger Tides, featured Angelica (Penélope Cruz) finding a voodoo doll of Jack, clearly setting her up as a potential villain. Alas, Angelica fails to appear in Dead Men Tell No Tails, so we know that Pirates doesn't always follow through. For now, however, let's just take comfort in the idea of a Will Turner vs. Davy Jones sequel. Because that's one I'd like to see.
