Keira Knightley refuses to star in film franchises after being “taken down publicly” when she starred in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.

The Pride & Prejudice actress shot to stardom as a teenager when she was cast as Elizabeth Swann in 2003’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. She reprised the role for the sequels, 2006’s Dead Man’s Chest and 2007’s At World’s End, and made a cameo in 2017’s Dead Men Tell No Tales.

During an interview with The Times, Knightley admitted that she has conflicting feelings about the Pirates franchise because it gave her professional success but also made her personal life difficult.

“It’s a funny thing when you have something that was making and breaking you at the same time,” she said. “I was seen as s**t because of them, and yet because they did so well I was given the opportunity to do the films that I ended up getting Oscar nominations for. They were the most successful films I’ll ever be a part of, and they were the reason that I was taken down publicly. So they’re a very confused place in my head.”

The 39-year-old actress hasn’t been involved with a major Hollywood franchise since and she has no intention of doing so in the future.

“The hours are insane. It’s years of your life. You have no control over where you’re filming, how long you’re filming, what you’re filming,” she explained.

Knightley was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for 2005’s Pride & Prejudice and Best Supporting Actress for 2014’s The Imitation Game.

She is currently promoting her new Netflix miniseries Black Doves, which will premiere on 5 December.

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