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{{short description|Character from Pirates of the Caribbean}}{{More citations needed|date=June 2009}}
{{Infobox character
| name = Tia Dalma
| series = [[Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)|Pirates of the Caribbean]]
| image = File:Tia Dalma 2007.webp
| caption = Naomie Harris as Tia Dalma in ''Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End''
| first = ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest]]''
| portrayer = [[Naomie Harris]]
| gender = [[Female]]
| occupation = [[Obeah]] [[Magician (fantasy)|sorceress]]<br />[[Hoodoo (folk magic)|Hoodoo]] and [[African diaspora religions|Voodoo]] practitioner
| based_on = [[Calypso (mythology)|Calypso]]
| voice = [[Julianne Buescher]] <small>(video games, theme parks)</small><br />Leslie Miller <small>(''[[Kingdom Hearts III]]'')</small>
| species = [[Goddess]]
}}
'''Tia Dalma''' is a fictional character from [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney's]] [[Pirates of the Caribbean (film series)|''Pirates of the Caribbean'' franchise]], making her debut in ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest]].'' She is a [[African diaspora religions|voodoo]] and [[Hoodoo (spirituality)|hoodoo]] practitioner who once was in love with the [[Piracy|pirate]] [[Davy Jones (character)|Davy Jones]], and ultimately cursed him after his betrayal toward her and abandonment of [[Davy Jones' Locker|his duties]]. In the third film, Tia Dalma is revealed to be the mortal guise of [[Calypso (mythology)|'''Calypso''']], the goddess of the sea.
Tia Dalma is a prominent character in [[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]] media, appearing prominently in printed media and crossover video games. The character continues to hold a likable reception, with [[Naomie Harris]] receiving positive reviews from critics for her performance as Tia Dalma.
==Characteristics==
The character was introduced as the mystic Tia Dalma, though later revealed to be the mortal guise of Calypso, the sea goddess that sailors both loved and feared. As Tia Dalma, she is a voodoo priestess with black teeth and blue lips, and she has her hair in [[dreadlocks]]; she speaks in [[Jamaican Patois]]. Harris's mother, a Jamaican immigrant, was her accent coach for the films. In personality terms, she is described as flirtatious, "coquettish, sensual, pleasure-loving, and extravagant", alluding to the belief that Calypso was a seductress.<ref name="Nevins">{{cite book |last=Nevins |first=Andrea Shaw |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CWPRDwAAQBAJ |title=Working Juju: Representations of the Caribbean Fantastic |publisher=University of Georgia Press |year=2019 |isbn=9780820356105 |pages=52–53}}</ref>
Tia Dalma is portrayed as an ally to Jack Sparrow, trading with him, aiding in his rescue, and occasionally flirting. It is implied they shared a romantic history.<ref>[http://www.blackfilm.com/20060630/features/noamieharris.shtml June 2006 - blackfilm.com - Pirates of the Caribbean: Interview with Noamie Harris]</ref>
As the series progresses, it is revealed that as Calypso, she became romantically involved with Davy Jones, and their mutual betrayal is what led to both of their transformations. Calypso had charged Davy Jones with ferrying souls of the dead, promising to meet with him again in ten years. However, when the time came, she was nowhere to be found. In retaliation, he revealed to the First Brethren Court of pirates how to imprison her in mortal form, then carved his own heart out, creating the Dead Man's Chest. While still hiding herself as Tia Dalma, she recounts the story to Sparrow and his crew, describing Calypso as "changing, harsh and untamable as the sea".
==Appearances==
=== Films ===
==== ''Dead Man's Chest'' ====
{{main|Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest}}
[[File:220px-Tia Dalma-1-.jpg|right|thumb|180x180px|Tia Dalma, as she appears in ''Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest''.]]
When the events of ''Dead Man's Chest'' begin, Jack Sparrow returns to see Tia Dalma after many years, in need of her assistance. Pursued across the Caribbean by Davy Jones's Kraken, he plans to find the Dead Man's Chest. This chest contains Jones's heart, and offers the only means to kill him. A series of trades takes place, leaving Jack with the ___location of the ''Flying Dutchman'' and a jar of dirt to protect him from Jones, while Tia Dalma gains possession of the undead monkey belonging to the late [[Hector Barbossa|Captain Barbossa]].
Jack's crew returns to Tia Dalma's shack after Jack is dragged to Davy Jones's Locker by the Kraken. Tia Dalma has apparently foreseen this eventuality, and informs the mourning crew that there is a chance to save Jack. She reveals that she has resurrected Barbossa, who will help lead the rescue mission.
==== ''At World's End'' ====
{{main|Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End}}
Tia Dalma makes a major and pivotal appearance in the film. She joins Barbossa, Will, Elizabeth, and the rest of the ''Black Pearl''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s crew as they travel to [[Singapore]]. There, they infiltrate [[Sao Feng]]'s headquarters to acquire the navigational chart needed to sail to World's End and Davy Jones' Locker, barely escaping the clutches of the East India Trading Company. On the journey, she explains to [[Pintel and Ragetti]] that Jack Sparrow cannot be resurrected the same way Barbossa was because Sparrow was "taken" by the Kraken while Barbossa died from normal, earthly causes. When rescuing Jack from the Locker, Tia Dalma flirts with him and reminisces about their past romantic relationship. As the group searches for an escape route back to the mortal world, they encounter numerous souls adrift in the water. Tia Dalma tells the group the story of Davy Jones and Calypso, but does not reveal her identity. While caressing her locket, she reminisces that Davy Jones was once human.
Later, it is revealed that Tia Dalma is Calypso, bound into human form. Her true motives for resurrecting Barbossa and Jack are unveiled when it is learned that both are Pirate Lords of the [[Brethren Court]]. Each has their respective "Pieces of Eight", the [[Amulet|talisman]]s necessary to free Calypso. She resurrected Barbossa to obtain his piece, and rescued Jack because his Piece went with him to Davy Jones' Locker. Upon arrival at Shipwreck Cove, she reminds Barbossa of her powers by gripping his hand and temporarily rendering it skeletal (a subtle reference to ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl]]''). She warns him that it was only by her power that he is alive again and that he must fulfill their agreement to release her. If he failed, she would kill him. Tia Dalma and her estranged lover, Davy Jones, briefly reunite while she is locked in the brig of the ship. Calypso says she still feels deeply for Jones. She responds to his anger by saying that Davy Jones never would have loved her if not for her uncontrollable and unpredictable nature. Calypso also chastises him for abandoning his duty to ferry souls to the other world. It was because he neglected his charges that Davy Jones became a monster. Calypso is also furious that the Pirate Lords trapped her in her human form. Thus, her true motives are revealed: she plans to use her powers against the current court in revenge for the original act of turning her into a human. She will also fully give her love to Jones, and it appears they reconcile. When she touches Jones, he momentarily transforms back into the man he once was. Jones's parting words betray that his heart will always belong to her.
As the battle between the East India Trading Company and the pirates looms, Barbossa and Ragetti release Calypso from her human form. Before Calypso is fully freed, Will tells her that it was Davy Jones who betrayed her by revealing to the first Brethren Court how to bind her into her human form. Bound by ropes, she grows to nearly sixty feet high, towering over the crew. Barbossa asks that she fulfill their agreement and use her powers to aid the pirates. Calypso breaks free, transforming into thousands of crabs that engulf the ship and flee into the sea. Her fury then creates a violent [[Whirlpool|maelstrom]] that becomes the battlefield between the ''Black Pearl'' and the ''Flying Dutchman''. Instead of aiding a particular side, her wrath is directed both at the pirate lords for imprisoning her and at Davy Jones for his betrayal. But as Will Turner lies run through by Davy Jones's sword, he stabs Jones's heart with Jack Sparrow's help, and Jones, now fatally wounded, falls from the ''Dutchman'''s deck into the maelstrom, crying out one final word: "Calypso!".
===''On Stranger Tides''===
While Calypso does not appear, Tia Dalma is referenced in ''On Stranger Tides''. In Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay of ''On Stranger Tides'', Jack Sparrow has a ring pilfered from Tia Dalma's shack in ''Dead Man's Chest'', which he gives to Angelica, who said she had to trade it to learn the "rules of the Fountain" known as the profane ritual. Later, as Jack and Angelica discuss the ritual, the latter grabs a [[snake]] and wields it at Jack before saying, (a la Tia Dalma) "All da years dat dey have lived, and they could have lived, if fate'd been kinder."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wordplayer.com/archives/PIRATES4.cover.html|title=PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio|website=www.wordplayer.com}}</ref> Although Tia Dalma was not directly referenced in the final cut of the film, her backstory with Angelica would still be mentioned in other media, notably ''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: The Visual Guide''.<ref>{{cite book|author-link1=Glenn Dakin|title=''Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides: The Visual Guide''|publisher=[[DK (publisher)|DK Publishing]]|date=2011|page=51|isbn=978-0756672195}}</ref> Around the release of ''On Stranger Tides'' in 2011, Naomie Harris stated that she was asked to record some Tia Dalma lines that would be said in the film by Penélope Cruz, who portrayed Angelica.<ref>[http://www.movieline.com/2011/05/11/naomie-harris-on-the-incredible-true-story-behind-the-first-grader-and-her-possible-return-to-pirate/?page=2 Naomie Harris on the Incredible True Story Behind Her New Film (and Her Possible Pirates Return)]</ref>
=== Other appearances ===
==== Video games ====
Tia Dalma has made numerous appearances in Disney-related video games, prominently as a crossover character. In her video game appearances, she is primarily voiced by [[Julianne Buescher|Julianna Buescher]]. Tia Dalma appears in the [[Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (video game)|video game adaptation]] of ''At World's End'' and in the [[List of Lego themes|Lego-themed]] video game ''[[Lego Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game]]''. In 2013, the character also appeared in ''[[Disney Infinity]]'' as a non-playable character who assists the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' characters.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tia Dalma - Disney Infinity Wiki Guide |url=https://www.ign.com/wikis/disney-infinity/Tia_Dalma |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=IGN |date=5 September 2013 |language=en}}</ref>
She later made playable appearances in ''[[Disney Crossy Road]]'',<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Mark |title=How to unlock EVERY secret and mystery character in Disney Crossy Road |url=https://www.pocketgamer.com/disney-crossy-road/how-to-unlock-every-secret-and-mystery-character/ |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=www.pocketgamer.com |date=11 January 2021 |language=en}}</ref> ''Disney Emoji Blitz'', ''Disney Heroes: Battle Mode'',<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 26, 2018 |title=Update 1.1.1 Patch Notes |url=https://discourse.disneyheroesgame.com/t/update-1-1-1-patch-notes/32720 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109040654/https://discourse.disneyheroesgame.com/t/update-1-1-1-patch-notes/32720 |archive-date=November 9, 2020 |access-date=April 9, 2022 |website=Disney Heroes: Battle Mode |language=en}}</ref> and ''[[Disney Magic Kingdoms]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcNpxjkf-44&ab_channel=DisneyMagicKingdoms |title=Update 22: Pirates of the Caribbean Part 2, Peter Pan Part 2 {{!}} Livestream|publisher=[[YouTube]]|date=July 5, 2018}}</ref>
In 2018, a character skin for Tia Dalma was released for a ''Pirates of the Caribbean''-themed world for ''[[Minecraft]]''.<ref>{{Citation |title=Pirates of the Caribbean Mash-up | date=25 September 2018 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BhbzHlvE38 |language=en |access-date=2022-04-09}}</ref> In 2021, Tia Dalma made an appearance in ''[[Sea of Thieves|Sea of Thieves: A Pirate's Life]]'' alongside several other ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' characters.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-14 |title=Every Pirates of the Caribbean Character In Sea of Thieves' New Trailer |url=https://screenrant.com/sea-of-thieves-pirates-life-caribbean-character-trailer/ |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}</ref>
Tia Dalma appears in ''[[Kingdom Hearts III]]'', voiced by Leslie Miller, who reprises her role from the ''At World's End'' video game.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dornbush |first=Jonathon |date=January 29, 2019 |title=Every Major Disney Character in Kingdom Hearts 3 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2019/01/29/every-major-disney-character-in-kingdom-hearts-3 |access-date=April 14, 2025 |website=[[IGN]] |language=en}}</ref>
==== Printed media ====
Tia Dalma appears in ''Pirati dei Caraibi Magazine'', and in several book and graphic novel adaptations of the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film series.
In ''[[Kingdom Keepers]]'', Tia Dalma appears with a major role near the fifth book of the series, ''Shell Game'', as a member of the Overtakers. Having set up residence in Castaway Cay, she meets with [[Jafar]], who had been sent by the Overtakers to bring her aboard the ''Dream''. Serving as the guardian of the Overtakers' DHI server, she fights with Finn and Willa, only to be given a death threat unless she released Finn's mother from Overtaker control. In the sixth book, ''Dark Passage'', she works with the witches Maleficent and the Evil Queen to bring [[Chernabog]] out of his stupor and back to full power; she burns a key flower and tricks Finn into fatally stabbing his best friend, allowing Chernabog to lick the blood and fully awaken. She is knocked out, and taken hostage by the Keepers. In the final book ''The Insider'', Tia Dalma escapes custody and searches through the maze, freeing Chernabog and the Evil Queen, while collecting some of Maleficent's bones; she was horrified that a powerful practitioner of the black arts had been killed. She manipulates a supply driver for Disneyland to get herself and her allies to their new hideouts. She originally leads the attack against the Keepers in Toontown, but forfeits leadership to the Queen. Tia Dalma instead focused on the spell needed to resurrect Maleficent.{{Citation needed|date=April 2022}}
==== Merchandise ====
Tia Dalma has appeared as part of several ''Pirates of the Caribbean''-themed merchandise, including toy dolls, Lego minifigures, attire, and action figures. She also appears as a ''Disney Crossy Road'' figure.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tia Dalma - Disney Crossy Road Figures |url=https://www.coleka.com/en/other-collections/plushes-and-stuffed-animals/disney-plushes/disney-crossy-road/disney-crossy-road-figures/tia-dalma_i689789 |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=www.coleka.com |language=en}}</ref>
==Reception==
Tia Dalma has received a positive reception since her first appearance in ''Dead Man's Chest'', with most of the praise targeted towards Naomie Harris' performance. Cathal Gunning for ''[[Screen Rant]]'' cited her as one of the more "important" and "fascinating characters", but criticized her underdeveloped arc, writing: "The ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' franchise featured an intriguing character in Naomi Harris' Tia Dalma, but who was the sorceress, what were her powers, and how powerful was she? Despite her disappearing at the end of the first trilogy, she was easily one of the most formidable characters in the entire franchise."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-11-29 |title=Pirates of the Caribbean: Tia Dalma's Powers and Backstory Explained |url=https://screenrant.com/pirates-caribbean-tia-dalma-calypso-backstory-explained/ |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}</ref>
Naomie Harris, who was interviewed in 2007 by Roger Moore for the ''[[Orlando Sentinel]]'', commented on her own portrayal, describing Tia Dalma as a "larger-than-life character, and you aren't bound by the constraints of reality with her."<ref>{{Cite web |title=The actress behind Tia Dalma's black teeth |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2007-05-26-naomie-story.html |access-date=2022-04-09 |website=Orlando Sentinel |date=26 May 2007 |language=en}}</ref>
=== Character analysis ===
Tia Dalma has been compared to [[Mami Wata]] from Jamaican folklore, a mysterious and seductive spirit linked to the sea.<ref name="Nevins" /> As a highly sexualized exotic female character, she was said to represent the [[Romantic racism|romanticized]] colonial era perception of the Caribbean, and her relationships with the pirates to mirror the power dynamics of colonial conquest. However, as noted by critics, Tia Dalma has the upper hand in these power dynamics due to her "dominion over masculine energies", and the pirates' attempts to gain control over her by entrapping her in a human body are eventually futile.<ref name="Nevins" /> Heike Steinhoff compares her to the goddess Calypso, though her power is circumscribed by her being kept inside her hut, and she notes that her character borrows from "'racial' and ethnic stereotypes which connect African and South-American descent to elements of nature and supernatural powers".<ref name="Steinhoff">{{cite book| last = Steinhoff| first = Heike| title = Queer Buccaneers: (de)constructing Boundaries in the Pirates of the Caribbean Film Series | publisher=LIT Verlag Münster | year = 2011| pages =74, 93–94 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=m7iH9PsM4wgC| isbn = 9783643111005}}</ref> Critics also compared her character to [[Yoda]] from [[Star Wars]] due to the fact that both characters are swamp-dwelling eccentric sages with peculiar speech patterns.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1560576/star-wars-at-worlds-end-pirates-flicks-look-a-lot-like-another-trilogy/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216170244/http://www.mtv.com/news/1560576/star-wars-at-worlds-end-pirates-flicks-look-a-lot-like-another-trilogy/|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 16, 2015|title=Star Wars: At World's End? Pirates' Flicks Look A Lot Like Another Trilogy|publisher=[[MTV]]|last=Carroll|first=Larry|date=25 May 2007}}</ref>
==See also==
*[[Voodoo in popular culture]]
==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://pirates.wikia.com/wiki/Tia_Dalma Tia Dalma] at the [http://pirates.wikia.com ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' wiki]
{{POTC}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalma, Tia}}
[[Category:Pirates of the Caribbean characters]]
[[Category:Female characters in film]]
[[Category:Fictional avatars]]
[[Category:Fictional female pirates]]
[[Category:Fictional fortune tellers]]
[[Category:Fictional goddesses]]
[[Category:Fictional Jamaican people]]
[[Category:Fictional therianthropes]]
[[Category:Fictional Voodoo practitioners]]
[[Category:Film characters introduced in 2006]]
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