Summary
The Nightmare Before Christmas doesn’t explain or give hints about Jack Skellington’s backstory, but his appearance in another movie might have revealed he was a pirate. Directed by Henry Selick with a story by Tim Burton, The Nightmare Before Christmas was released in 1993 and introduced the audience to Jack Skellington, a skeleton who lives in Halloweentown and serves as its Pumpkin King, leading the yearly Halloween celebrations. Tired of doing the same things every year, Jack wanders through the forest and comes across the doors to other Holidays, and becoming fascinated by Christmas Town, he decides to bring Christmas to Halloweentown.
Thanks to his unique design and story, Jack Skellington has become part of pop culture and one of the most beloved animated characters – it’s no surprise, then, that Jack has appeared in other movies by Selick, from Tim Burton’s universe, and outside these worlds. One cameo appearance, in particular, has made way for a theory that claims part of Jack Skellington’s backstory was revealed and he was a pirate before he died, which explains his chaotic actions in The Nightmare Before Christmas, though it also leaves some unanswered questions.
James and the Giant Peach Reveals Jack Skellington Was A Pirate
After directing The Nightmare Before Christmas, Henry Selick brought another stop-motion adventure with James and the Giant Peach (wrongly attributed to Tim Burton, who served as producer along with Denise Di Novi). James and the Giant Peach is based on Roald Dahl’s 1961 novel of the same name and follows James Henry Trotter (Paul Terry), an orphaned boy living with his sadistic aunts Spiker (Joanna Lumley) and Sponge (Miriam Margolyes) after his parents were eaten by a rhinoceros on his birthday. After obtaining magic “crocodile tongues” that make a peach grow to a massive size, James goes on an adventure with some creatures living inside the peach’s pit.
Together, James and the bugs encounter some obstacles and enemies, among them some skeleton pirates. One of them is Captain Jack, who is none other than Jack Skellington, the exact same design from The Nightmare Before Christmas except that this one wore a pirate costume. Although James and the Giant Peach was released after The Nightmare Before Christmas, Jack’s appearance as the skeleton pirates’ captain has made way for a theory that says Jack was a pirate before he died.
Jack Skellington being a pirate when he was alive would explain why he didn’t hesitate to order the kidnapping of Santa Claus, take over Christmas and Santa Claus’ duties, steal the Christmas presents to replace them with spooky gifts, and more. In addition to that, Jack Skellington being a pirate before his death would also explain why he didn’t know about Santa Claus: the golden age of piracy was between 1650 and 1720, while Santa Claus became a popular Christmas tradition in the 19th century. Of course, in The Nightmare Before Christmas, this is explained by Jack not knowing anything beyond Halloweentown, but it certainly fits with the timeline of Jack being a pirate.
How Did Jack Skellington End Up In Halloweentown?
What the theory about Jack Skellington’s past as a pirate doesn’t explain is how he ended up in Halloweentown. In James and the Giant Peach, Centipede fights the skeleton pirates and survives to tell his experience, but it’s unclear if the pirates also survived. If the skeleton pirates died in battle (which is confusing as they are already dead), Captain Jack could have been sent to Halloweentown in The Nightmare Before Christmas after his second death to live a new life, now among other spooky creatures.
It could also be possible that pirate life took Jack and his skeleton pirate crew to Halloweentown, as he could have simply ended up there by mistake but was enchanted by the uniqueness of Halloweentown, eventually becoming the Pumpkin King. Jack being a pirate before being Halloweentown’s Pumpkin King can also explain why he grew tired of leading Halloween celebrations every year, as he was used to adventures across the seas and a lot of action in different places, and he ended up in a sort of Halloween loop.
Is There A Jack Skellington Multiverse In Tim Burton’s Universe?
The presence of Jack Skellington in James and the Giant Peach has also raised the question of the existence of a Jack Skellington multiverse within the universe of Tim Burton’s movies. An early design of Jack makes an appearance in Burton’s short film Vincent, the final design of Jack’s head appears in Beetlejuice, on the bio-exorcist’s carousel hat, and Jack as the Pumpkin King appears in the opening scene of Sleepy Hollow. In addition to appearing in Selick’s James and the Giant Peach, Jack Skellington’s face appears as the yolk of an egg cracked by the Other Mother in Coraline.
The Burton and Selick’s universes could have a Jack Skellington multiverse where different Jacks appear in multiple scenarios – he’s the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown, while another version is a pirate and another was trapped in an egg, for some reason. Another theory is that Captain Jack is a relative of The Nightmare Before Christmas’ Jack, which explains why they look so similar and why they exist in two different worlds, with two very different roles in them.
