'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Adds Five New Characters

The fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise hits theaters Friday (it made $44.2 million in its first two days overseas), and while some of the Disney series' familiar faces have returned (Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane) other's did not (Kiera Knightley, Orlando Bloom).

Here are the new players you need to know in On Stranger Tides.

1) Penelope Cruz (Angelica): The Oscar-winning actress was pregnant with her son Leo while playing Depp's love interest, a spunky former-flame-turned pirate in the film. But that didn't stop her from participating in many of the blockbuster's fight scenes. "I trained with a master of sword fights," she told The Hollywood Reporter. "I would go in for three or four hours a day for two months." 

2) Ian McShane (Blackbeard): The British actor, who was last seen as Weleran in the Starz mini-series The Pillars of the Earth, takes on the role of legendary English pirate Blackbeard, on of the villains in the film. 

3) Sam Claflin (Phillip): The 24-year-old Englishman (who also appeared in Pillars) is being touted as the new breakout star of Pirates. In the flick, he plays an earnest missionary imprisoned on Blackbeard's ship. "I definitely felt the pressure, especially to begin with to be consistently compared to sort of 'the new Orlando Bloom,' he said of his new heartthrob status. 

4) Astrid Berges-Frisbey (Syrena): The Spanish actress is making waves as one of the mystical (and deadly) mermaids, a new addition to the franchise's creatures of the deep--and the love interest of Claflin. "It was just marveloous to watch and have the pleasure to act with these monsters of cinema," she has said of sharing the screen with her big-named co-stars.  

5) Richard Griffiths (King George): American audiences will recognize Griffiths from the Harry Potter films (he plays the boy wizard's evil Uncle Vernon Dursley). In Pirates, he takes on another blustery character: Britain's King George, who's desperate to find the fabled fountain of youth.