Pirates of the Caribbean producer Jerry Bruckheimer has spoken with Johnny Depp about a potential return to the franchise. There is a catch, however. This comes after Disney cut ties with the actor behind Captain Jack Sparrow after the publication of a 2018 op-ed in which his ex-wife, Amber Heard, said that she was a victim of domestic abuse. While she didn’t mention Depp by name, it effectively was the beginning of the end of the relationship between the House of Mouse and Depp.
Now, as Disney and Bruckheimer are working on rebooting the Pirates franchise and making a sixth film, the producer has told Entertainment Weekly that Depp is open to returning to the role. “If he likes the way the part’s written, I think he would do it,” Bruckheimer said. “It’s all about what’s on the page, as we all know.”
Bruckheimer has shared before that this new film will be a reboot of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, but that he would like to see Jack Sparrow appear in the film. The last film in the franchise was 2018’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.
“It’s a reboot, but if it was up to me, he would be in it,” Bruckheimer said previously. “I love him. He’s a good friend. He’s an amazing artist, and he’s a unique look. He created Captain Jack. That was not on the page; that was him doing a little Pepé Le Pew and Keith Richards. That was his interpretation of Jack Sparrow.”
Bruckheimer shared that it is still all about getting a script that everyone is happy with. “We are still working on a screenplay,” he says. “We want to make it. We just got to get the right screenplay. We haven’t quite gotten there yet, but we’re close.”
The script was initially being written by Craig Mazin and Ted Elliot. However, everything was put on hold during the Hollywood strikes of 2023. After this, Jeff Nathansen took over writing duties. Nathansen wrote the script for Dead Men Tell No Tales. “I think he’s cracked it,” Bruckheimer said in May 2024 of Nathanson’s script. “He’s got an amazing third act. We just gotta clean up the first and second, and then we’ll get there. But he wrote a great, great third act.”
At this point, there are lots of unknowns surrounding the future of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. While it appears that both Bruckheimer and Disney want to move forward with the franchise, the devil’s in the details. After cutting ties with Depp, the actor said in a 2022 defamation trial with Heard that he wasn’t willing to come back. According to Heard’s lawyer, this was even if he was offered”$300 million and a million alpacas.”
“That is true,” Depp replied. “There was a deep and distinct sense of feeling betrayed by the people that I’ve worked hard for. People that I delivered a character to that they initially despised, but I stuck to my guns with the character, and it seemed to work.”
Puzzle pieces are slowly coming together for the next Pirates of the Caribbean film. However, until it becomes a good/safe investment for The Walt Disney Company, don’t expect any announcements.
What do you think of Johnny Depp returning to this franchise? Would you like to see more of Captain Jack Sparrow? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
