With his defamation case victory over ex-wife Amber Heard in the rearview mirror — despite the Aquaman actress’s vow to appeal — the movie industry is speculating about what’s on the horizon for Johnny Depp.
One former Disney executive tells People a pirate ship might just break through the fog with Depp’s beloved Jack Sparrow at the helm once again.
“There is just too much potential box-office treasure” to be had, the unnamed executive explains to the magazine.
“With [Pirates of the Caribbean series producer] Jerry Bruckheimer riding high on the massive success of Tom Cruise in Top Gun: Maverick, there is huge appetite for bringing back bankable Hollywood stars in massively popular franchises.”
Box Office Mojo says the movie series has snagged nearly $4.5 billion in box office booty since it launched in 2003, with Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl making more than $654 million worldwide.
Its sequel, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, became the series biggest earner, making over a billion bucks.
So what’s next for the franchise after 2017’s Dead Men Tell No Tales?
As viewers of the recent trial witnessed, plans for a sixth film with Depp at the helm were scuttled after Depp’s messy divorce from Heard, and the English trial that brought to light accusations of abuse from both stars.
Officially, there are a pair of films set in the Pirates universe in the works, according to Bruckheimer.
The blockbuster-minting producer tells the U.K.’s Sunday Times, “We’re talking to Margot Robbie. We are developing two Pirates scripts — one with her, one without.”
So will Jack Sparrow return? “Not at this point,” Bruckheimer says, but allows, “The future is yet to be decided.”
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