All the way back in May, it was announced that Suicide Squad actress and star of Damien Chazelle’s upcoming period action-comedy Babylon, Margot Robbie, would be spearheading a continuation of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, which would supposedly replace Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow with an all-new female lead. Around the same time, Johnny Depp informed heartbroken fans that he couldn’t be bribed to continue his run as Captain Jack Sparrow, subsequently, Disney were on the look-out for a replacement — and Harley Quinn’s first live-action actress must have made quite a long-lasting impression.
The Pirates of the Caribbean spin-off was set to be helmed by Margot Robbie and British screenwriter Christina Hodson; the duo previously worked together on Birds of Prey. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer confirmed that the script was well underway, but in a recent interview with Vanity Fair to promote her latest film Babylon, Robbie delivered some rather discouraging news regarding the future of the beloved franchise and more specifically, her own involvement.
“We had an idea to have more of a female-led—not totally female-led, but a different kind of story—which we thought would’ve been really cool, but they don’t want to do it.”
Disney have just celebrated the theatrical release of Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which premiered on Nov. 11. Already, at the time of writing, Marvel’s 30th film overall has grossed $330 million a the box office, leaving their $250 million budget in the dust in its opening few days.
The last entry in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise was Dead Men Tell No Tales in 2017, Javier Bardem opposite Depp’s Jack Sparrow as Captain Armando Salazar, the undead captain of the Silent Mary. The first film, The Curse of the Black Pearl, debuted in 2003 and grossed a staggering $654.3 million against a $140 million budget.
As for Margot Robbie, the 32-year-old is a busy bee for the remainder of 2022 and the beginning of 2023. Robbie plays Nellie LaRoy in Babylon alongside Brad Pitt, which will release in the States on Dec. 23. Then, in the middle of next year, suspected to be July 2023, Robbie will make an appearance as Barbie in the romantic comedy of the same name based on Mattel’s iconic brand of dolls — namely Barbie and Ken. For now, we’ll remain cautiously optimistic as for whether or not the Pirates of the Caribbean spin-off will go ahead.
