Disney Confident That Pirates Of The Caribbean Can Work Without Johnny Depp

Many would say that the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is the swashbuckling equivalent of Michael Bay’s Tranformers movies. They both make lots of money at the box office and continue to churn out films, despite few critics having kind words to say about them, but after each of their most recent efforts (Dead Men Tell No Tales and The Last Knight, respectively) saw a drop in box office numbers, the studios began to realize that the tired old formula had started to wear thin with fans.

Whether or not the Disney series can find a way to have its own Bumblebee-style moment of redemption is still unclear, but the upcoming Pirates reboot is definitely serious about giving a clean slate to the franchise, as we know that Johnny Depp will not be reprising his role as Captain Jack Sparrow. That’s probably for the best, and in a recent interview with Disney’s film production chief Sean Bailey, where The Hollywood Reporter chatted with him about the upcoming project from Deadpool writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the producer stated that the franchise doesn’t need Depp to survive.

“We want to bring in a new energy and vitality,” Bailey said. “I love the [Pirates] movies, but part of the reason Paul and Rhett are so interesting is that we want to give it a kick in the pants. And that’s what I’ve tasked them with.”

Given the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels’ increasing tendency to get lost in their own story, an endless push of spectacle over heart, and the over-reliance on Jack Sparrow to the point of exhaustion, Disney certainly has a tough task ahead of them if they’re to convince audiences that this new reboot will be worth their time. Removing Johnny Depp, however, is certainly a step in the right direction.

Don’t get us wrong, he was great in the role, but as we just said, many people grew tired of Captain Jack after so many films of him doing the same shtick over and over again. Not to mention that the controversy currently swirling around the actor right now is probably something that the Mouse House wants to distance themselves from.

In any case, it’ll be some time yet before we get more specifics on this planned Pirates of the Caribbean reboot, but in the meantime, feel free to leave your early thoughts on it down below.