Even before Johnny Depp was dropped from his iconic role of Captain Jack Sparrow, it was pretty clear to see that the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise was starting to run out of steam.
Sure, most studios would kill for a box office haul of almost $795 million on any given project, but Dead Men Tell No Tales was seen as a disappointment by Disney and became the lowest-grossing installment since the original outing fourteen years previously. Not to mention that critics weren’t too kind to it, either.
Indeed, each new Pirates film has scored worse reviews than its predecessor, taking a straight dive down from the first effort’s 79% Rotten Tomatoes score to Dead Men Tell No Tales‘ 29%. A fresh coat of creative paint is certainly needed, then, but it’ll be odd to watch the franchise set sail again without its leading man. Though just because he’s gone, that doesn’t mean he’ll be forgotten about.
Insider Daniel Richtman is reporting today that “Disney wants [the] new Pirates movie to make fun of Jack Sparrow.” As is usually the case with the tipster, however, he doesn’t offer anything more than what’s admittedly a vague piece of intel and leads to a whole lot of questions.
For one, which “new Pirates movie” is he talking about? The spinoff with Margot Robbie, or the sixth mainline installment? And what exactly does he mean by “make fun”? Is the studio simply hoping to reference Captain Jack and keep his spirit alive throughout the franchise, or do they have something else planned?
Honestly, who knows? But it’s probably safe to say that even if Johnny Depp isn’t going to be involved in future Pirates of the Caribbean films, his character won’t be entirely forgotten.
