Fact Check: Is Johnny Depp returning to play Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6?

After all these years, Jerry Bruckheimer's popular American fantasy series Pirates of the Caribbean is about to make a comeback with Pirates of the Caribbean 6. But as time went on, the franchise's charm diminished. Bruckheimer intends to revive Pirates, which implies that the upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean 6 film won't feature any of the franchise's well-known characters.

That would presumably preclude Johnny Depp from making an appearance. Depp's iconic portrayal of Jack Sparrow in the first five Pirates films made up to a $4.5 billion global box office haul as mentioned in Box office performance on the film's Wikipedia. While Johnny wasn't in the talks to be a part of the 6th installment of the movie as they were kicking around the notion of a Margot Robbie-led Pirates film.

Discussions on a sixth film started shortly after the fifth film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, was released in 2017. Disney expressed great interest in the idea; nevertheless, Bruckheimer revealed that Joachim Ronning would be returning as director. Although Depp's continued absence from Hollywood due to legal issues and his 2022 libel lawsuit against Amber Heard has raised doubts about his future as Jack Sparrow.

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Jerry Bruckheimer on Depp returning to play Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6

Johnny Depp's portrayal of the legendary Jack Sparrow has come to be associated with the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. Started as a movie inspired by a Disneyland attraction, the series has grown into a five-film epic that as per the Box office performance on the film's Wikipedia has made around $4.5 billion worldwide. There are a lot of rumors about Depp becoming involved because a revamp of the Pirates of the Caribbean 6 is planned.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer recently discussed the circulating speculations about Depp's potential comeback with Entertainment Tonight. Although Bruckheimer conveyed his respect for Depp and his wish to see the actor return to the series, he stayed reticent regarding the star's formal participation.

"If it was up to me, of course. I love having Depp... He's a great actor and good friend... I've certainly spoken to him, but we'll see what happens."

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More about Pirates of the Caribbean 6

Despite being confirmed in 2018, Pirates of the Caribbean 6 has faced difficulties ever since Disney revealed their plans. Disney selected Craig Mazin and Ted Elliott to write the script for Deadpool instead of co-writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who left the project in 2019.

Joachim Rønning, the director, will also be coming back. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer confirmed that Pirates of the Caribbean 6 was still in development in March 2024, but he also disclosed that the film will be a reboot.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who is now working on two different Pirates movies—Robbie's and a different reboot he is producing—has given the go-ahead for Margot Robbie's Pirates of the Caribbean picture. While the identity of the creators of the upcoming version remains unknown, it is anticipated that the iconic Captain Jack Sparrow will give way to another persona.

Producer of Pirates of the Caribbean Jerry Bruckheimer made it plain in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that he is at least open to bringing Depp back into the fold. Since the productions are still in their early phases of development, no one has been confirmed to be in these casts.

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All 5 Pirates of the Caribbean movies are available to stream on Hotstar, Prime Video, and AppleTV. Stay tuned for more updates on Pirates of the Caribbean 6th installment.