In 2013, the 58-year-old actor starred in the adventure movie Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, which received massive success at the box office, and Depp earned widespread acclaim for his iconic performance as pirate Captain Jack Sparrow. Back in 2006, he has said that Sparrow is “definitely a big part of me”.
Unfortunately, Depp’s career is in deep jeopardy as a result of his feud with ex-wife Amber Heard. Following the much-publicized legal battles between the two, Depp lost his role as Grindelwald in the third Fantastic Beasts movie.
Meanwhile, Heard, who starred in the first Aquaman movie, managed to reprise her role in the sequel, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom despite fan petitions to get her removed. At the time of this writing, the Change.org petition already reached 3 million signatures, becoming one of the top-signed petitions in the world.
Now, fans are wondering if Depp will ever reprise his role as Jack Sparrow for a new Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Check out the details below to find out why the actor has no plans to return to Disney’s popular movie franchise.
Why is Johnny Depp not returning to Pirates of the Caribbean?
During the ongoing $100 million defamation trial against Amber Heard, Depp accused his ex-wife of ruining his career by publishing an op-ed about their relationship. While being questioned by his own lawyer, Depp admitted that Disney had removed him from Pirates of the Caribbean 6 just days after the piece was published. Upon cross-examination, Depp was asked about a Daily Mail article that reported he was “out as Jack Sparrow”. “I wasn’t aware of that, but it doesn’t surprise me,” Depp testified (via Variety). “Two years had gone by of constant worldwide talk about me being this wife beater. So, I’m sure that Disney was trying to cut ties to be safe. The #MeToo movement was in full swing at that point.” According to Depp’s ongoing lawsuit, his career has suffered irreparable harm when Heard penned an op-ed in the Washington Post which alluded to Depp while not mentioning him by name. He argues that the piece is responsible for his career issues and not earlier allegations in 2016. “I would be a real simpleton to not think that there was an effect on my career based on Ms. Heard’s words, whether they mentioned my name or not,” Depp said. The actor also stated that his career was “done” from “the second the allegations were made”. “Once that happened, I lost then,” he said. “No matter the outcome of this trial, I’ll carry that for the rest of my days… I’m suing her over defamation and the various falsities that she used to bring my life to an end.” He also confirmed that Disney continued to sell Jack Sparrow merchandise. “They didn’t remove my character from the rides,” Depp said. “They didn’t stop selling dolls of Captain Jack Sparrow. They didn’t stop selling anything. They just didn’t want there to be something trailing behind me that they’d find.” Depp also confirmed that he would never reprise his role as Jack Sparrow. Cross-examiner Ben Rottenborn told him: “The fact is, Mr. Depp, if Disney came to you with $300 million and a million alpacas, nothing on this earth would get you to go back and work with Disney on a Pirates of the Caribbean film? Correct?” “That is true,” said Depp. Insider reports that Depp was set to be paid $22.5 million for the sixth Pirates of the Caribbean movie. When asked whether Johnny Depp could return for the sixth Pirates of the Caribbean film, producer Jerry Bruckheimer told The Sunday Times, “Not at this point. The future is yet to be decided.” Read More: DC Fans Rejoice After Learning About Amber Heard’s Shocking Aquaman 2 Screen Time
What’s the petition for Johnny Depp to be added back to Pirates of the Caribbean 6?
A petition to have Johnny Depp reprise his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6 is gaining new traction in May 2022. At the time of this writing, over 792,000+ people have signed the petition. The Change.org petition titled Justice for Johnny Depp was created by Kimberly Giles, and is directed to the Walt Disney Company.
Here’s what Giles has written in her breakdown of why she launched this petition: Meanwhile, the fan petition to remove Amber Heard from Aquaman 2 already surpassed 4 million signatures.
Did Johnny Depp just give fans major Pirates of the Caribbean return hope?
One viral video shared by Twitter user @jxnscmanager on May 18 shows Depp leaning out the open window of the back set of a card as fans shout, “Love you Johnny!” One is heard saying, “You’ll always be Captain Jack Sparrow!” Suddenly, to their joy, the 58-year-old responded in his Pirates of the Caribbean character’s voice. You can hear Depp say,“ He’s still around somewhere, I see him now and again! He shows up now and again.”
Sadly, this doesn’t confirm his return as Captain Jack Sparrow, but fans are not giving up hope.
Will Disney bring Johnny Depp back to Pirates of the Caribbean following the verdict?
Following the successful verdict in the trial against Amber Heard, fans are wondering if Disney will bring Johnny Depp back to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. “I absolutely believe post-verdict that Pirates is primed for rebooting with Johnny as Capt. Jack back on board,” an unnamed former Disney exec told People magazine. “There is just too much potential box-office treasure for a beloved character deeply embedded in the Disney culture.” Update: On June 27, a source close to Disney allegedly leaked in an interview with Aussie outlet Poptopic that a deal could bring back Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow in the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie. “The deal is reportedly for Johnny Depp to return as Jack Sparrow,” the leaker claimed to the Down Under entertainment website (via NYPost). However, a spokesperson for Depp denied that report. “This is made up,” Depp’s representative told NBC News. While there is no official confirmation that the actor will return, there is a good sign that we will see him reprise his role as Jack Sparrow again.
What is the Pirates of the Caribbean reboot?
In June 2020, a new Pirates of the Caribbean reboot is reportedly in early development at Disney, with Margot Robbie attached to star and her Birds of Prey screenwriter Christina Hodson writing the script. According to Hollywood Reporter, the female-led project “is not intended to be a spinoff of the long-running franchise that had pirate Jack Sparrow at its center but rather a wholly original story with new characters under the Pirates moniker.” It’s unknown whether Depp would have starred alongside her in the upcoming project, or whether this version of the sixth Pirates of the Caribbean movie had been reimagined following the actor’s departure. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer told The Sunday Times that two scripts for the new Pirates of the Caribbean film are currently in the works: “one with [Robbie], one without” Margot Robbie. Would you like to see Depp return as Captain Jack Sparrow in a future Pirates of the Caribbean movie? Check out the poll results below, and feel free to discuss.
