It's a bad time to be Johnny Depp. After reports emerged that Disney Studios was planning a major reboot of the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' franchise, it has now been revealed that the actor has been dropped from the franchise. Depp, who played the central role of Captain Jack Sparrow, was the major lead in five Pirates movies over the last 15 years.
The news of Depp being left out of the upcoming reboot was first confirmed by 'Pirates' scriptwriter Stuart Beattie who said that Disney Studios appears to be ditching the star while they get to the task of reworking the entire franchise.
Depp, who has been plagued by a lot of personal drama over the past four years, made his final voyage on the Black Pearl as Sparrow in 2017's 'Dead Men Tell No Tales', which was considered to be the lowest-performing film in the franchise. Speaking to the Daily Mail at a red carpet event in Hollywood, Beattie confirmed that the reboot means Depp is out as Sparrow.
Nodding at the suggestion of Depp being out, he said: "I think he's had a great run. Obviously, he's made that character his own and it's become the character he's most famous for now. Kids all over the world love him as that character so I think it's been great for him, it's been great for us, so I'm just very, very happy about it."
Beattie also told the media outlet that, even if Depp got back on his feet after his current struggles, his Hollywood career high point would always be defined by Sparrow and getting paid more than $4 billion from the movies.
Beattie added: "I think Jack Sparrow will be his legacy. It's the only character he's played five times, it's the character he dresses up in to visit children in hospitals, it's what he'll be remembered for."
"Before Jack Sparrow came along, [Depp] was considered this kind of quirky, independent actor that made these really cool little Tim Burton films, but he was by no means a movie star and a lot of people thought we were crazy for casting him at the time. Because he wasn't a proven commodity; you know, a big movie star. And we were making a big movie and we were putting this quirky, independent actor in the middle of it and people thought we were crazy. The fact that it worked is a miracle."
He added, "They were certainly nervous watching the rushes every day but, when it all came together, something just clicked and it was magic and connected with audiences. I'm proud to be a part of it."
Depp, who is known for playing various unconventional roles in cult movies like 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory', 'Edward Scissorhands', and 'Alice In Wonderland', would not have expected to taste such great success at the hands of Captain Jack when 'The Curse of the Black Pearl' released back in the year 2003.
