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Credit: Paramount Pictures (L) / Sony PicturesEver since it was revealed that Johnny Depp would not be returning to the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, all eyes have been on who could become the Jack Sparrow replacement. Now, a new movie has been reported with two of the big names previously lined up to succeed Depp.
Johnny Depp first appeared as Captain Jack Sparrow in the first of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), two decades ago.
The surprise box office hit was followed by four more movies, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006), Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011), and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017). Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Geoffrey Rush, and Bill Nighy also starred as Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann, Captain Barbossa, and Davy Jones, respectively.
The Pirates franchise did a massive $4.5 billion collectively at the global box office, but a sixth movie would never see the light of day. Following the legal troubles surrounding its leading man, Johnny Depp, the future of the series is undetermined. Depp lost his libel trial against The Sun and News Group Newspapers LTD in 2020, with Justice Andrew Nicol stating claims of domestic abuse were substantially true.
Two years later, the jury in Fairfax County, Virginia, would find that Depp’s ex-wife Amber Heard did defame him. As a result of Heard’s Op-Ed in The Washington Post in late 2018, Depp sued Heard for $50 million, to which the Aquaman franchise star countersued for $100 million. The highly-publicized trial last year ended months and months of litigation but continued to hurt both Depp and Heard’s careers.
With Depp out of Pirates (and the Fantastic Beasts franchise) and claiming in Judge Penney Azcarate’s courtroom that he would not return to the franchise if Disney offered him “$300 million and a million alpacas,” fans are wondering just what the House of Mouse intends to do with the popular series. At one time, it seemed the answer lay with Margot Robbie and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
In the case of Barbie‘s (2023) Margot Robbie, the Pirates of the Caribbean spinoff was seemingly all systems go following its announcement in June 2020; however, in November 2022, Robbie stated that the project — written by Christina Hodson — would not be moving forward. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer would later make a contrasting statement, revealing that “the Margot Robbie [script] needs a little more work.”
Related: Reportedly Replacing Johnny Depp, Dwayne Johnson’s ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Is Already Spoiled
Then, when looking at Dwayne Johnson, there was never an official announcement made about the former WWF/WWE star joining the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, but rumors swirled that Disney was looking to cast him in the swashbuckling franchise using his big Hollywood name to replace Depps. What Johnson and Robbie have in common, though, is they have both been uniquely tied to the post-Johnny Depp Pirates saga.
And now, the pair are reportedly starring in a brand-new action movie.
Per reports circling the web, like this one from Giant Freakin Robot (GFR), the two Hollywood giants have been tapped to co-star in a new movie from The Walt Disney Company’s 20th Century Studios subsidiary. Starlight is reported to be helmed by the Alien franchise’s Ridley Scott and will star Dwayne Johnson as Captain Alex Vega, who “leads an interstellar crew on a daring mission to explore the far reaches of the cosmos, encountering wonders and dangers beyond imagination.” Playing opposite Johnson will apparently be Margot Robbie as the villain, Isabella.
Interestingly, and in contrast to these reports, two years ago, Joe Cornish was announced to write and direct a project based on Mark Millar’s 2014 “Starlight” comic series, also from 20th Century Studios. The Attack the Block (2011) director has been tapped to lead the project, which will adapt the story of space hero Duke McQueen, who saved the universe, but when he returned to Earth, no one believed that he did.
It seems strange that 20th Century Studios would be producing two science-fiction titles with the exact same name. So, until an announcement comes out of Disney or 20th Century Studios, it is unlikely that this Starlight project featuring Dwayne Johnson and Margot Robbie is happening at all.
In spite of this, though, the big-name draws of Johnson and Robbie will no doubt get floated for multiple projects following their success at the box office. Robbie, of course, is the headlining star for Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, which just crossed the $1.1 billion mark at the global box office, and will next star as Lillian Leitzel, a real-life trapeze artist, in Queen of the Air (TBD).
Related: Fans Can’t Believe New ‘Moana’ Look With Zendaya and Dwayne Johnson
As for Johnson, the wrestler-turned-actor will appear as Callum Drift in Amazon Studios’ Red One (2023) later this year, where he will reportedly be receiving a mind-boggling salary. And looking ahead, Johnson will also begin work on bringing his live-action remake of Disney’s Moana (2016) to life. The reimagining of Moana was announced earlier this year by Johnson on the Hawaiin island of O’ahu, with the star likely reprising his role as the demigod Maui. In terms of Moana herself, Auliʻi Cravalho will not be playing the titular hero but will serve as executive producer.
And then finally to Johnny Depp. The actor is currently on tour with the band Hollywood Vampires, and despite leaving Hollywood behind following his high-profile trials over the last three years, has appeared in Jeanne du Barry (2023) earlier this year. At present, the actor has no confirmed upcoming film releases but has apparently rescinded his previous comments about never coming back to the Pirates movies and is potentially open to returning.
What do you think of these rumored Johnny Depp “replacement” actors teaming up for a new movie? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!