There are many ways for Pirates of the Caribbean 6 to work around Johnny Depp’s exit as the original Pirates of the Caribbean franchise anti-hero Jack Sparrow. Since 2003’s The Curse of the Black Pearl proved an unexpected sleeper hit, the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has been a massive moneymaker for Disney. However, in 2017, the seemingly unstoppable series hit a snag when the Pirates of the Caribbean 5 as it earned the worst reviews of the series so far as well as underperforming at the box office.
The problems for The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise were compounded when series star Johnny Depp’s legal troubles led Disney to cut ties with him. While veteran Pirates of the Caribbean producer Jerry Bruckheimer said that Depp may still return to the series at some point in the future, how this would be achieved is not yet clear. What is clear is that a version of Pirates of the Caribbean 6 is currently in production, and this project will need to address the absence of Depp’s Jack Sparrow. A supporting star in the original movie, throughout the sequels Depp became the de facto lead of the franchise.
Pirates of the Caribbean 6 Could Bring Back Depp’s Jack Sparrow
Since Depp was the main character of both Pirates of the Caribbean 4 and 5, the most direct way for Pirates of the Caribbean 6 to get around his exit would be to reverse it. The Pirates of the Caribbean 5 ending set up another potential sequel starring Depp’s Sparrow and, now that Bruckheimer has suggested he would be open to Depp’s return, this could end up being how the franchise handles the issue. However, Depp’s return comes with a massive price tag. There were reports that Depp would have earned $22 million for Pirates of the Caribbean 6 before his 2022 trial.
Since his highly publicized exit from the series, Depp’s fee may have increased, and even if it hasn't the studio would be taking a gamble to bring back such a controversial actor. Not only that, but Depp’s star power hasn’t been tested by a mainstream blockbuster in a long time, so it would be a big gamble to wager a massive portion of Pirates of the Caribbean 6’s budget on his appeal. Finally, Pirates of the Caribbean’s worst sequels both focused on Depp’s Sparrow and suffered critically as a result, meaning viewers might not be enthused by the prospect of another Jack-centric sequel, but Depp’s sizable salary means he would need to be the lead.
Pirates of the Caribbean 6 Could Forget About Jack Sparrow
Pirates of the Caribbean 6 could simply ignore the existence of Jack Sparrow, mentioning other characters, settings, and elements of the franchise’s canon without addressing his existence directly. This seems like the most likely route that the Pirates of the Caribbean reboot will take in its attempts to replace the franchise’s cast with younger actors. However, this could prove ill-advised, as Depp is still very much the face of the franchise. The fact that Margot Robbie’s proposed Pirates of the Caribbean spinoff was canceled proves that the studio doesn't trust another A-lister with the series, so it could be foolhardy to trust a younger, less well-known cast.
Pirates of the Caribbean 6 Could Kill Off Depp’s Jack Sparrow
To permanently quell any lingering rumors about Depp’s return, Pirates of the Caribbean 6 could simply kill off Jack Sparrow. Killing the character offscreen is one way to handle the public downfall of an actor, as evidenced by both Roseanne’s revival The Conners and the final season of House of Cards. However, killing off Jack Sparrow won’t work in Pirates of the Caribbean 6. Since his introduction, Jack has been a cartoonish-ly suave trickster who both faked his death and returned from a legitimate death, so killing him off won’t do anything to deter fans from believing that Jack will still be back someday.
Pirates of the Caribbean 6 Could Recast Jack Sparrow
A lot of stars could play Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6 if the franchise opts to recast the character. This is what the last blockbuster franchise that fired Depp did when the third Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them movie replaced the actor with Mads Mikkelsen. However, this was not necessarily a comparable situation. For one thing, Mikkelsen replaced Depp in the role of a villain, and one who had already been played by another actor (Colin Farrell) for a good portion of the first movie in the series. For another, Depp’s role in the franchise was not as central as Jack Sparrow’s part.
For many viewers, Jack Sparrow is the heart of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, and, even for viewers who don’t feel this way, it is tricky to imagine a future for the series without him. Everything from the last two sequels to Pirates of the Caribbean’s Sea of Thieves crossover feature Jack Sparrow front and center as the star of the series. As such, it seems unlikely that the series would be able to pull this off recasting the character as the Pirates of the Caribbean movies have grown to rely on Depp’s performance so much.
Why Pirates of the Caribbean 6 Will Struggle With Jack Sparrow
No matter how Pirates of the Caribbean 6 handles the fate of Jack Sparrow, the sequel will struggle to please fans of the franchise. If Jack is back, his actor’s exorbitant price tag means he will be the star of the sequel, which was a huge part of what derailed the fourth and fifth movies. If he is ignored, then the sequel will be without a recognizable lead (proving that Robbie’s Pirates of the Caribbean 6 might have been a good idea after all). Meanwhile, if he is killed off, viewers familiar with the series won’t buy this.
Finally, if Depp’s Jack Sparrow is recast, this will anger a substantial subset of fans who are attached to Depp’s depiction of the character specifically. This is something of a no-win situation for the producers of the Pirates of the Caribbean series, and it will be tough to guess what option the creators will go for. However, the Pirates of the Caribbean movies are guaranteed to struggle after their lengthy absence from theaters no matter what Pirates of the Caribbean 6 opts to do with Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow.