![Margot Robbie Still Isn’t Sold On ‘Pirates’ After 3 Or 4 Scripts; Johnny Depp Eyed For Supporting Role [Report]](https://cdn.theplaylist.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/21085530/margot-robbie-pirates-johnny-depp.jpg "Margot Robbie Still Isn’t Sold On ‘Pirates’ After 3 Or 4 Scripts; Johnny Depp Eyed For Supporting Role [Report]")
For six years now, dating back to 2020, we’ve heard that Margot Robbie is being positioned to take over the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, with room potentially made for Johnny Depp as he continues Hollywood’s long, increasingly receptive process of being uncanceled after years of controversy and damaging headlines. Apparently, both parts are true, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer recently offered renewed hope for the project at D23, confirming that conversations with Depp are underway.
However, one obstacle may be Robbie herself. Despite being attached as the prospective lead since 2020, she still hasn’t signed on—and after three or four iterations of the screenplay, Disney has apparently yet to present her with one convincing enough to pull the trigger.
However, one obstacle may be Robbie herself. According to Puck, she still hasn’t signed on as the prospective lead, and “three or four iterations of scripts have failed to convince her to pull the trigger” so far. Disney film chiefs Alan Bergman and David Greenbaum reportedly want to greenlight another ‘Pirates’ movie, preferably with both Robbie and Depp involved.
The challenge for Bruckheimer is delivering a screenplay that keeps Robbie front and center to her satisfaction while leaving room for Depp’s Jack Sparrow as a supporting character. Oscar-nominated “1917” co-writer Krysty Wilson-Cairns, whose credits also include “Last Night in Soho” and “The Good Nurse,” is currently working on that version.
“We’re talking with Johnny,” Bruckheimer recently said at D23. “Hopefully, we can get this done.”
That would represent quite a reversal for Depp. During his 2022 defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, the actor testified that he would not return as Jack Sparrow even if Disney offered him “$300 million and a million alpacas.” Of course, that declaration came before Hollywood began seriously entertaining his comeback—and $300 million may sound a little more persuasive amid Depp’s well-documented financial problems. Whatever his price today, Bruckheimer’s comments make clear that the supposedly closed door is open again.
The five ‘Pirates’ movies have collectively earned more than $4.5 billion worldwide, providing Disney with several billion reasons to revisit the arrangement. The most recent installment, “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” arrived in 2017 and earned nearly $800 million worldwide despite generally negative reviews.
The supporting-role approach would allow Disney to capitalize on nostalgia for Jack Sparrow without fully handing the franchise back to Depp. It could also give Robbie the new-generation vehicle she was originally promised—assuming Wilson-Cairns can make both ideas coexist on the page.
Meanwhile, that Robbie project has undergone several permutations during its long development. Initially announced as a female-fronted ‘Pirates’ adventure written by her “Birds of Prey” collaborator Christina Hodson, it was later described as a spinoff intended to tell a different kind of story within the franchise. By 2022, however, Robbie publicly declared that version effectively dead.
“We had an idea, and we were developing it for a while, ages ago, to have more of a female-led—not totally female-led, but just a different kind of story—which we thought would’ve been really cool, but I guess they don’t want to do it,” Robbie said at the time.
Disney eventually returned to the idea, just as Hollywood began reconsidering Depp’s commercial viability. His upcoming Paramount holiday movie “Ebenezer,” directed by Ti West, reportedly received encouraging test-screening scores according to Puck, especially for Depp, while Lionsgate has his action thriller “Day Drinker” scheduled for March. A supporting ‘Pirates’ return would be the clearest indication yet that studios believe audiences are ready to welcome him back, and so all eyes are on how “Ebenezer” performances are received by audiences, apparently.
Still, Disney needs to secure its new lead. Neither Robbie nor Depp has signed on, and after six years and several unsuccessful scripts, the next ‘Pirates’ movie remains dependent upon convincing Robbie—and not merely rehabilitating the once-canceled Jack Sparrow.
