Pirates of the Caribbean reboot (1 Viewer)

[Jake Lipson]

Deadline has this news.

https://deadline.com/2018/10/pirate...tt-reese-paul-wernick-johnny-depp-1202488160/

Details are pretty vague, basically all we know I put in the thread title, but the word "reboot" would at least suggest that this will be a break from the continuity established in the existing films.

Given the PR nightmare that Johnny Depp has become recently, I can't imagine Disney wanting to continue employing him, as his alleged misdeeds are far more significant than old tweets. The most recent Pirates film did $794m worldwide last year, but only $172m of that was from North America, which is a low point by a significant margin.

I wonder though: even if they throw out all the continuity from the previous films, is this still a property people will care to go see in a new iteration? I used to be a huge fan of it, but it feels like they've run it into the ground. And even if the answer is yes, is it wise to reboot it so soon after the fifth film in the initial run?

Disney has a lot of things working for them right now -- the live-action remakes, Marvel, and Star Wars (mostly, except for Solo.) Pirates just feels like a franchise that was big for them before they had all of those things but might not be as important now as when it was first created.

Thought?

 

[dpippel]

OMG. Just. NO.

 

[B-ROLL]

Working Title: The Search for Alimony ...

 

[Tommy R]

As long as it's two and a half hours and filled with CGI, I'm there!

 

[Traveling Matt]

I think the answer is in your post, Jake. The remakes are doing well for them and apparently all the studios who pursue those kinds of efforts. So they're doing another one. If it gets closer and doesn't seem likely to work out, they'll bail.

 

[Dave Moritz]

OMG. Just. NO

Studios are running back to these franchise movies to often and I want to see a new original story/movie! Yes there are some movies I love but at a certain point just wrap it up and call it a day. What's next going back and redoing the original Star Wars trilogy? Going back and redoing Back To The Future? Go back and redo Dirty Harry? I love the Pirates franchise and currently have no interest in seeing a reboot!

So right now that is a big NO for me!

 

[holtge]

Agreed. I realize he's in a lot of trouble right now, but I still can't see anyone coming close to portraying Capt. Jack Sparrow the iconic way Johnny Depp did. Why mess with that?

 

[Jake Lipson]

I still can't see anyone coming close to portraying Capt. Jack Sparrow the iconic way Johnny Depp did.

I don't think that is the intention.

They're not saying "remake" -- they're saying "reboot." That to me would indicate that it will be a pirate movie, it will be set in the Caribbean, and that's it. They are likely thinking new characters, rather than bringing in new actors to play old ones. Since I think the existing version is creatively exhausted, if they put a gun to my head and said "Come up with a new movie for this franchise," this is probably what I would do too.

I think the answer is in your post, Jake. The remakes are doing well for them

Your post is a good point, but I think you misunderstood my original point I was trying to make. Pirates of the Caribbean became Disney's marquee live-action franchise at a time before they were on their current remake kick (which started with the 2010 Alice in Wonderland.) It was before they bought Marvel (2009) and Lucasfilm (2012.) When these movies were at their peak, Disney did not have any other huge tentpole blockbuster type franchise in the live-action space. Now that they have the remakes and the MCU and Star Wars pumping out huge blockbusters on a regular basis, the Pirates franchise feels more like a relic from a bygone Disney era than something that they absolutely must rely on at this moment. Would another film make money? Sure -- but it's not at the level where it once was, and certainly not at the level of their biggest successes of late under the remake/MCU/Star Wars strategy. They were reliant upon it when it first came out because it was their only huge franchise; now, they could do another one or they couldn't and they'd still be raking in the dough from the other projects they have going.

Depp almost certainly know this -- hitching himself to the J.K. Rowling gravy train feels like a strategic move. Because he is no longer Disney's golden boy as he was for a number of years, playing Grindlewald means he is highly visible in a major franchise with a multi-film commitment, and because he is part of an ensemble, he won't have to carry the entire film on his back the way he did the Pirates sequels.

 

[Bob_S.]

I love the series except this last one. I'd be up for it whether Depp came back or not. If I'm impressed with the trailer, I'll definitely check it out.

 

[Jake Lipson]

This series is the best recent example I can think of for the concept of diminishing creative returns.

So...we'll see. I mean, if they have a truly great idea, maybe it could work, but I'm incredibly skeptical. I haven't even watched the first one in years because, even though it should still be great on its own, I'm just burnt out on the franchise overall.

I'm also just sick of Depp, personally, and I really wish he weren't Grindelwald (though since that is J.K. Rowling, of course I'm seeing it regardless.) Aside from that, which I would have seen with or without Depp, he has gone from one of my very favorite actors once upon a time to someone whose presence in a film is a detriment for my decision to see it.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Depp, he has gone from one of my very favorite actors once upon a time to someone whose presence in a film is a detriment for my decision to see it.

Well, if you are a filmmaker and you want Depp in your picture apparently he (his people, whomever that may be) are saying yes to everything. Depp is about to be a Nicolas Cage type presence in a lot of pictures but probably not big budget Disney stuff. He lucked out on getting the Grindelwald thing and I think in truth they now regret casting him in that.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

I would sooner be interested in a cinematic universe based upon The Cat from Outer Space.

 

[Johnny Angell]

How about Deadpool as Captain Jack Sparrow?

 

[Jake Lipson]

Disney's live-action production chief said the following to THR.

The whole article is worth a read -- they talk about a lot of Disney's upcoming slate and strategy moving forward -- but this was what he said about Pirates.

THR: You've hired Deadpool scribes Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick to work on a possible Pirates of the Caribbean reboot. Can Pirates survive without Johnny Depp?

We want to bring in a new energy and vitality. I love the [Pirates] movies, but part of the reason Paul and Rhett are so interesting is that we want to give it a kick in the pants. And that's what I've tasked them with.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/n...n-chief-is-placing-big-bets-lion-king-1169170

I feel like, even though Bailey didn't straight up say Depp won't be in it, this is essentially confirmation of that. He didn't correct the reporter's assumption and say "Of course Johnny has to be in it," which he would have if that were the case.

 

[Jake Lipson]

...Or not.

https://deadline.com/2019/02/pirate...ut-limbo-rhett-reese-paul-wernick-1202556576/

Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick have left the project. It's not clear whether Disney will look to replace them or just stick a fork in the Pirates franchise altogether.

Personally, I think they should do the latter.

 

[Malcolm R]

I think it makes too much money for them to abandon completely.

The most recent film made nearly $800m worldwide, and the franchise as a whole has made over $4.5 billion.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Go figure, but I think I liked the most recent film more than any of the others in the series.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Disney apparently refuses to let this property die. So, they've hired Ted Elliot and Craig Mazin to develop a reboot.

https://variety.com/2019/film/news/...ot-craig-mazin-ted-elliott-disney-1203383993/

As mentioned in February, the Deadpool writers are no longer involved, although I didn't think this warranted its own thread since it's the same basic topic. Could a moderator just drop "from Deadpool writers" from the thread title? Thanks.

Ted Elliot wrote the first four movies with his then-writing partner Terry Rossio. He didn't have anything to do with the fifth one, which had a story credit by Rosssio and screenplay by Jeff Nathanson.

Craig Mazin has had nothing to do with the Pirates franchise previously, but his recent film credits include The Hangover sequels, Identity Thief, and a couple of films in the Scary Movie franchise. He also has screenplay credit on the forthcoming Charlie's Angels and created the HBO miniseries Chernobyl. For Disney, he wrote the 1997 movie RocketMan, which has nothing to do with the recent Elton John biopic of the same title.

My interest level in this remains the same, which is to say, almost not at all. Incidentally, one of the directors of Pirates 5 also made Maleficent 2, which is currently underperforming for Disney and looks to lose money. Can they not tell when audience interest has dissipated?

 

[Malcolm R]

They make crazy money, so I'm not surprised there's another coming.

 

[JimmyO]

I predict the reboot will happen, and the 2nd film in this reboot series will bring Depp back.