AfterJohnny Deppcleared his name in the eyes of fans by coming out ahead in his recent defamation trial, Disney appears to be warming back up to the embattled actor. In the midst of Depp getting leveled with domestic abuse allegations by ex-wife Amber Heard, it was announced in 2018 thatPirates of the Caribbean 6was no longer happening. Depp later testified in the trial that Disney had cut ties with him because of the allegations.Ultimately, a jury trial found that the accusations against Depp were “false and defamatory,” siding with the actor on all three counts of alleged defamation by Heard. The televised trial and its end result has resulted in Depp getting more support than ever, as many feel Depp was wronged by losing a role that meant so much to both him and the fans over allegations that were determined by a jury to be a hoax. There have been petitions and a popular social media movement for Disney to make this right by bringing back Depp for anotherPirates of the Caribbeansequel.At this time, there are no plans for Depp to return as Captain Jack Sparrow, but perhaps the first step in getting there has been reached. At Disneyland Paris, fans in attendance noticed an image of Depp projected on the side of the park’s castle during a fireworks display. Footage and images of the display have gone viral as fans were happy to see the acknowledgment for Disney. While a seemingly small gesture, recognizing Depp in this way is significant as the House of Mouse had been distancing itself from the actor for years.
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It is certainly a good sign for Johnny Depp fans that Disney is not outright ignoring Jack Sparrow any longer. This is in contrast to when the company previously released aPirates of the Caribbeanad that did not mention Depp or Sparrow, prompting controversy from fans. It appears that the majority of Depp’s fans would not be willing to see a new film in the franchise if Depp is not included.
The biggest hurdle in making Depp’s return happen at this point may be in getting the actor back on board. During the trial, Depp testified that he felt “betrayed” by Disney cutting ties with him. He also suggested thathe didn’t see himself ever playing the role of Jack Sparrow again, even if he were offered “$300 million and a million alpacas.” Perhaps a genuine apology from Disney brass coupled with the immense fan demand could help persuade Depp to change his mind, at least this is what the fans are hoping for.
“It was like somebody hit me in the back of the head with a 2x4,” Depp said of how the firing felt. “Captain Jack Sparrow was a character I built from the ground up and was something that I, of course, put a lot of [myself] into the character and also having worked on these films with these people and added much of myself, much of my own re-writing of the dialogue and scenes and jokes. I didn’t quite understand how, after that long relationship and quite a successful relationship certainly for Disney, that suddenly I was guilty until proven innocent.”
He added, “My feeling was that these characters should be able to have their proper goodbye, as it were. A franchise can only last for so long and there’s a way to end a franchise like that and I thought that the characters deserved to have their way out, to end the franchise on a very good note. I planned on continuing until it was time to stop.”
