Johnny Depp NOT returning to the Pirates of the Caribbean

Johnny Depp will not be returning to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, despite a report claiming his name had been spotted on a call sheet for a new movie in the hugely popular film series. 

Rumors began circulating Wednesday after a report claimed he would be reprising his role as Captain Jack Sparrow despite being axed from the franchise by Disney in 2018.

However, sources confirm to DailyMail.com that the information is false.

Depp, 59, last played the swashbuckling character in 2017’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, before producers decided they wanted to bring in ‘new energy’ to the hugely popular film series. 

An insider had alleged to The Sun that a sixth film in the franchise was in the pipeline with a working title of A Day At the Sea, claiming: ‘Johnny is set to return as Captain Jack Sparrow and is scheduled to start filming at the beginning of February at a top secret location in the UK.’

Meanwhile, the insider further claimed: ‘Everything is in the early stages and there is still no director attached to the project, which is being called A Day At The Sea.

‘Johnny is expected to do a test shoot in early February before the production gets fully underway.’

The source continued: ‘A call sheet has been distributed among those in the know. Bruce Hendricks, who worked on the first three films, is named as the Executive Producer on the new project.’

In 2018, a Disney producer claimed that Depp would not be asked to return, saying they wanted to bring a ‘new energy’ to the much-loved films. 

New ideas to breathe life into the franchise, included a female-led Pirates Of The Caribbean, starring Margot Robbie. 

In a recent interview with Vanity Fair this month, the Oscar nominee revealed the highly-anticipated of the film will her in it will not happen. 

‘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,’ she said of Disney. 

 While he may not be doing another Pirates of the Caribbean movie, over the summer it was announced that Depp would be directing his first film following his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. 

The father-of-two will be directing the film Modigliani, a biopic about Italian painter and sculptor Amedeo Modigliani, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Depp will be co-producing the film with Al Pacino and Barry Navidi in what will be the first flick he has helmed since making his feature directorial debut with the 1997 film The Brave.

Modigliani, which is based on the play written by Dennis McIntyre and has been adapted for the silver screen by Jerzy and Mary Kromolowski, follows the artist in Paris in 1916. 

‘Long considered by himself a critical and commercial failure, Modigliani navigates a turbulent and eventful 48 hours that will become a turning point in his life, ultimately solidifying his reputation as an artistic legend,’ THR writes. 

Production is set to begin in Europe in spring 2023 and casting will also be revealed soon, according to THR. 

News of the movie comes after Depp took on the role of King Louis XV in Jeanne Du Barry, his first film role since his defamation trial against Amber. 

Jeanne Du Barry marks a return for Johnny after much of Hollywood blacklisted him following domestic violence accusations from Amber.

Filming on the project reportedly began in July – following the end of the trial – and is expected to last for 11 weeks, according to Deadline.

 The story follows title character Jeanne, a working-class woman who climbs the Paris social hierarchy and eventually comes to the attention of King Louis XV.

In 2020, a British court ruled that 12 of 14 violence incidents claimed by Amber were ‘substantially true,’ and Johnny was subsequently forced to resign from the ‘Fantastic Beasts’ franchise at the request of Warner Bros.

But, after his own defamation suit against Amber in the U.S., in which he was awarded $15 million, the star seems to be attracting interest again.

In June, speculation that hw may return to the Pirates of the Caribbean, which  grossed over $4.5 billion worldwide, sent fans into a frenzy when a source told Poptopic that the actor has been in talks with Disney about a ‘$300 million deal.’

The insider said: ‘[Disney] reached out to the actor prior to his defamation trial against Amber Heard and asked whether he would be interested in returning for another pirate film or two. 

The source added that another project is in the works for Disney Plus. They said: ‘The deal is reportedly for Johnny Depp to return as Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6 and a spin-off Disney Plus series about the early life of the Captain of The Black Pearl.’

They continued: ‘What I can tell you is that the studio has already penned up a draft for a film about Jack Sparrow so they are very hopeful that Johnny will forgive them and return as his iconic character.’

The source said that the media house is working on a ‘$301 million deal’ to coax Depp back soon and are also reportedly adding a ‘sizeable donation’ to a charity of Depp’s choice as a gesture of goodwill.

Previously, his legal team claimed Depp lost out on a $22 million payday after Heard published her Washington Post op-ed in 2018 that didn’t identify Depp, but clearly branded him as a domestic abuser.

Depp said he felt as if he was ‘guilty until proven innocent’ with Disney executives. 

Last month, he filed an appeal of the verdict that he is to pay $2 million to his ex-wife. who is seeking a mistrial.