Then, out of thin air, last year, “Pirates of the Caribbean” producer Jerry Bruckheimer told AP Entertainment that he was “working on” a potential Johnny Depp return to the franchise and a screenplay was being written for it.A few months later, word came in that Craig Mazin, show creator of “Chernobyl” and “The Last Of Us”, was co-writing the screenplay with original ‘Pirates’ scribe, Ted Elliot.

Here’s Mazin explaining the process of pitching his idea to Disney:We pitched it and thought there’s no way they’re buying it, it’s too weird. And they did! And then he wrote a fantastic script and the strike happened and everyone’s waiting around.The “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise has been dead to many fans, especially after the last release, 2017’s “Dead Men Tell No Tales.”

However, money talks, and reboots being greenlit occur on a near-weekly basis in the movie industry. It helps that Disney seems to be making the right decision in bringing Depp back into the fold. This franchise wouldn’t be able to survive without his Jack Sparrow.

Two years ago, Depp was deemed persona non grata in Hollywood because of domestic violence accusations made by his former wife, Amber Heard. He sued Heard for defamation and won. Depp would go on to state that the jury “gave me my life back.” It seems like they might have also saved his career.