By Right on the heels of yours truly proclaiming that “I imagine this franchise isn’t going anywhere … perhaps one day we will get another actor to play Jack Sparrow,” Jerry Bruckheimer, franchise mega-producer, came out and said that the franchise won’t continue without Johnny Depp.
Bruckheimer expounds upon the virtues of having the right people for the role, and specifically to the importance of Depp to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. On this front I agree: Depp has been instrumental to its success.
But to dismiss the notion that there may be sequels or spinoffs without him, now or ever, is beyond naive, especially for an industry insider and veteran like Bruckheimer. To me, this is more a dismissal of an interviewer’s misguided question than a statement of conviction. Big franchises evolve and reinvent themselves without their stars all the time: reboots are all the rage. While Star Wars has now come full circle, the second set of three films was made with an entirely new cast. The X-Men franchise is about to lose its one true fixture, Hugh Jackman, but there are no signs the franchise will wither and die. Aliens evolved and went on without Sigourney Weaver. James Bond has had seven actors define the role and depending on whom you ask, you’ll get a different answer as to who is the real James Bond.
[Via Digital Spy]