Margot Robbie has said that a female reboot of Pirates Of The Caribbean has been scrapped.
In 2020, it was reported that the Birds of Prey actress would be taking over from Johnny Depp as the star of the franchise - but it now appears as if fans will be left disappointed.
Jerry Bruckheimer, who was involved in the original film series, was involved in the rebooted project alongside Birds of Prey writer Christina Hodson.
But the Australian actress has revealed to Vanity Fair that the project has stopped in its tracks.
"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," Robbie told the publication.
The Wolf Of Wall Street star added: "But I guess they don't want to do it," potentially referring to Disney.
The news will come as quite a surprise to fans, after producer Jerry Bruckheimer stated as recently as May: "Yes. We’re talking to Margot Robbie. We are developing two Pirates scripts — one with her, one without," during an interview with The Sunday Times.
One thing that seems almost certain, is that we have seen the last of Captain Jack Sparrow. Actor Johnny Depp made this clear during the widely followed defamation trial between himself and his ex-wife Amber Heard in June of this year.
During the trial, Depp was asked: "If Disney came to you with $300m dollars and a million alpacas, nothing on this earth would get you to go back and work with Disney on a Pirates of the Caribbean film?"
To which, he simply replied: "That is true".
The previous five Pirates movies have grossed $1.5 billion domestically and $3.07 billion internationally. Dead Mans Chest and On Stranger Tides both topped $1 billion each, per Variety.
There may still be hope for Pirates fans, however. Though Margot Robbie appears to have closed the door on one reboot, another could be in the works.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter back in 2018, president of the production at Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Sean Bailey was asked if the franchise could survive without Depp. Bailey responded:
"We want to bring in a new energy and vitality. I love the [Pirates] movies, but part of the reason Paul [Wernick] and Rhett [Reese] are so interesting is that we want to give it a kick in the pants. And that’s what I’ve tasked them with."
In 2019 Disney hired Emmy-winning Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin and Ted Elliott, who co-wrote the first four Pirates movies to create a brand new chapter in the franchise, as reported by Deadline.
There is no word on the status of this reboot, although Bruckheimer did hint at two scripts being created. Though it does seem that neither Margot Robbie or Johnny Depp will be setting sail in any new installments.
