pirates of the caribbean Tagged Articles at Cinematical

When D23 and Johnny Depp announced that the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean installment would follow up its colon with On Stranger Tides, it didn't take the Internet long to point out that there was already a pirate story carrying that title. It seemed an unlikely coincidence since Tim Powers' book also starred a pirate named Jack, and centered on a quest for the Fountain of Youth.

Well, X marks the spot, apparently, as Powers confirmed to Hero Complex that Disney did indeed option his 1987 novel three years ago, and that he's been eagerly sitting on the news for all that time. As the author is quick to point out, his Jack "Shandy" Chandagnac and Jack Sparrow have little in common, and he's unsure as to how Disney will adapt his book to the Pirates of the Caribbean mold. "I've watched all the movies several times, of course, and I think the clear thing they would use is the trip to the Fountain of Youth. My main character doesn't overlap with Jack Sparrow at all [in personality or circumstance]; they're totally different characters. I suppose they might overlap the Geoffrey Rush character Barbossa and Blackbeard. The only thing I feel certain they will hold on to is the Fountain of Youth since they telegraphed that at the end of the last movie."

Powers' biggest concern isn't whether Disney will keelhaul his plotline, but whether the film will end up in Davy Jones' locker now that Depp's enthusiasm has waned. His hearty advice? "Nobody talk to each other, everyone just stand and smile, don't do anything to mess this up, let's keep this going, OK?"

As the entertainment world headed out for the weekend, there was a very big shake-up at Disney, with studio head Dick Cook being ousted from the company. Disney's president Bob Iger is determined to reinvent the studio from top to bottom, and reportedly saw Cook as a relic of Disney's cartoonish past. But Cook has a lot of success under his belt, and friendships with the likes of Steven Spielberg, Tim Burton, and Johnny Depp. Depp was one of the first to speak out about Cook's departure, and hinted darkly to The Los Angeles Times about the fate of Sparrow and the Black Pearl.

Depp revealed that he only has a potential deal in place for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. It's all dependent on how good the script is, and how favorable he is towards a post-Cook Disney. "There's a fissure, a crack in my enthusiasm at the moment. It was all born in that office." Jack Sparrow was indeed born in Cook's office. As all Sparrow and Depp fans know, Disney had been trying to convince Depp to sign on for a Disney film for years, but it wasn't until Cook name-dropped Pirates that Depp was in.

Cook was one of Depp's supporters against a studio who was unimpressed with his eyeliner, gold teeth, beaded dreads and drunken demeanor. "When things went a little sideways on the first Pirates movie and others at the studio were less than enthusiastic about my interpretation of the character, Dick was there from the first moment. He trusted me." Lo and behold, an icon was born (whether you love him, hate him, or are just tired of him, you have to admit that Sparrow will outlast us all), and we got a little swashbuckling in the summertime. Hats off to Captain Cook for that, and if Sparrow never sails again, at least we'll know that friendship won out over a love of franchise gold.

"Aargh!" "Ahoy, matey!" "Shiver me timbers!" OK, that's it, I'm out of buccaneer bon mots, which are pretty much essential in order to honor Talk Like a Pirate Day, celebrated annually on September 19. And even those pirate sayings are ones I took from an article on the event in Los Angeles Times, which credits John "OI' Chumbucket" Bauer and Mark "Cap'n Slappy" Summers for igniting the tradition years ago.

When it comes to movies, the Pirates of the Caribbean series comes trippingly to mind, especially since Disney just announced that Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides will be coming ashore in Summer 2011, with Johnny Depp returning as Jack Sparrow. But it's pretty tough to talk like Johnny Depp -- believe me, I've tried, and gotten my face slapped as a result -- so what other movie pirates can we safely imitate? Here's a quick list:

• Errol Flynn. I'm working on my Australian accent, by way of England, and I think I've got it, good enough to fake a shorter, less dashing Captain Blood.
• Graham Chapman. The Brits have got us beat when it comes to classic Pirate-speak, and Yellowbeard has so much flamingly funny talk you can pick and choose, but I'll stick with my man Graham.
• Robert Shaw. He's always talking out of the side of his mouth in Swashbuckler, which makes it easy to talk like him.
• Geena Davis. She doesn't talk like pirates usually talk in Cutthroat Island. All I have to do is talk like a rough and ready lady.

Our friends at Popeater have their own suggestions, and there's a great list at Rob Ossian's Pirate's Cove. To celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day, what movie pirate will you be talking like?

So about that Disney announcement -- well, the one about Pirates of the Caribbean and its new title (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides) and release date (summer 2011). It just so happens that there is also a novel called On Stranger Tides about pirates by one Tim Powers (which we briefly mentioned in our other post). The plot is striking in that the main character is also named (or renamed) Jack, and the plot revolves around him finding the Fountain of Youth, which is not only a recurring theme in the Pirates movies but was the rumored title of the fourth installment.

Here's the plot summary from Amazon via Publishers Weekly:

World Fantasy Award–winner Powers (Three Days to Never) demonstrates a precise control of complex narratives in this reprint of his rollicking and enchanting 1987 novel. Puppeteer John Chandagnac, bound for Jamaica to recover stolen money from his uncle, becomes Jack Shandy after pirates attack his ship and force him to join their crew. Shandy's struggle to accept his new life grounds the story for readers, even as Blackbeard and vodun magicians whisk everyone away to dreamlike lands where the Fountain of Youth itself awaits. The chaotic sea battles sing, though at times key events happen so quickly that they get lost in the shuffle as Jack tries to comprehend where he's going and what's at stake. This dark fantasy tale will appeal not just to pirate fans but also to anyone who appreciates Powers's talent for blending the most unlikely elements into a brilliantly cohesive whole.

So what do you think? Is this what we can expect come summer 2011? Or did Disney swipe this guy's title and ideas?

At Disney's D23 they kept the movie surprises coming for nearly two hours, announcing a slew of new information about their upcoming slate of films for the next couple of years, and they trotted out John Travolta, Robert Zemeckis, Jerry Bruckheimer, Nic Cage, Miley Cyrus, and ... Johnny Depp in full costume as Captain Jack Sparrow. Yes, we're not kidding, and boy do I hate the "no cameras in the arena" rule that Disney busted on us. Of all the things to miss a photo of.

So yes, Pirates 4 is coming out in Summer 2011. That's probably the biggest news. What else did they announce? Check it out below ...

• Disney's The Princess and The Frog will be screened at the Disney Studio in Burbank, which is being opened to the public for the first time ever, from November 25th through December 13th.
• The new Muppets movie will be called The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made. Interestingly, this is the same title as a concept for a Muppet film that Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl and Frank Oz had back in 1985. It was revived in 2000 by Frank Oz, but died in development hell. We're assuming this is the new Jason Segel Muppet project.
• Disney is remaking The Beatles' Yellow Submarine as a 3D film, complete with new motion capture and the original songs from the soundtrack, directed by Robert Zemeckis.
• Disney's Pirates 4 will be called Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, and will be released in Summer 2011. Depp came out as Jack Sparrow, and asked if anyone had seen a talking frog. Well, stranger things have happened.
• We should also point out (thanks to commenter Dan) that On Stranger Tides is the name of a Pirate-related book by Tim Powers. Is Disney adapting the book for the fourth movie? Did they swipe the title? What's the connection there, because there definitely has to be a connection.
  

Are you ready for singing and dancing pirates? Rob Marshall, the director of the Academy Award-winning Chicago and the upcoming musical Nine, is "on the verge" of helming the next installment of Pirates of the Caribbean, according to Variety. If all goes well, Johnny Depp will return as Jack Sparrow and production will start next year.

Of course, I was only joking about the "singing and dancing," since there's no indication that Disney or producer Jerry Bruckheimer want to make a musical version of their blockbuster franchise. But they do want to move forward as expeditiously as possible, and thus have been talking with a variety of directors recently, in the hope that Depp can do the next Pirates before starring in The Lone Ranger. The first Pirates movies were all directed by Gore Verbinski, who declined to move forward with the franchise in favor of pursuing a movie version of Bioshock. That particular project hasn't worked out so far, though it seems that Verbinski is ready to do something that doesn't involve pirates and high seas.

Meanwhile, this would be a strikingly sideways move for Marshall. Coming on board a successful franchise that has already grossed more than $2.6 billion worldwide is fraught with peril. And Depp's performances as Jack Sparrow have become iconic, so where will Marshall put his own personal stamp? Sources told Variety that the studio is so confident that he will sign on, they have already begun casting new characters that will appear in the next installment. Uh, shouldn't they wait for Marshall to sign on the dotted line?

I was just watching Monsters, Inc this past week, and wondering why it belonged to Pixar's no sequel club ... and guess what's in the works now? Dedicated Disney blogger Jim Hill visited this year's Licensing International Expo, and talked to the fine people who were representing Disney and Pixar, and buying up licensing rights.

Reportedly, Pete Docter (fresh off his success with Up) is planning to return to Monstropolis and helm a sequel to his previous Pixar effort, Monsters, Inc. Obviously, story details are shrouded in secrecy, but they've got Cars 2 and Toy Story 3 in the works, it's not much of a stretch to believe they'd revisit Mike and Sully. While it's a delightfully complete film, it's also a wonderful world, and I'd like to go there again.

Hill also reports that Disney is really focusing its efforts on The Lone Ranger, and are hoping to have it in theaters by Summer 2011. As you may remember, Mike Newell was hired to direct, and Johnny Depp is set to play Tonto.
Intent on launching a Ranger franchise, they've pushed back Jack Sparrow's, and are now planning to release the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean installment to a tenative date of Summer 2012. Both franchises offer a dose of Depp, so the Pirates fanbase should be pretty happy with that. Frankly, I'm willing to trade tricorns just to know just who they cast as that masked man ....

If Pirates of the Caribbean really decides to weigh anchor and sail in 2010, it will have to be with a new captain. According to Variety, Gore Verbinski has officially informed Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer that he's no longer interested in swashbuckling, and won't be helming a fourth installment.

"I had a fantastic time bringing Pirates to life, and I am eternally grateful to Jerry, Johnny and the rest of the creative and production team," Verbinski said. "I'm looking forward to all of us crossing paths again in the future."

Instead, he's throwing all his attention to another underwater project -- his eagerly awaited adaptation of Bioshock, which is expected to be his next directing vehicle after he finishes on the Johnny Depp voiced Rango.

The fourth Pirates was being eyed for a 2010 start date, and it's not known if Verbinski's departure will affect that although it doesn't seem like Disney is racing to get into production any time soon despite all those Russell Brand rumors.

A lot of people are fried on the Pirates franchise and while I should be one of them (Jack Sparrow is still alive and well in this house), I'll always be a sucker for high seas adventure. Maybe a change-up behind the scenes will breathe some new life into the series, and avoid another muddy plot like At World's End.

Fans of the swashbuckling Elizabeth Swann (aka Keira Knightley) might want to take a deep breath. In an interview with our friends at Moviefone, they asked about her possible involvement in Pirates 4, and the gal tells them, "It was a completely fantastic experience, and it was an amazingly large portion of my life, but I don't think I need to go there again. I think that it's done. But I'm very excited to see the next one." This, we assume, would appear to be a very diplomatic way of saying, 'Not on your life pal'.

The Pirates franchise might have made Knightley a household name, but it has become obvious that she's been looking to expand her career beyond playing second fiddle to Captain Jack for some time. Not to mention this isn't the first time that Knightley has said that she would not be returning. So now that we only have Jack Sparrow officially back for the next installment, what could Disney possibly have planned?

Earlier reports had Disney re-booting the franchise as "Captain Jack adventures" and supposedly the film would "toss the Elizabeth and Will characters over the side in favor of doing a bawdy buddy picture which would star Jack Sparrow and Barbossa. Where both captains of the Black Pearl would initially be competing for the exact same prize." But that was over a year ago, and now there are rumors the film will focus entirely on Depp's boozy captain -- but if I may be so bold, perhaps there is a certain British comedian who could be the perfect addition to the Sparrow clan.

So what do you think: will Elizabeth be missed? Or is it about time we all just fess up and admit that the only reason most of us see want another Pirate movie is to see Captain Jack just one more time?

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