Draft:Pirates of the Caribbean 6

Pirates of the Caribbean 6 is an upcoming American swashbuckler fantasy film directed by Joachim Rønning and written by Craig Mazin and Ted Elliott. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, the film will be the standalone sequel to Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) and the sixth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series.

Development
Shortly before the release of On Stranger Tides, it was reported that Disney was planning to shoot the fifth and the sixth films back-to-back, although ultimately only the fifth installment was developed. By March 2017, director Joachim Rønning stated that Dead Men Tell No Tales was only the beginning of the final adventure, confirming that it would not be the last film of the series. That September, producer Jerry Bruckheimer indicated that another Pirates of the Caribbean was still in development.

In October of the same year, Kaya Scodelario stated that she was contractually signed to return for a sixth film. It was confirmed that Rønning will direct the film. In October 2019, Disney announced that Craig Mazin and Ted Elliott will write Pirates of the Caribbean 6. In May 2020, Bruckheimer commented that the first draft of the screenplay for the sixth film would soon be finished. On April 20, 2022, during his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp stated he had no intention of returning to the franchise, citing his strained relationship with Disney after they had removed him from the franchise before a verdict was reached in the case.

In February 2023, Orlando Bloom had expressed interest in returning to the franchise. In March, Keira Knightley explained to Entertainment Tonight why she would not make a return to the Disney franchise. "What about Elizabeth Swann?", Knightley joked when asked if she would re-join the crew, also commenting that her character sailed away "in brilliant style". Bruckheimer was also still interested in potentially bringing back Depp to the saga. In June, Depp was reportedly open to returning to the series if the project proves worthwhile. In August 2023, Mazin stated that he'd pitched a Pirates script to Disney, but that he would only commit to it if he was able to work with Elliot; Mazin confirmed that his and Elliot's script was bought by Disney, also commenting that it was "too weird", but the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike had slowed production of the sixth installment.

In March 2024 Bruckheimer stated that the untitled sixth film will be a legacy sequel. Despite this, two months later, Bruckheimer hoped to see Johnny Depp return. Despite this, two months later, Bruckheimer hoped to see Johnny Depp return. On May 20, 2024, Bruckheimer provided further clarification on the series' status. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he confirmed that there were two different Pirates movies in production. The first is the aforementioned legacy sequel that he intends to produce with scriptwriter Jeff Nathanson, and the second is the Margot Robbie-led film that will be penned by Christina Hodson. He stated that he hoped both films would be made, and noted that Disney was particularly receptive to the Robbie-led film. In regards to the reboot, he confirmed that it would not follow characters from the previous films, but stated that he hoped Depp would make an appearance.