Captain Jack Sparrow is plagued by bad luck and a ghost captain: The Disney adventure “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” should herald a new phase in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” saga. Instead, it gave us a dramatic pause…
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If the new part of a successful franchise contains a clear cliffhanger and those responsible already promise to plan another sequel before the theatrical release… Well, then the fans have nothing to fear, right? The future of the film series is definitely guaranteed! Well, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales unfortunately proved that it’s not that simple…
The pirate adventure, often called simply “Pirates of the Caribbean 5”, was released in the summer of 2017. Since then, 15 (!) new films have started in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, while the “Pirates” saga has stalled. While I’m one of those people who find the movie pretty good, I can’t fool myself: Disney handled it themselves. But that doesn’t change the fact that you can indulge in part 5 again: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge” airs tonight, December 11, 2022, from 8:15pm Saturday 1. Alternatively, you can stream the movie on Disney+:
» “Pirates of the Caribbean 5” on Disney+*
Jack Sparrow slowed down in Pirates of the Caribbean 5!
Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is down on his luck and opposes his crew. When, disconsolate, he even parted with his magical compass for a drop of rum, it made his situation even worse: the reckless act ensured the release of the spirit of the bloodthirsty pirate hunter Armando Salazar (Javier Bardem). Captain Jack can only hope that his new acquaintances, astronomer Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario) and integrity figure Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites), will side with him instead of pursuing their own goals…
In the course of this adventure, filmed by directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg with gritty and dirty images, we also meet Sparrow’s old nemesis, Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who is more arrogant than ever. Orlando Bloom as Will Turner and aging sea dog Joshamee Gibbs (Kevin McNally) also stop by. It also introduces a new character, the sea witch Shansa (Golshifteh Farahani), who is clamoring for a bigger role in the upcoming films.
Keira Knightley had her doubts about the success of Pirates of the Caribbean and it’s completely understandable
It looks promising on paper, especially since Rønning explained ahead of the theatrical release that, in his eyes, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean 5’ is ‘just the beginning of the final adventure’ of Captain Sparrow. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer also gave hope for the franchise to continue for the foreseeable future. But then “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” set sail and led the Disney company into a quandary:
With a worldwide gross of nearly $795 million, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean 5’ is by no means shipwrecked, but fell far behind Parts 2 through 4. This was especially true in the US market, where $172 million was made for a film of this size. A deep fall for pirates who once set records in the United States. Worse, they desperately needed a hit when Dead Men Tell No Tales’ budget skyrocketed due to production delays that the lead actor was partly responsible for.
Disney must have felt like the deer in the headlights: The Pirates of the Caribbean brand continued to be too valuable to pass up. But it lost traction so quickly that it was advised to question existing plans for the future. The sometimes galling US reviews will have heightened that feeling, as will the mixed reaction from fans to the hidden cliffhanger after the credits:
The implied return of a grandiose villain in both gasps of surprise and huffs of annoyance should be given the character rest. The fact that former box office magnet Depp in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean 5’ appears to be just a Jack Sparrow impersonator completed the crisis of meaning of this film series.
In other words, there was trouble in the Caribbean paradise even before Johnny Depp went from a walking figure in the franchise to an advocate in court and in the tabloids. The Depp lawsuit made matters worse, but let’s be honest: We would have long since passed the stage of brooding thoughts that Disney and Bruckheimer are currently in if ‘Pirates of the Caribbean 5’ had been a crowd favorite.
A pirate looks into the crystal ball
Imagine if the adventure show grossed over a billion dollars and received rave reviews from fans and press. Then Disney would have definitely stuck behind a sixth part: Depp or not! Jack Sparrow’s story concludes in Dead Men Tell No Tales in a way that makes it easy to ignore in a sequel.
On the other hand, part 6 could have been dedicated to Carina, played with verve by Scodelario, and the fascinating mysticism that surrounds Shansa could have been discussed, while well-known supporting characters frolic on the railing.
But it wasn’t meant to be: despite the catchy music, engaging new characters, and hilarious action (ghost sharks! An entire bank has been robbed!), the spark wasn’t enough. Too many fans are too indifferent to the meandering in-between film to “Let’s tell everything about this movie except Jack!” as an attractive starting point for an expensive cinematic adventure.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Deadpool writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, Pirates of the Caribbean vet Ted Elliott, and Chernobyl series creator Craig Mazin were trying to come up with ideas for possible sequels. More recently, two scripts have been developed in parallel, one from a screenplay by Christina Hodson (“Birds Of Prey”) with Margot Robbie in a dewy lead role, and one said to have an established character at its core.
I’m all pirate and take what I can get. However, one thing is clearer than Caribbean Sea water: It’s time for the pirate saga to continuebecause while I enjoy “Salazar: Dead Men Tell No Tales”, this unique franchise deserves more.
“Pirates of the Caribbean 6” is next – and then possibly the actually dead spin-off with Margot Robbie
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