If you follow along with the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, you know that the film series based on the same-named Disney Parks attraction isn’t the shining jewel it once was, as evidenced by the critical and commercial performance of the most recent entry, Dead Men Tell No Tales. As a result, Disney announced a few years back that a reboot is in the works, but it turns out that a separate Pirates of the Caribbean movie is also in development, and Margot Robbie is attached to star.
In addition to reporting Margot Robbie’s involvement on this project, THR also revealed that Bumblebee writer Christina Hodson wrote the script for this female-fronted Pirates of the Caribbean movie. No plot details were provided, but this project is described as “a wholly original story with new characters under the Pirates moniker.”
So now, along with the previously announced Pirates of the Caribbean reboot that’s being tackled by Chernobyl’s Craig Mazin and Ted Elliot, who co-wrote all of the past Pirates movies except for Dead Men Tell No Tales, we have this Margot Robbie-led, Christina Hodson-penned movie to look forward to. Pirates mainstay Jerry Bruckheimer will also produce both projects.
This marks the second blockbuster franchise on Margot Robbie’s franchise, having already starred in DC Extended Universe entries Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey as Harley Quinn, a role she’s reprising for next year’s The Suicide Squad. Robbie’s other notable credits include The Wolf of Wall Street, The Legend of Tarzan, I, Tonya, Mary Queen of Scots and Bombshell.
Pirates of the Caribbean also marks another franchise win for Christina Hodson. Along with the aforementioned Bumblebee, the Transformers spinoff/prequel, she also wrote Birds of Prey, and continues to be busy in the DCEU with Batgirl and The Flash. In addition to collaborating with Margot Robbie on Birds of Prey and this new Pirates movie, the women also teamed up last year to launch the Lucky Exports Pitch Program, an initiative working to get more female-identifying writers to be hired to write action-centric movies.
Evidently Disney is so eager to bid adieu to the Jack Sparrow era of Pirates of the Caribbean that it’s willing to explore multiple new paths forward. It’s hard to say whether both projects will ultimately move into production or just one. If it’s the latter, I’d imagine the Robbie/Hodson movie has the better odds since it has an actress signed on, but it’s way too soon to tell.
In any case, with the Hollywood star power she carries, one would think Margot Robbie is someone who could draw in both longtime Pirates of the Caribbean fans and folks who weren’t enamored with the previous entires, especially since this new movie will be a standalone story. Whether her character is a pirate captain or someone new to the life of a raider, I can’t wait to learn who’ll be accompanying her on this journey across the high seas.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more news on what’s happening with the Pirates of the Caribbean film series on all fronts. In the meantime, browse through our 2020 release schedule to learn what movies are supposed to hit theaters later this year.
