Johnny Depp Walks the Plank for Pirates of the Caribbean 4

Hey, hey, me hearties. If your week has gone about as well as mine, then cheer up. Johnny Depp has saved us all by agreeing to appear in "Pirates of the Caribbean 4."

Rumors have been floating for over a year, but this fabulous news was finally confirmed by the actor's public relations representatives early on Thursday through Variety magazine.

While there is no news as yet on whether Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom will make appearances in the 4th installment of this money-making blockbuster set of films, both of them have previously said that they did not plan on continuing in this "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise.

That's okay. Although I like Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom, I love Johnny Depp. And a film focused solely on Johnny Depp and Captain Jack Sparrow is fine by me.

"Pirates of the Caribbean 4": The Prequel?

"Pirates of the Caribbean 3" was actually my least favorite film of the series and ended strangely. Disney and the directors must have known by the time the movie wrapped that Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom were very reluctant to star in another "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequel. Therefore the ending of "Pirates of the Caribbean 3", for many, including me, left much to be desired. More money can change the hardest of hearts as we all know and maybe Disney thought the almost assured success of the Pirates franchise would change the minds of Knightley and Bloom.

However, "Pirates of the Caribbean 3" was most definitely the weakest of the three films and to assume that Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom would come back under less than auspicious signs for a successful fourth movie? Well, let's just say the possibility is that ship has already sailed.

Besides, with Keira Knightley's current film career going so well, she really doesn't need the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise any more. "Atonement" sent buzz about Keira Knightley to another level and her current film, "The Duchess," is bringing her even more buzz from the reviewers.

Yet Johnny Depp has never backed away from the possibility of continuing the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. Does anyone doubt that he absolutely loved his role as Captain Jack Sparrow? But trying to decide where he might go if he becomes the central character in the upcoming "Pirates of the Caribbean 4" film is anyone's guess.

A series of films starring Johnny Depp as the primary character offers up many possibilities for story lines. Getting out of the story line created in Pirates of the Caribbean 3 might be tricky without Knightley and Bloom but it could be done.

Could "Pirates of the Caribbean 4" actually be a prequel to "Pirates of the Caribbean 1-3"? While some prequels don't capture the excitement and uniqueness of the original films (can we say "Star Wars"?), we all know that the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies quickly became Johnny Depp's movies, leaving most of us to say, "Keira and Orlando, who?" In the "Pirates" movies anyway. Like I said, I like Keira and Orlando, too. But Johnny Depp put his stamp on "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Johnny Depp and Disney Studios - A Match Made in Heaven

Did anyone think that you'd ever say Johnny Depp and Disney in the same breath? For those of you too young to remember, Johnny Depp used to be a bit of a "bad boy" many years ago. Then he had kids and well, having kids changes most people. Lucky for us, having kids changed Johnny Depp. While he was every bit as intriguing as a "bad boy", he's been even better turning that bad boy image into the cunningly capricious Captain Jack Sparrow.

Disney has also announced that we can expect to see Johnny Depp as Tonto in their upcoming movie based on the old western, "The Long Ranger." Johnny Depp, usually a little distant to the press, strolled on stage with this announcement at a preview of upcoming Disney projects held at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood. Although Depp made his way on to the stage to the William Tell Overture - which is more well-known as the Long Ranger theme - the real surprise was that he was dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow.

Could it Get Any Better? Tim Burton and Johnny Depp Together Again

Johnny Depp has also agreed to play the part of the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. As everyone knows Johnny Depp and Tim Burton together can only mean one thing: a fascinating movie and a fascinating rendition of the character by Johnny Depp.

Previous movies that Johnny Depp has done with Tim Burton include "Edward Scissorhands," "Ed Wood," "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," and the recent "Sweeney Todd."

Look for the next installment of the "Pirates movies", "Pirates of the Caribbean 4", to debut sometime in 2011.

Sources:

AFP, Johnny Depp to star in more Disney projects, including "Pirates 4", afp.google.com

Borys Kit and Carolyn Giardina, Johnny Depp in deep with Disney, The Hollywood Reporter, THR.com