Johnny Depp is reportedly set to return to “Pirates of the Caribbean” after being dropped from the franchise in 2018, reports the Daily Mail.
Depp was the major lead in five Pirates movies over the past 15 years.
A source told pop-culture and entertainment gossip and news source Poptopic that the actor, 59, has been in talks with Disney about a ‘$300 million deal’ after winning his defamation trial against Amber Heard.
The Insider revealed that Disney is interested in mending the relationship with Depp and have recently reached out to him.
They said that they had reached out to the actor prior to his defamation trial against Amber Heard and asked whether he would be interested in returning for another pirate film or two.
The source said that another project is in the works for Disney Plus, adding: “The deal is reportedly for Johnny Depp to return as Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 6 and a spin-off Disney Plus series about the early life of the Captain of The Black Pearl”.
They continued: “What I can tell you is that the studio has already penned up a draft for a film about Jack Sparrow so they are very hopeful that Johnny will forgive them and return as his iconic character”.
The source said that the media house is working on a “$301 million deal” to coax Depp back soon and are also reportedly adding a ‘sizeable donation’ to a charity of Depp’s choice as a gesture of goodwill.
Depp had previously told the jury he would not work with Disney again after he was scrubbed from the sixth Pirates movie.
His legal team claims Depp lost out on a $22 million payday after Heard published her Washington Post op-ed in 2018 that branded him as a domestic abuser.
Depp said he felt as if he was guilty until proven innocent with Disney executives.
Original Pirates script writer Stuart Beattie was the first to publicly confirm that Disney Studios were ditching the star in 2018 as they rework the entire franchise.
Speaking exclusively to DailyMailTV at a red carpet event in Hollywood, Beattie confirmed on camera the reboot means Depp is out as Sparrow.
Nodding when it was suggested Depp was out, he said: ‘I think he’s had a great run. Obviously, he’s made that character his own and it’s become the character he’s most famous for now.
‘And kids all over the world love him as that character so I think it’s been great for him, it’s been great for us, so I’m just very, very happy about it.’
Depp sued Heard over the op-ed she wrote, describing herself as ‘a public figure representing domestic abuse.’
The jury found in Depp’s favour on all three of his claims relating to specific statements in the 2018 piece.