We are hearing tonight that Pirates of the Caribbean 5, Dead Men Tell No Tales, has been put on hold due to script issues. The film was supposed to open in the Summer of 2015, but now is being pushed till at least 2016. There is an outline of the script done, but nothing concrete. Part of the problem is rumored to be the money spent, and lost, from this Summer’s The Lone Ranger. There are many factors that could be contributing. How disappointing.
Here’s the scoop we received from the Hollywood Reporter.
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer says the decision to push Pirates of Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, which is set to return Johnny Depp to the Capt. Jack Sparrow role, was made because of script issues. He is hopeful that the film can be ready for summer 2016.
“We have an outline everyone loves but the script is not done,” Bruckheimer revealed in an exclusive interview with THR.
The move comes in the aftermath of The Lone Ranger’s failure at the box office this summer. Disney has said that the $250 million-plus production from the team behind the Pirates movies could lead to a $190 million write down for the studio.
Asked whether the potential price tag of the next Pirates film played a role in the delay, Bruckheimer replies, “It’s all a factor. We want a script that everyone’s signed off on and a budget that everyone’s signed off on.” (Such projects have cost as much as $300 million in the past.) Coming up with a great script is “always hard,” Bruckheimer says, and after this summer, “everybody’s more cautious.” The summer saw several costly movies underperform.
Disney now hopes to keep the cost of the fifth Pirates movie under $200 million — a goal the studio is unlikely to meet. Nonetheless, industry observers have anticipated a tough negotiation between Disney and Bruckheimer, given the size of the Lone Ranger write down.
Bruckheimer says it was necessary to push the project because “we’re supposed to start in March and you start spending a lot of money now.” According to the producer, the Pirates filmmakers weren’t happy with screenwriter Jeff Nathanson’s initial script, and he’s now at work on a second attempt based on the well-received outline. But Bruckheimer asks, “How do you budget an outline?”
A source says the studio thought the original Nathanson script “was too expensive but it was also really complicated and hard to follow.” Asked whether he’s still confident that the project will come together, Bruckheimer says, “With any movie, you’re never confident. But it’s a billion-dollar franchise.” The last Pirates movie, 2011’s On Stranger Tides, grossed $1.04 billion Disney is flush with product so the studio is not pressuring for a start. And the summer of 2015 already is packed with major films, including Warner Bros.’ tentatively-titled Batman vs. Superman, set to open one week after Pirates’ original July 17 date. Disney’s schedule for 2015 still includes Star Wars: Episode VII, another Avengers movie and a Pixar film, Inside Out.
This is the official word we have as of now. TMSM will bring you any further breaking news as we hear.
Michele also contributes theme park news for Fox 35 Orlando 11pm news and on the radio on WDBO.
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