Margot Robbie to star in female-fronted Pirates of the Caribbean film

Margot Robbie will star in a new, female-fronted Pirates of the Caribbean film being developed by Disney. Robbie’s Birds of Prey co-conspirator Christina Hodson is on board as screenwriter. 

The Hollywood Reporter broke the news, revealing the project is in early development. It’ll be an official Pirates of the Caribbean film released by Disney, but Robbie won’t be transforming into Captain Jack Sparrow. Instead, it’ll be a separate original story with all new characters, but set in the Pirates world.

Much like the Johnny Depp-starring Pirates film franchise, the new film will take inspiration from the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction at Disneyland. The ride predates the Depp franchise by several decades, with the original version opening at Disneyland in Anaheim, California in 1967.

Pirates of the Caribbean rides can now also be found at Disney World, Orlando, Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris and Shanghai Disneyland.

Robbie and Hodson previously worked together on the DC superhero film Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). Released in early 2020, it’s currently ranked as the fourth highest grossing film of 2020. Robbie starred as Harley Quinn, a character she first played in 2016’s Suicide Squad. The Australian actor also co-produced the film via her LuckyChap Entertainment company.

Disney are evidently banking on some renewed zeal for the Pirates enterprise, as a separate Pirates reboot is in concurrent development. It was reported last October that the company had recruited writers Ted Elliott and Craig Mazin to work on the project. Mazin co-wrote The Hangover parts II and III, while Elliott wrote the first four Pirates films, The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Dead Man’s Chest (2006). At World’s End (2007), and On Stranger Tides (2011).

The most recent Pirates film was the series’ fifth instalment, Dead Men Tell No Tales. The film’s production was notoriously fraught, which meant it didn’t arrive until 2017 – six years after On Stranger Tides. In relative terms, it was a major box office success, but it reaped the smallest profits of the five film franchise.

Check out Birds of Prey official trailer:

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