Johnny Depp ‘dropped’ from Pirates of the Caribbean reboot

The animation studio is reportedly prepping a relaunch of the bankable franchise

Johnny Depp's Pirates of the Caribbean run has reportedly come to an end.

Following news that Disney is looking into rebooting its very own franchise, the original film's screenwriter Stuart Beattie appeared to confirm Depp's time as Captain Jack Sparrow is over.

“I think he's had a great run,” he told DailyMailTV. “Obviously he's made that character his own and it's become the thing that he's most famous for now. It's been great for him and it's been great for us.”

He continued: “There's that saying, 'Don't frown because it's over, smile because it happened.' The fact that they're rebooting something that you did means that you did something that was worth rebooting. It's an honour.”

Depp has played the role in five films across 14 years which have accumulated box office takings of over $4.5 billion making it the twelfth biggest franchise of all time.

Reportedly, the animation studio - alongside producing powerhouse Jerry Bruckheimer - is targeting Deadpool writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick for script duties of the franchise reboot.

The most recent Pirates film, Dead Men Tell No Tales, was released in 2015 with director Joachim Rønning stating it was “only the beginning of the final adventure.”

Depp's appearance in Fantastic Beasts sequel, The Crimes of Grindelwald, was criticised after the actor was accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife Amber Heard in May 2016. He denied the allegations and settled the case months later.

JK Rowling and David Yates jumped to the actor's defence with Depp himself stating: “JK has seen the evidence and therefore knows I was falsely accused, and that’s why she has publicly supported me. She would not stand up if she didn’t know the truth.”

The first Pirates film, The Curse of the Black Pearl, was released in 2003 and co-starred Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom and Geoffrey Rush. The series is based on the theme park attraction of the same name with Disney hoping to score similar success with new park ride adaptation Jungle Cruise, starring Dwayne Johnson and Jack Whitehall.

(Source: The Independent)

Johnny Depp: How Hollywood's biggest star fell from grace

As another lawsuit hits the actor, accusing him of creating a ‘toxic’ work environment, his status as the industry’s most wanted leading man shows no sign of returning, writes Rory Carroll in the Guardian. Read on: 

The descriptions sound like a typical day at sea for Captain Jack Sparrow: “volatile”, “reckless”, “vices”, “chaos”, “hurricane”.

The Pirates of the Caribbean character is, after all, a drunken pirate who sails through fiascos and misadventures.

It is Johnny Depp, however, not Sparrow, who is accused of presiding over such mayhem in a drama playing out not on screen but in court.

Two bodyguards made the allegations in a lawsuit this week which piled fresh acrimony on Depp’s reputation, renewing doubts over his future as Hollywood’s quirkiest and possibly most beloved leading man.

Johnny Depp in November 2017. With each new controversy, will audiences still turn up to watch him? Photograph: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

The multi-claim lawsuit over unpaid wages and working conditions detailed a lifestyle of dysfunction and chaos.

Eugene Arreola and Miguel Sanchez alleged that a “financial hurricane” and a “toxic” environment enveloped Depp’s Hollywood Hills compound from 2016.

The suit alleges: “Often times plaintiffs were forced to protect Depp from himself and his vices while in public. An incident at a local nightclub involved plaintiffs alerting Depp of illegal substances visible on his face and person while preventing onlookers from noticing Depp’s condition.”

More damning allegations can be expected if the ex-employees obtain a jury trial in Los Angeles superior court. Depp’s representatives did not respond to a request for comment over the latest allegations.

It is a puzzle straight out of Hollywood Babylon: how can a star who has reputedly earned more than $650m struggle to pay his bills?

The question may be better addressed to psychologists than accountants. The money is not missing. Depp, 54, spent it. Even Captain Sparrow might wince at such excess.

Profligacy barely counts as vice in Hollywood but Depp’s epic expenditure – in addition to fast cars and planes he bought a French village, a $22m yacht and a string of Caribbean islands while allegedly blowing through $2m a month, including $30,000 a month on wine – rivals that of the castle-collecting Nicholas Cage.

In recent years this has led to Depp clashing with, firing and suing a rotating retinue of managers and lawyers, who in turn have sued him over allegedly broken contracts and unpaid fees, draining more funds from the Depp treasure chest and dumping more revelations about his private life overboard into the public maw.

Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Photograph: Peter Mountain/AP

Financial troubles alone would not necessarily dent the mystique of an actor who stole teenage hearts in 21 Jump Street, then stole adult hearts in Cry-Baby, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Edward Scissorhands, Chocolat and the Pirates franchise.

Droll charm and offbeat roles in films like Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd cemented an image of a rogueish misfit who tripped into stardom and ended up dating Winona Ryder, Kate Moss and Vanessa Paradis.

Bizarre episodes like firing the ashes of Hunter S Thompson from a cannon (cost: $3m) and smuggling his Yorkshire terriers Pistol and Boo into Australia only burnished the kooky vibe. The glow survived even commercial and critical duds like The Lone Ranger and The Tourist – box office analysts said he was overpaid – and fatigue with Pirates sequels.

From 2016 the picture darkened.

Amber Heard filed for divorce and obtained a temporary restraining order, alleging physical and verbal abuse. A leaked video showed him raging in their kitchen.

Amber Heard and Johnny Depp in 2015. Photograph: Alec Michael/Rex/Shutterstock

The couple settled their divorce in a $7m deal and issued a joint statement saying their relationship was “intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love”.

This did not appease Harry Potter fans, who launched petitions demanding that the makers of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, the sequel to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, drop Depp as the film’s villain. It was an unfamiliar sting for a star used to basking in affection at the People’s Choice awards.

Warner Bros and JK Rowling have stuck with Depp for Fantastic Beasts, sparing him banishment to the ranks of #MeToo blackguards. “The film-makers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies,” Rowling said in a statement.

But in a climate where actors such as Kevin Spacey and Kian Lawley are being replaced after misconduct, some observers worry about the long-lasting effect of his role.

Forbes’ Scott Mendelson suggests that his place in the film “will poison the entire franchise’s legacy” while Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe, has said they he can “see why people are frustrated” with the situation.

Depp’s career – and bank balance – will partly hinge on whether Disney gives Captain Sparrow a sixth Pirates film (the last outing was a disappointment domestically but made $794m worldwide). But with each controversy, will audiences still turn up to watch him?

Archaeologists are still working on Blackbeard’s abandoned ship in North Carolina

In 2011, archaeologists believed they found an important piece of history.  A partly-gilded hilt was found in a wreck off the North Carolina coast, and there was a sword inside the wreckage as well.  They believe this sword could have belonged to one of the most infamous pirates – Blackbeard.

The sword was found in the wreckage of the Queen Anne’s Revenge, which was the the 18th century pirate’s flagship.  The ship had been excavated for nearly 14 years before the finding of the sword.  When it was first found, the hilt and the blade were broken apart.  Archaeologists have since worked to put it back together and it is now whole again.

Historians believe that the ship was abandoned in the place it was found.  The ship most likely hit a sandbar in 1718 near Beaufort, North Carolina and was then abandoned.  They also believe that the ship remained intact for a whole year before collapsing and disintegrating. David Moore, who is part of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, said that the pirates would have had a lot of valuables to gather up before leaving the ship behind.

Wendy Welsh, who is a conservator, said that there could be many reasons as to why the hilt was left behind.  She believes that it could have been unwanted or was just inaccessible.

Blackbeard, whose real name was Edward Teach, and his crew only lasted two years as high-seas thieves, but during those short years, they caused terror throughout the oceans.  They worked the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea from the years 1716 to 1718.  They mainly ambushed sailors and ships at dawn, when the pirate ship was hard to see.  Blackbeard also worked off of the West Indies and the coast of colonial America.  Once he even managed to hold off the entire city of Charleston, South Carolina as a hostage.

Blackbeard’s crew had special tactics.  When they first spotted a ship, they would find out the nationality of the ship.  Then Blackbeard, had the crew raise the same flag as the other ship to make it look like they were from the same country.  When Blackbeard’s crew came close enough to the other ship, they switched flags and put up their own, too late for the other ship to escape the terror that was about to be brought down upon them.

After Blackbeard gained fame around the seas, many crews gave up without a fight, knowing just how vicious he and his crew could be.  If some ship’s crew decided to fight, that is when Blackbeard’s crew would move in.  The men had a routine for taking over a ship – they’d first start with dispatching the sailor who was at the helm of the ship, allowing the ship to drift and making it easier for Blackbeard’s men to hop aboard.  They then took the other crew members hostage and ransacked the whole place of gold, coins, jewelry, and anything valuable.  They then left and continued on to do that with other ships they met.

Historians believe that Blackbeard was born in England around 1690.  He served as a British privateer based in Jamaica.  Privateers were private sailors and armed ships that were hired by governments during times of war. The job of a privateer would be to attack the enemy ships.

Queen Anne of Britain had actually allowed Blackbeard to plunder French and Spanish ships during the War of the Spanish Succession, and she let him keep the stolen goods.  Blackbeard had a taste for rebellious crime.  After the war ended, he joined a group of Caribbean pirates.

Having previous experience as a privateer, Blackbeard became a captain of his own ship; one that he had stolen.  He added cannons and reinforced the entire ship to fit his needs.  It was large enough to carry about 250 men as well.

Many of the ships that he and his crew ransacked did not have treasure; most had cargo such as grain, molasses, and rum.  If there wasn’t any treasure, pirates would steal all the cargo and divide it up so each person got some.  Most of the time, the captain and officers got the major portions of the cargo.

Once his reputation grew, Blackbeard felt the need to live up to expectations of being menacing.  He grew his hair and beard, braiding the beard and tying his hair back in ribbons.  One story tells how a crew member on a ship would not give up his ring to Blackbeard, so he cut off the man’s finger with the ring still attached. He was menacing and wanted people to fear him.

After taking a group of people hostage in North Carolina, he made a home there for a while.  He chose a British colony called the Outer Banks.  From there, he targeted the ships that were traveling to the American coast.  Many people tolerated his presence in North Carolina due to the fact that he sold a lot of the loot he stole.  People wanted the sugar and cloth he stole, mainly because pirated goods were cheaper than the English imported goods.

After one rather rambunctious party, a man named Alexander Spotswood, who happened to be Virginia’s governor at the time, sent out Naval troops to finally defeat Blackbeard and his crew.  Spotswood hired Lieutenant Robert Maynard and two ships to take on the pirate.  The trick was that the small ships that Maynard was in charge of could easily make it over the sandbars that Blackbeard’s ship was docked on.

After hours of battling, Maynard’s crew was able to take down Blackbeard’s crew once and for all.  As a warning to all other pirates who followed in Blackbeard’s footsteps, Maynard cut off Blackbeard’s head and suspended it from Maynard’s ship.  To this day, many people believe that Blackbeard had buried treasure hidden somewhere.  Some are still looking for it, not sure if it’s a legend or if it’s actually true.

(Source: The Vintage News)

When pirates kidnapped Julius Caesar he laughed at their ransom demands

Long ago a 25-year-old Roman author, poet, priest, and aristocrat was kidnapped by pirates. Rather than plead for his release, however, he ordered them to increase his ransom, even though it could have meant being their captive for much longer. His name was Gaius Julius Caesar.

In the middle of the 1st century BC, the Roman republic began to break down. Its volunteer militia had evolved into a permanent force of battle-scarred professional veterans who became a force to reckon with, allowing Rome to further increase its territory. However, they were often more loyal to their Generals than the state – Generals such as Sulla; men who would often use the legions to further their own ambitions.

In the city itself, however, riots and violent political upheaval became the norm as rival gangs fought for dominance in the streets. Rome was plunging into a state of near anarchic chaos. Aristocrats like Caesar vied for power, often using corruption and intimidation to get what they wanted.

Caesar was born into this environment on July 13th 100 BC as a member of the Julia, an old clan of Roman aristocrats. He was named after his father, who was the governor of Asia (now western Turkey). His sister, Julia, was married to Gaius Marius, a general and statesman who held the highest office of consul seven times –  a great achievement.

Things changed for Caesar in 85 BC when his father died, making him the head of the family at 16. Civil war broke out between his uncle, Marius, and Lucius Cornelius Sulla (who twice held the rank of consul). More street battles and assassinations gripped the city until Marius won. Caesar was given the job of high priest of Jupiter and married off to Cornelia.

On January 13th 86 BC, however, Marius died and Sulla rose to power. The latter purged the government and city of anyone associated with Marius, so Caesar lost his job, his inheritance and wife’s dowry, and was ordered to divorce his wife. However, Caesar refused to let Cornelia go. His mother, Aurelia Cotta, used her family’s influence (some of whom supported Sulla) to save his life.

Caesar decided to play it safe by leaving Rome for Asia where he joined the army.  In 81 BC, he participated in the Siege of Mytilene (now the Greek island of Lesbos), he was so effective that he received a Civic Crown – the second highest military award that a Roman could achieve.

Sulla finally died in 78 BC, making it safe for Caesar to return to Rome. Unable to reclaim his inheritance, he moved into a poor district and became a famous lawyer renowned for his successful prosecution of corrupt officials. This made him very popular among many lower class Romans, despite his aristocratic heritage.

By 75 BC, he had moved up in the world and went off on a business trip to the island of Rhodes accompanied by several servants and friends. They never made it there. The Mediterranean Sea was full of pirates and they preyed on every ship that came their way. Pirates attached  Caesar’s ship and he and his companions ended up becoming captives on an islet off Cilicia (now the southern coast of Turkey). All aboard were given two choices: pay a ransom or be sold into slavery.

Caesar chose the former, so his captors set a ransom of 20 talents of silver – about 620 kg worth, which is roughly around $600,000 dollars in today’s values. Caesar gasped in shock. Then he burst out laughing. It wasn’t because of the exorbitant price, but rather because he was offended.

The Julia family were direct descendants of Iulus, son of Aeneas, a Trojan prince. Someone with his bloodline was worth far more than the paltry sum they demanded – in his opinion. He insisted that they set his ransom at 50 talents (about 1,550 kg) of silver, instead.

Impressed, the pirates agreed and let some of his friends go to gather that amount, but Caesar wasn’t finished. He swore that as soon as he was free, he’d have them all crucified.

Given the circumstances, the pirates roared with laughter, but it wouldn’t last. Caesar refused to play the role of a cowed hostage victim. He demanded that his servants be free to continue serving him, even ordering the pirates to shut up or lower their voices whenever he slept.

He spent his days writing poetry and composing speeches, then demanded that the pirates listen carefully while he read them aloud. If they didn’t praise his work, he’d yell at them and call them illiterate savages.

His uncompromising stance and haughty demeanor worked. Instead of annoying the pirates, he ended up earning their respect. He was allowed to move about freely and sometimes joined in their games. To his captors, Caesar’s attitude was either that of a simpleton, or the result of boyish playfulness.

Given the amount involved, it took 38 days to raise the money, after which Caesar and his men were finally allowed to leave. As soon as he reached Miletus (a long-abandoned port city south of present day Söke in Turkey) he began raising an armed fleet. With it, he returned to the islet, captured most of the pirates, and took their property as his own.

He sailed off to Pergamon (outside the modern Turkish city of Bakırçay) and chucked them all into prison. Then he went to Marcus Junius, the governor of Asia, and demanded the right to mete out the pirates’ punishment. But Junius couldn’t stop ogling all that money, so he told Caesar that he’d have to look into the matter more fully.

Yet Caesar couldn’t wait, so he returned to Pergamon, took the pirates out of prison, and ordered them all to be crucified. Some begged for mercy, reminding him of the fun times they had shared together, so Caesar’s heart melted and he decided to relent.

He had their throats slit. Then he had them crucified because he prided himself on being a man of his word. With such a character, it’s hardly surprising that he would go on become Rome’s first emperor.

(Source: War History Online)

Anne Bonny: One of the few female pirates to sail the high seas

Known for her role as a pirate in the crew of “Calico Jack” Rackham from 1718 to 1720, Anne Bonny’s name has gone down in the history books. She didn’t allow her gender to hinder her–she was as intimidating as any pirate that sailed the high seas.

She is known for her career along with fellow female pirate Mary Read as the two drank, swore, and dressed as men. In 1720 she was captured along with the rest of Rackham’s crew. Piracy demanded a direct death sentence, but Bonny escaped the gallows when her sentence was commuted due to her pregnancy. This didn’t stop her from being forever remembered in song, stories, books, and films.

Early life of Anne Bonny:
Information about Anne Bonny is mostly unverified, and all the information about her comes from Captain Johnson. He wrote the famous account of pirates called A General History of The Pyrates. In his book, he states that Bonny was born in Ireland, most likely near Cork, around 1700.  Although it was unverified, Johnson stated that her father was a lawyer and her mother was his maid. The affair was sensational and, to escape the gossip, her father was forced to relocate with them to America.

Life in America:
Her father chose Charleston as the place to begin their new life. There he initially set up as an attorney, later becoming a successful merchant. Anne was just as good at getting into trouble as her father was good at being a merchant. One incident that she was involved in is when she protected herself from a sexual assault and beat up her attacker. Although her father did well in his business, Anne was turning out to be a disappointment.

Instead of attracting a rich suitor she settled for a poor sailor named James Bonny, much to her father’s disapproval.  He disowned her when she married Bonny. She may have only been sixteen at the time.

Life as a sailor’s wife:
Not discouraged by her father’s rejection, Anne and James set out for New Providence. There they set up in Nassau, but living was difficult. Anne’s husband found work as a sell-out, turning over pirates for small amounts of money. This made Anne resent her husband and led to the dissolution of their marriage. It’s suggested around 1718 or 1719 she met Edward England, better known as “Calico Jack” Rackham.

He was a previous crew member of notorious pirate Charles Vane, who he deposed of his captaincy. Anne then went to Cuba to give birth to a child, only to return and be the world’s most fearsome pirate.

It’s a pirate’s life for Anne:
The life of a pirate suited Anne Bonny just fine; so much so that she drank, swore, and fought like one too. It is at her trial that details of how fearsome she actually was came to light.  Based on the testimony of these sailors, Anne and her fellow female cohort were the worst of the bunch.

Once vessels were captured the captives told how the two females would suggest to other pirates to commit acts of brutality on the captives. Anne and Mary were notorious for dressing up as men, but there seemed to be two differing accounts of the underlying story of the two ladies. The first is that Anne tried to seduce Mary one day aboard the ship – she revealed to Mary that she was not a man and was, in fact, a lady. This lead Mary to also reveal to her that she was also a lady. Another account is that the two were lovers who had already made their acquaintance while still in Nassau.

The end of the line as the crew is captured:
Anne Bonny is remembered as a fierce and brutal pirate in history, but actually, her career as a pirate was short. She and the entire crew had a bounty placed on their heads, and in the late 1720s Captain Jonathan Barnet, under the authority of then-governor Woodes Rogers, caught up to the pirates. He received information about their location and cornered them.

The reports of the fight state that the male pirates hid away under the deck while the ladies put up the last stand. Anne and Mary lived up to their names as they fought to the end, cursing their male counterparts. In part due to the men having drunk the entire night long, they didn’t put up too much resistance, and they were all soon captured.

The trial didn’t last long but was a sensation:
During the golden age of piracy, there was a lot of trading and a lot of money to be made as a pirate. This meant that merchants had also lost a lot due to theft by pirates. The situation drew out the wrath of the governments, which did not hesitate to demand the death penalty as punishment to deter would-be pirates. This was the fate of Rackham’s crew – their trials were swift and so too were their executions. According to reports, the trial of the men was rapid, and they were found guilty. Their executions were set for November 18 at Gallows Point at Port Royal. Before Rackham met his death, Anne went to see him.

She told him that had he fought, he would not have needed to hang. But he was soon executed alongside four of his men. As for Anne and Mary Read, both their deaths were postponed due to both of them claiming that they were pregnant. This news was declared on November 28 towards the end of their trials and both women were spared the gallows. But Mary would not live very long thereafter, as she died in prison after a few months.

Life after the trial:
Anne Bonny was a sensation, and one would expect much detail to come to light after her trial. But this is not the case, as she faded into obscurity. Most of what is known about her, and in fact about most pirates of this era, comes from Captain Charles Johnson’s book. Many historians have problems verifying his sources. But what he did reveal in his 1724 book is that she did not die in prison and she was not executed. After giving birth, her sentence was changed repeatedly.

After that, it’s anybody’s guess what became of Anne Bonny, and there are many different versions. Some reports state that she may have returned to her father in Charleston, where she reconciled with him and turned to a life of nobility.  She was supposed to have married someone respectable and lived out her years peacefully until her death.

She may have had several children and never returned to the sea. Others reported that she married in Port Royal or Nassau. All these reports are unverifiable, but her impact on folklore and culture is still notable, About Education reported.

What can be known about Anne is that she had a spirited character, and refused to accept the repression of other women of her time, who were kept mostly indoors. Thus she was seen as an inspiration and role model for many women who came after her. She went against the grain of what women of that time were supposed to be. She disobeyed her father and ran away from her husband.

She had led a new way of thinking, and not just because of her life as a pirate. Jack Rackham himself was a small-time pirate who preyed on the weak merchant boats.

Read another story from us: Captain William Kidd – the unluckiest pirate in history

Bonny’s fame came about because she led a life which was out of the ordinary, and she seized an opportunity that many wouldn’t dream of taking. She rewrote the role played by women and is one of the most notable female pirates in history.

(Source: The Vintage News)