As dormant franchises have been resurfacing left and right across Hollywood, one of the biggest question marks still remaining is the status of the as-yet-unnamed Pirates 6 has been stuck in development since the release of Dead Men Tell No Tales in 2017, and still to this day, despite some news here and there, it seems no closer to release than it was eight years ago.

In the years since the last installment, the one prevailing piece of conversation around Pirates 6 has been whether Johnny Depp will return once again as Captain Jack Sparrow, as he was so integral to making the franchise work during its original movies. Since the last film, Depp has been embroiled in numerous controversies, and his continued involvement in the franchise has been left up in the air. If he doesn't return, then Pirates 6 will undoubtedly have a very difficult time recapturing the magic of the original films.

Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow Is The Face Of The Pirates Of The Caribbean Franchise

The Series Won't Be The Same Without Jack

One surprising fact to about the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is that Jack Sparrow actually started out as a very clear ing character, serving to further the central plot surrounding Orlando Bloom's Will Turner and Keira Knightley's Elizabeth Swann. While he was a big presence throughout The Curse of the Black Pearl, Will was the clear protagonist and the recipient of the movie's main character arc. However, over the course of the sequels, Jack's importance only grew, and he became the unquestionable face of the franchise.

While Will and Elizabeth did remain beloved characters, Jack Sparrow was the biggest runaway success from the first movie, so his importance was greatly increased in the second and third films. While Will and Elizabeth's story was still the central focus, Jack became much more important, being placed centrally in the main story alongside the other two. He became the face of the franchise, as evidenced by the later two sequels that placed him as the sole protagonist, and while those movies tend to be looked down upon, they cemented Jack's place as the franchise's leading man.

Pirates Of The Caribbean 6's Development Proves How Difficult It Is For Disney To Move On

Disney Clearly Doesn't Know How To Move Forward

While Jack's importance to the series was obvious to anyone watching, it has been made even more clear by the fact that Pirates 6 has had such a troubled development cycle over the years. In the eight years since Dead Men Tell No Tales, there have been countless different and conflicting reports, even from the people supposedly making the movie. Without Depp as Jack Sparrow definitely attached, Disney is really having a difficult time figuring out how to move forward, and how the franchise can function without the main star of the previous films.

There's Already Been A Horrible Response To Fake Pirates Of The Caribbean 6 Casting Ideas

Fans Will Get Upset At Whoever Takes Jack's Place

While there has been no casting information for the film, and Pirates 6 has not entered production, there have been some fake casting rumors circling around the internet, and it showed what could very well happen if and when a Jack Sparrow replacement is announced. This manifested chiefly when Ayo Edibiri, an actress best known for her role as Sydney Adamu in The Bear, cropped up in a fake article that Elon Musk reposted claiming that Disney was eyeing her as a Jack Sparrow replacement.

The deluge of hate that Edibiri received from that false claim was horrific, and potentially showed what might happen to an actor that was actually cast as a replacement. Even if they don't literally name the character "Jack Sparrow" again, they're undoubtedly going to want someone who fills a similar role, whether Pirates of the Caribbean 6 is a full-on reboot or not. The fact that Edibiri received so much vitriol from this fake story could very well be dissuading Disney, along with any potential actors, from attempting to recreate the character.