Wow. And from his interview it does seem as if there could be a possibility that Depp might not do Pirates 4 unless the script is right. Wow...
Ironically, when Johnny appeared at the Disney D23 Expo last week, he was introduced by Dick Cook, and he came out all decked out in his Captain Jack Sparrow costume. We all feel he did the dress-up bit for Dick Cook's sake (as he's done a couple of times before, too- he isn't usually one to do cheesy promotions but I do think he's especially loyal to Cook as well as to Captain Jack), and they had a huge embrace on stage and both looked very happy to be promoting the film. So, for one thing, if this wasn't very sudden, Cook was extremely good at hiding anything that might've been wrong. For another thing, the appearance itself, as well as the announcement of Pirates 4's title and release date, sure made this all seem 100% solid. Surely Johnny would only agree to do the film if he liked the script, but in light of the Expo, I assumed that the part about approving the script was now over with. I'm not sure if the LA Times may be embellishing things a little, because I don't see anything in Johnny's own words that make it sound like he's still waiting to approve the script. But it's possible.
I still don't really expect that Johnny would back out of the film. He's also pretty friendly and loyal to Jerry Bruckheimer (the "shark", in my words
) and he does dearly love the character. But if Cook's departure causes a huge shakeup within Disney, then who knows how that may influence their projects- some of us Depp fans are wondering. It may depend on who Cook's replacement is.
At any rate, either way, I don't *think* that this turn of events would have any impact on DS, no matter how things shake out. But at the moment, I'm glad that Disney doesn't have anything to do with DS
Cathy