Margot Robbie's Pirates of the Caribbean film is no longer happening. The actor – who will next appear in Damien Chazelle's Babylon – has revealed that the franchise spin-off is dead and that Disney wants to take the franchise in a different direction.
"We had an idea and we were developing it for a while, ages ago, to have more of a female-led – not totally female-led, but just a different kind of story – which we thought would’ve been really cool, but I guess they don’t want to do it," she told Vanity Fair.
Robbie did not elaborate on the reason for the cancelation. Her version of Pirates of the Caribbean had long been in development; Birds of Prey writer Christina Hodson was attached to write. Robbie had previously teased that the spin-off would have a "lot of girl power" and that she was "really, really excited at the prospect of adding obviously a very key female element to that world."
Jerry Bruckheimer, who produces the Pirates movies, previously confirmed that there were "two Pirates scripts" in development, "One with [Robbie], one without." The one without Robbie is rumored to be a complete reboot of the franchise. Ted Elliott, who was a screenwriter on every Pirates movie apart from Dead Men Tell No Tales, and Chernobyl creator Craig Mazin are involved in writing the script.
While Robbie's Pirates of the Caribbean spin-off may not be moving forward, there are plenty of opportunities to see the actor in cinemas over the coming weeks. Babylon marks her next major project, while next year there's the highly anticipated Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig, which Robbie's also producing. For more, check out our guide to the most exciting upcoming movies heading your way soon.
