Johnny Depp Could Return To 'Pirates' After Legal Victory, Former Disney Exec Suggests

Johnny Depp could reprise his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise someday following his legal victory, a former Walt Disney Studios executive has suggested.

Depp, 58, won his defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard after a jury unanimously agreed that the "Aquaman" star's 2018 Washington Post op-ed defamed the actor. Heard also won one of her three claims of defamation, and her lawyer said she plans to appeal. The verdict was delivered Wednesday after a contentious six-week trial.

Although there are conflicting opinions among Hollywood insiders regarding whether his career will recover, a former Disney exec suggested to People that Depp could be asked to return to the multibillion-dollar "Pirates" franchise soon.

"I absolutely believe post-verdict that 'Pirates' is primed for rebooting with Johnny as Capt. Jack back on board," said the former executive, whose name was not disclosed in the report. "There is just too much potential box-office treasure for a beloved character deeply embedded in the Disney culture."

The insider added, "With [producer] Jerry Bruckheimer riding high on the massive success of Tom Cruise in 'Top Gun: Maverick,' there is huge appetite for bringing back bankable Hollywood stars in massively popular franchises."

A spokesperson for Disney did not respond to a request for comment, according to the outlet. However, calls for Depp to return as his beloved character have been growing on social media since the trial began in April.

"The fans want this so bad. We need this. Come on Johnny!! @Disney," one Twitter user commented.

"Please make this true. Depp as Jack Sparrow again. Really love that franchise," another added.

However, some fans were not optimistic about the possibility of Depp returning to the franchise after the actor testified during the trial that he would never play Jack Sparrow again after Disney dropped him.

"Please don't. You're too good for them, Johnny. There should be no more 'Pirates' movies," one fan opined.

"He won't. They shattered his heart. 'Pirates' is my favorite movie of his, but I refuse to watch it unless he's in it, which Disney doesn't deserve," another supporter wrote.

During the trial, Depp said in court that he discovered Disney would not include him in the sixth installment of "Pirates of the Caribbean" two or three days after Heard's "shocking" op-ed ran.

He said that he had wanted to give his character a "proper goodbye" and had no plans to leave the franchise before Disney dropped him. "I planned on continuing until it was time to stop," he was quoted as saying by Variety.

During cross-examination, Depp confirmed that he won't reprise his "Pirates" role again even if Disney offered him "$300 million and a million alpacas" to do so. He said he believes Disney cut ties with him "to be safe" amid the "constant worldwide talk about me being this wife-beater."

"I didn't quite understand how, after that long relationship, and quite a successful relationship, certainly for Disney, that suddenly I was guilty until proven innocent," Depp said on the stand.

Depp earned an Oscar nomination for playing Jack Sparrow in the original 2003 film "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl." The hit sequels came out in 2006, 2007, 2011 and 2017.

It was previously reported that Margot Robbie was being eyed for a "Pirates" reboot. Bruckheimer, the franchise's producer, recently told The Sunday Times they are "developing two 'Pirates' scripts — one with her, one without."