Margot Robbie Replaces Johnny Depp In Pirates Of The Caribbean Concept Design

When you have a franchise that has pulled in $4.5 billion at the box office, you want to squeeze every dollar out of the audience as you can, and Disney has done that with "Pirates of the Caribbean." When the fifth movie in the franchise, "Dead Men Tell No Tales," boasted a whopping $795.9 million at the global box office in 2017, it made sense they would announce a sixth installment in the works. However, the concept has bounced all over with different rumors, including a reboot starring Margot Robbie. Instagram user Diamond Dead gave us a little peek at what we could expect with the "Birds of Prey" actor in the lead.

Diamond Dead has an Instagram page showcasing his exemplary talent for bringing rumors and theories from the movie industry to life. Everything from Josh Hartnett playing Harvey Dent in "The Batman Part II" to a poster for Bruce Willis in "Die Hard 6: Bad Habits Die Hard" (seriously, perfect title) make appearances. Diamond Dead's image of Robbie features her in a traditional pirate get-up, tipping her hat with the Black Pearl navigating waves in the background.

As beautiful the sight is of the Harley Quinn actor ready to plunder the Caribbean seas, the prospect of her donning the captain's hat and leading a crew of mostly female pirates is less and less likely.

You would think that when a billion dollars is in the balance, "Pirates of the Caribbean 6" would be a top priority for the studio. But since the last film was released in 2017, the road to another installment has been tumultuous. When Johnny Depp faced legal troubles, he was systematically removed from his more profitable roles, including Jack Sparrow. The lead actor's situation seemed to spell the end for the franchise until the Margot Robbie rumor mill started flying.

While the prospect of a Robbie-led "Pirates" movie brings up all kinds of questions (namely, would a "Pirates" film work without Depp?), the Australian actress revealed that the film was essentially dead in the water. In an interview with Vanity Fair, she told the publication, "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."

With that project seemingly dead and Depp removed, it seemed that was the end of "Pirates of the Caribbean 6." But then the lead actor made it known he wasn't against returning to the franchise if it is done correctly, once again giving fans hope that Jack Sparrow could come back.

Fans didn't universally accept the Margot Robbie-led reboot; some felt it was lazy and unnecessary. Upon Robbie's announcement in the Vanity Fair article that it was dead, u/HeWhoIsNotMe said, "No one wanted this to begin with." Others pointed out that there are already female characters in the franchise to lean on if the studio wanted a female-led film. u/To_Fight_The_Night points out, "Keira Knightly WAS a lead in this franchise, was she not? Her role was as important as Johnny [Depp] and Orlando [Bloom]." u/Kage_noir asks the question that many were asking, "No disrespect. But who's watching 'Pirates of the Caribbean' without Captain Jack Sparrow?"

The last comment is likely the reason there are so many questions about the possibility of his return. However, in an interview with People, an insider close to Johnny Depp reveals that even though the actor "felt betrayed," he is open to returning if it is done right. "Anything is possible," the insider told People. "If it's the right project, he'll do it." There aren't any statements from Depp himself, except during the events that got him removed when he testified on the stand that he would never return.

Disney finds itself in a tough place regarding "Pirates of the Caribbean 6." Whether they go with a return of Depp or a Robbie reboot, there will be some baggage they have to navigate. Until that is figured out, audiences will just have to enjoy the fan art on Diamond Dead's page.