Orlando Bloom rooting for return of original cast in sixth Pirates of the Caribbean film

Orlando Bloom has voiced his support for reuniting the original Pirates of the Caribbean cast in the franchise’s long-awaited sixth installment. During an appearance at Fan Expo Chicago, as reported by Entertainment Weekly, Bloom emphasized the importance of a strong script and expressed hope for the return of co-stars Johnny Depp and Keira Knightley.

“Everything is in the writing, right? Everything is on the page,” Bloom said. “I would personally love to see everybody back. I think the way to win on that one is to get everybody back — if they can, and if everybody wanted to go back.”

Bloom, Knightley, and Depp first appeared in the original 2003 film The Curse of the Black Pearl, which launched the billion-dollar franchise. While Depp’s Jack Sparrow continued on through the later sequels, Bloom and Knightley only briefly returned in a post-credits scene in 2017’s Dead Men Tell No Tales. The five films have collectively grossed $4.5 billion worldwide.

Bloom also acknowledged the franchise’s evolving direction, noting Disney's previous interest in new storylines. “What they’re thinking…is how to do it. Do you bring in a female leading character that replicates Jack in some way? I don’t know,” he said. “The jury is out on how to do it again, but if [the script] was great, [I’d be in].”

In 2020, Variety reported that Disney was developing two new Pirates projects: a reboot led by Margot Robbie and a sixth film continuing the original storyline. Robbie later told Vanity Fair in 2022 that Disney had seemingly moved away from her female-led version, though producer Jerry Bruckheimer later said there’s still potential for both projects.

Bruckheimer recently confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that a screenplay for the sixth film is still in development, and he remains open to bringing Depp back as Sparrow. “If he likes the way the part’s written, I think he would do it,” Bruckheimer said. “We just got to get the right screenplay. We haven’t quite gotten there yet, but we’re close.”