The future of the Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise is very much a mystery. While we know a new movie is on the way, we know very little about it. And while most interest seems to be focused on the question of whether or not Johnny Depp will return for the next film, there were (of course) a few other actors that made a big impact in previous installments that could return. Although it sounds like Kiera Knightley isn’t really thinking about that.
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has made no secret of the fact that he wants to bring Johnny Depp back as Captain Jack Sparrow in some capacity, and Orlando Bloom has intimated that he’d be interested in playing Will Turner once again. But even if both of those things happen, it doesn’t sound like it’s very likely the original trio will be getting back together. Kiera Knightley tells ET that she thinks Elizabeth Swann had a perfect ending, so there is no need to bring her back. Knightley said…
I mean, she sailed away so nicely. She sailed away in brilliant style.
Keira Knightley returned for a single scene in the last franchise film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales so that Elizabeth Swann and Will Turner could be reunited following the end of Will’s curse. She never even had any lines, but it did bring some closure to that particular story. With that story complete, Knightley doesn’t see much reason to go back it seems.
Knightley has spoken recently about the way the Pirates franchise made her the “object of everyone’s lust” and how she wasn’t particularly prepared for that so early in her career and at such a young age. She certainly doesn’t have the warmest feeling about the franchise as a whole, so it’s not exactly surprising that she’s not in a hurry to go back.
Considering that even the return of Johnny Depp at this point is, at best, a long shot, would seem to indicate that whatever script is currently being worked on probably deals with almost entirely new characters to the franchise. It would be the best way to explain why Sparrow is nowhere to be found. If the story is going to make sense without Jack Sparrow, it will certainly work without Elizabeth Swann.
And Keira Knightley is right. Elizabeth Swann had a satisfying conclusion to her story. She had the most interesting journey of any of the three main characters in the original trilogy, and while, as a fan, I would love to see the character again, I’m ok with knowing that Elizabeth is happy, and going on a new pirate adventure with a new crew.
