Was Johnny Depp Offered ‘$301M Disney Deal’ for ‘Pirates’ Return?

US actor Johnny Depp arrives into the courtroom after a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia, on May 23, 2022. – Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” (Photo by Steve Helber / POOL / AFP) (Photo by STEVE HELBER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

We looked into the origins of a rumor alleging that Depp was being offered a deal worth $301 million for a new “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie and a Disney Plus series.

On June 7, 2022, the Australian pop culture blog poptopic.com.au published a new story with the headline, “Johnny Depp USD $301 million Disney deal revealed?!” The rumor, which was shared on Reddit, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter, held that Depp, fresh off of his mostly victorious libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, had been offered an enormous amount of money by The Walt Disney Studios to once again star as his “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie character, Jack Sparrow. However, we have yet to find any evidence that a deal for any amount of money is in the works between Depp and Disney.

The article began, “Disney has allegedly offered Johnny Depp a USD $301 million contract deal for him to return as Jack Sparrow in another ‘Pirates’ film and a Disney Plus series!” The blog only cited “a trusted source close to Disney.” However, the story’s website address showed that it was filed as a rumor: “/rumour/johnny-depp-usd301-million-disney-deal-revealed/.”

In April 2022, Depp was asked in court about returning to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise for future projects. Heard lawyer J. Benjamin Rottenborn asked, “And the fact is, Mr. Depp, if Disney came to you with $300 million dollars and a million alpacas, nothing on this earth would get you to go back and work with Disney on a ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ film, correct?” Depp answered, “That is true, Mr. Rottenborn.”

The attorney’s reference to alpacas appeared to refer to something that had been happening outside of the Fairfax County Courthouse in Virginia, where the Depp-Heard trial was taking place. In April, a woman named Andrea Diaz showed up to support Depp’s side in the case by bringing along two of her alpacas. Diaz manages My Pet Alpaca, a company that offers opportunities to spend time with alpacas, goats, and other animals. She was interviewed by Law & Crime:

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