Johnny Depp Almost Lost His $10,000,000 Payday Because of Jim Carrey, Who Was the Strongest Contender to Depp’s Career Defining Role

Johnny Depp Almost Lost His $10,000,000 Payday Because of Jim Carrey, Who Was the Strongest Contender to Depp's Career Defining Role
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Johnny Depp was known for his unconventional and powerful film choices. He achieved his most tremendous success as Captain — Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.

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But do you know he nearly lost the role to Jim Carrey? Although it’s difficult to imagine someone else for the role of Jack Sparrow other than Johnny Depp but the fact can’t be denied that Carrey was about to play the most iconic role of all time.

Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp

Carrey is undoubtedly a brilliant comedic performer, and his movies will remain timeless because of his unique talents and sensibilities in every role. Even though Carrey is known for a brilliant repertoire of iconic portrayals, nobody could ever replace Johnny Depp’s epic portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

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Also read: “We don’t have f***ing pirates and people swinging from webs”: Seth Rogen Couldn’t Believe His $219M Movie Stood Against Johnny Depp and Tobey Maguire

Jim Carrey Could Have Played Johnny Depp’s Most Iconic Role

Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey

Even though the Pirates of the Caribbean movie didn’t do well as a stand-alone or part of the series and received negative views from critics, it still made money. The franchise was popular at the box office, earning over $650 million each. Almost all of them were in the top fifty highest-grossing films at some point, except for Dead Men Tell No Tales.

Jack Sparrow is Depp’s most iconic character, and his iconic portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise brought him immense wealth and fame. However, before Johnny Depp, many notable actors were considered for the role of Jack Sparrow. Some were leading men like Cary Elwes and Matthew McConaughey. Disney also thought of older actors like Christopher Walken or Michael Keaton. Jim Carrey came close to actually signing on the film, but ultimately, Depp got the part.

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After being offered, Jim Carrey auditioned for the Pirates of the Caribbean character. But, he declined the role because of his conflicting schedule with the 2003 movie Bruce Almighty.

Also read: “Could you ever be satisfied with one woman like that?”: Amber Heard’s Ex Johnny Depp Taken Aback by Howard Stern’s Question about Cheating in Marriage

Is Johnny Depp Not Returning to Pirates of the Caribbean?

Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean
Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean

Reports claim that Disney is not bringing Johnny Depp back as the lovable pirate Captain Jack Sparrow in a rumored sixth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. It is because his association with Disney ended after his ex-wife accused him of abuse during their marriage.

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Now, Depp doesn’t have any other role to play in any of his franchises. Since 2016, he’s been playing the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts series. Those Harry Potter prequel series haven’t proven nearly as successful as Warner Bros. hoped. However, they have moved ahead with the third installment, which was released in 2022, and unfortunately, Depp was replaced by Mads Mikkelsen for the third installment of the franchise. 

Also read: “Fights in bars, skirmishes with cops”: Johnny Depp’s Ex-Fiance Feared Him, Said He Was Ill Tempered and Crazy Jealous

Source: CBR

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Written by Shreya Jha

Articles Published: 947

Shreya is an Entertainment News Writer at Fandomwire. She has over a year of experience in journalistic writing with a deep knowledge of entertainment world. After completing her bachelor's program in Journalism and Mass Communication, Shreya is now pursuing her master's degree in the same. Apart from being an avid reader, she's a huge Swiftie and K-culture buff. So yeah, when she's not writing, she will be caught listening to Tay or watching "Business Proposal" for the 100th time.