Depp back on high seas for 'Pirates of the Caribbean' latest (AFP)

CANNES, France (AFP) – Johnny Depp swung back into his iconic Captain Jack Sparrow role Saturday at the Cannes premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," the fourth episode in the lucrative franchise.

Three years after "At World's End", Sparrow embarks on a quest to find the Fountain of Youth while also trying to square his feelings for a mysterious woman from his past, Penelope Cruz's Angelica, essentially his female double.

Speaking to journalists after the screening, Depp thanked the cartoons he watched with his children for helping develop Sparrow's character and echoed producer Jerry Bruckheimer in saying that the franchise had no end in sight.

"I have such great respect for the parameters of cartoons and the characters, they can get away with a lot more than we can in live action films," Depp said.

"So I thought, 'Wouldn't it be great to find that blend until you actually become Bugs Bunny in human form?', and so I have my kids to thank for that."

"With Captain Jack I feel like there's much more to be had, much more fun to be had," Depp said. "As long as the stories, the scripts are great and you have directors like Rob Marshall we'll be in good shape."

Depp described Sparrow as "a weird combination of an 18th-century rock and roll star, i.e. Keith Richards, and a very romantic skunk."

Spanish Oscar winner Cruz, who worked with Depp on "Blow", said her English had progressed greatly since the 2001 cocaine smuggler biopic and that the toughest thing playing opposite Sparrow had been "keeping a straight face."

Despite the film not being in competition at Cannes, the entire jury headed by Robert De Niro attended the evening's gala performance, as did US star Jane Fonda, wearing a diamond and sapphire necklace.

Crowds thronged the street outside the Palais des Festivals despite drizzling rain, many brandishing "We love you Johnny" signs. One woman carried a sign saying she had hitchhiked from Britain in the hope of getting a ticket.

The film is shot in 3-D, the perfect format for the obligatory cutlass swinging and sword stabbing from which pirates make a living, and sees rival English, Spanish and pirate ships racing to track down the magical elixir.

Sparrow's gold-toothed walking haberdashery is true to form, the corners of his mouth and eyes twitching as he plots a series of escapes from certain death and tries to learn Angelica's neat trick of "lying by telling the truth."

The story takes us from the muddy cobbled streets of 18th-century London -- where Angelica is trying to raise a crew for a ship and Sparrow is facing execution -- across the seas to lush Caribbean islands.

The film rollicks along, action scenes alternating with tete-a-tetes and plenty of laughs, including relatively subtle jokes aimed at adults, such as Sparrow's deadpan "I agree with the missionary's position."

Depp swings into an aristocratic Judi Dench's coach to nibble her ear and make off with her jewellery -- "Is that it?" cries the grande dame of British acting as the dashing buccaneer makes off.

And Rolling Stone Richards, whose idiosyncratic demeanour and speech is the inspiration for Depp's portrayal of Sparrow, makes a cameo appearance as the pirate's father.

"Does this face look like it's been touched by the water of life?" the wizened rock star growls at his son in a dimly lit tavern.

Young French actress Astrid Berges-Frisbey plays a mermaid who can't quite bring herself to drag sailors to the bottom of the sea, and Ian McShane plays the fearsome Blackbeard, whose facial hair took two and a half hours to apply.

McShane said it was "nice to play an evil character... that I could actually see with my grandchildren," while a visibly nervous Berges-Frisbey talked about the challenge of playing a being "between human and creature".

"I still can't really believe what happened," she said, her voice breaking up.

The series has already brought in 2.6 billion dollars (1.8 billion euros), a figure producer Bruckheimer describes as "wonderful", and the film leaves the door for another instalment open wide enough for further billions to be made.

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Pirates of Caribbean sail to Cannes with star crew (Reuters)

CANNES, France (Reuters) – The latest installment of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie franchise laid anchor at the Cannes film festival on Saturday, bringing with it a crew of big stars including Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz.

"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" is the fourth film in a series which has made a fortune for Disney with a combined global box office tally so far of $2.7 billion.

Reviews of the new chapter, which hits theatres in the United States on May 20, have been mixed, though, and some analysts predict it may struggle to match the impressive tallies of previous outings even in the 3D format.

Depp said in Cannes that there would be more ahead if the films remained popular: "If the people get tired of it or something, that's when it stops, I think," he told a news conference. "If people want it, I'm there."

In On Stranger Tides, the actor returns to his role as the indomitable Captain Jack Sparrow after a gap of four years, Australian Geoffrey Rush is back as Barbossa and Rolling Stone Keith Richards puts in another cameo as Sparrow's father.

There are new faces, with Britain's Ian McShane portraying the fearsome Blackbeard and Spaniard Cruz his daughter Angelica.

Once the hero escapes the clutches of the English king, he embarks on a race to reach the Fountain of Youth.

The English and Spanish navies take on Blackbeard's magical ship, run by giant zombie pirates and spewing flames that burn mutineers to a cinder.

They take on vicious mermaids, who lure their victims before bearing fangs and dragging them to the bottom of the sea.

CAREER BUILT ON FLOPS

Cruz, 37, who was pregnant while shooting the movie, said staying young was not a personal aim, despite pressure within the movie industry to hold back the years.

"I think birthdays are always something to celebrate," she said. "I'm looking forward to every step of the way. Maybe because I'm from Spain that's looked at in a different way there than for example in a place like Los Angeles."

For Depp, the Pirates franchise has turned him into one of Hollywood's highest earners, but he has not forgotten his roots in commercially unsuccessful features.

"It just so happens that for 20 years or so I made these films that were considered for the most part failures, flops," said the 47-year-old. "I built a career on flops so I was quite comfortable in that arena."

Reviewers of On Stranger Tides were divided.

Trade publication Variety's Andrew Barker said it served "as a welcome corrective, reviving the fun, feather-light frivolity that any film based on a Disneyland ride ought to exhibit."

But Steve Rose of Britain's Guardian did not agree.

"It's a succession of ever-escalating action sequences and grand settings. At first they're stunning, then they're routine, then they're wearying," he said.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White)

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Depp steers 'Pirates' into critical seas of Cannes (AP)

CANNES, France – Johnny Depp chuckled when asked if he was worried about the notoriously harsh critics at the Cannes Film Festival, where his new swashbuckler "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" played amid far more sober fare.

Depp said his family — French actress and romantic partner Vanessa Paradis and their two children — are the only critics he needs.

"My family have seen more of my movies than I have. In fact, a lot more, including this one," Depp said at a news conference Saturday before the "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequel screened. "They've been angels through this process, because I started out secretly testing characters on them to see how the reactions would be. When my daughter was little, we'd be playing Barbies, and I'd start doing these voices. Finally, she just said, `Stop.'

"So they go and see the movies, and basically, I can tell by their reaction if I did all right or not. So I'm very lucky in that way. They seem to enjoy them so far. I haven't been fired by my kids."

And the Cannes critics? Depp, 47, who spent the first two decades of his career in quirky little movies that rarely found much critical support, was not exactly quaking in his pirate boots.

"Yeah, I've always feared the critics," Depp said, laughing. "They really scare me."

The fourth movie in the "Pirates" franchise inspired by the Disney theme-park ride, "On Stranger Tides" casts Depp's boozy, woozy buccaneer Jack Sparrow alongside a female pirate (Penelope Cruz) and her notorious dad, Blackbeard (Ian McShane), in search of the fountain of youth.

Geoffrey Rush reprises his role as Sparrow's foil, Barbossa, with Jerry Bruckheimer back as producer on the blockbuster franchise and "Chicago" filmmaker Rob Marshall taking the wheel as director. The movie sails into theaters worldwide starting Wednesday.

It was a reunion for Depp and Cruz, who previously costarred in 2001's crime story "Blow."

While the characters of "On Stranger Tides" are obsessed with finding eternal youth, the 37-year-old Cruz said she does not fret about growing old.

"Birthdays are always something to celebrate. I'm looking forward to every step of the way," Cruz said. "Maybe because I'm from Spain, that's looked at in a different way there than, for example, a place like Los Angeles ... there are a lot of things that I keep from my roots. And that's one of them, the way we look at that. I never want to be afraid of that. Change is good."

At Disney, the studio that bankrolls the "Pirates" franchise, change was not always seen as good. As the first movie was in production — "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" — Disney executives had hoped for a more conventional swashbuckling hero than Depp's Sparrow, whom the actor patterned on a cross between rocker Keith Richards and the cartoon skunk Pepe LePew (Richards reprises his role as Sparrow's father in "On Stranger Tides").

Sparrow mumbles, minces, prattles and prances. He wears heavy eyeliner and a mess of baubles in his braided hair and beard. His clothes resemble a gypsy's castoffs as much as the attire of a dashing pirate.

"There wasn't a group of Disney upper echelon who had any enthusiasm whatsoever for what I was doing," Depp said. "They almost subtitled me."

But with $2.7 billion in worldwide box office for the first three "Pirates" movies, no one at the studio gripes about Sparrow's idiosyncrasies now.

Bruckheimer has a script for a fifth "Pirates" movie in the works, and Depp said he's on board to keep playing Sparrow as long as the right ingredients go in.

"If you are surrounded by such an amazing and creative force such as Jerry, such as Rob, such strong actors like these guys, I think the possibilities are endless," Depp said. "But really, ultimately and truly, these films are made for the people who go in and they pay their hard-earned money to see these things. And if the people get tired of it or something, that's when it stops."

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Depp ready to keep sailing as 'Pirates' Captain Jack (AFP)

CANNES, France (AFP) – Johnny Depp said Saturday there was still plenty of life in Captain Jack Sparrow and the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise for future sequels after its fourth instalment premiered at Cannes.

Depp said as long as the screenplays keep coming and his kids keep laughing at his rock-and-roll swashbuckler, he has no plans to lay down his sword.

"With Captain Jack I feel like there's much more to be had, much more fun to be had," the 47-year-old US actor said.

"As long as the stories, the scripts are great and you have directors like Rob Marshall we'll be in good shape," referring to the man at the helm of "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides".

"If you're surrounded by such a creative force, I think the possibilities are endless," he said. "As long as the people want to see it, I'm there."

Depp said Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards, who has a cameo role as Sparrow's father in the film, and the amorous French skunk of Loony Tunes cartoons Pepe Le Pew continued to provide the inspiration for Jack.

"I started out secretly testing characters on (my kids) to see how their reactions would be," he said.

"With my daughter we'd be playing Barbies and I'd try out these voices on her and she just say 'stop'," he joked. "They came to see the movie and I can tell by their reaction if I did alright. I haven't been fired by my kids."

He said that although the four "Pirates" movies had been a global box office juggernaut with $2.6 billion (1.8 billion euros) in ticket sales, studio executives had found Depp's jaunty take on the part strange at the start.

"In terms of what I was bringing to the table character-wise, let's say there wasn't a group of Disney upper echelon people who had any enthusiasm for it -- they almost subtitled me," he said.

Asked whether he was nervous about critical reaction, Depp gave a rakish smile.

"I've always feared the critics," he deadpanned. "They really scare me."

He said the cast, which includes for the first time Spanish Oscar winner Penelope Cruz, had worked hard not to lose the spark of the early films.

"We went out of our way to deliver something fresh. We sculpted it for the people with them in mind," he said. "So if they don't like it its their own fault," he joked.

Depp also revealed that he shared a trailer with rocker Richards during filming, an experience he described as "amazing".

"I may write a book about that myself one day," he said.

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Returning to the Source for the "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (Fashion Wire Daily)

Los Angeles – Disneyland is the home of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" adventure ride, so it makes perfect sense that the stars of the movies created from that ride met there to celebrate the fourth installment in the series. Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush and newcomers Penelope Cruz and Ian McShane joined forces to walk the black carpet there, at the premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" on Saturday afternoon, May 7.

Hordes of fans turned out for the chance to see Depp, who is arguably the most popular man on the planet at the moment. It's a situation that makes the handsome 47-year-old actor chuckle.

"It's interesting to experience this kind of ride, after essentially 20 years of enjoying a career based on failures," he told reporters during an earlier press conference for the new film. "Suddenly, something clicks. The weird thing is that I never changed a thing. The process is still the process, as it ever was. The fact that people decided to go and see a movie that I was in was probably the most shocking thing that I've ever been through!"

It was no shock that the "Pirates 4" premiere pass was the hottest ticket in town, as Hollywood's biggest stars headed south to Anaheim to be the first to see the summer blockbuster. Look one way, there was Javier Bardem, Cruz's proud husband, along with "Desperate Housewives" Eva Longoria and Teri Hatcher, rock legend Keith Richards and "Dancing with the Stars" duo Kirstie Alley and Maksim Chmerkovskiy. Look another, and spot Jodie Foster, Andy Garcia, Vanessa Hudgens, and Martin Short. One more turn and see Jennifer Grey, Eliza Dushku with Rick Fox as her escort, Adrian Pasdar, Emma Roberts, Ashley Tisdale and Cheryl Burke. There was even Kevin Sorbo dressed up as a pirate, complete with headscarf; he laughed with Steven Tyler and the film's director, Rob Marshall, and producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

Bruckheimer, who has made millions from the first three movies already, was probably happy to hear Depp tell reporters at the press conference that he's ready to play Captain Jack Sparrow for many years to come.

"Interestingly enough, for me, a character like Captain Jack, you feel like you could just continue. The possibilities are endless and limitless. There is always a possibility of madness and absurdity that could commence, so you feel that, with this character, you're never really done," he said. "They'll wheel me in. My dreads will get tangled in the wheels of my chair!"

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