Although Pirates of the Caribbean: In Strange Waters is now in the first phases of pre-production and won’t be out in cinemas for three years, Johnny Depp himself has announced that the film is in trouble, and he could be responsible.

Though he made a surprise appearance at the Disney D23 exhibition dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow in order to promote the project, it now appears that due to the departure of studio chief Dick Cook from Disney, Depp is having second thoughts. Last weekend the actor told the newspaper LA Times that “his passion for the project at the moment has been severely dampened” due to the Cook’s abrupt exit.

Dick Cook was the main reason why Johnny Depp agreed to make a fourth episode, after assuring everyone that after the third he would be saying good-bye to his character forever.

“Cook told me: We’re thinking about doing this Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and I said I was in. This was before there was a script or anything,” recalls Depp. He says that Cook took his side and defended him when the producers of the film failed to appreciate the ironic, laid back attitude he gave his character.

With the provisional agreement about Pirates 4 signed and dependent on the quality of the script, it seems that Johnny Depp’s commitment to the saga could be coming to an end.