In an interview with Reuters Television in London, Johnny Depp promised audiences that they would see “the same old Captain Jack” they fell in love with in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL. “I think he is a character that can always be fresh in a weird way because he is so irreverent and so irresponsible, you know, he is a lot of fun,” Johnny told Reuters. But don’t look for earth-shaking changes in the Captain’s character in AT WORLD’S END. “[Y]ou’ll see certain new sides to the character, but I don’t think he is a character that can evolve per se or suddenly have this great revelation about himself,” Johnny explained. “I think he just sort of is what he is.”

Johnny knows the Captain Jack character has taken root in the public imagination; everyone knows Captain Jack Sparrow. “When you meet people in the street, even just these little kids who could be as young as four and five years old and they’ve had some connection to the character and it’s a connection they’ll carry with them, you know, probably, maybe for the rest of their lives and that’s a very profound experience,” he said. Even after four years atop the Hollywood A-list, Johnny sounds humbled and astonished by the character’s popularity. “All of it took me by surprise,” he told Reuters. “I mean, I’m the guy that for twenty years was used to having people not see any of his films,” Johnny said. “Nobody saw my movies–a couple here and there, but in terms of a mass audience, that never happened for me.”

Asked about the possibility of a fourth film adventure for Captain Jack Sparrow, Johnny gave a noncomittal reply: “I don’t know, you know. I reckon anything is possible.”

You can read the full Reuters interview on the Zone’s News & Views forum, including Johnny’s reaction to filming with the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards. Many thanks to emma for posting the interview and to AnaMaria for the screencap of Johnny. You can watch the video from Reuters here: http://tinyurl.com/ywgdl9 –Part-Time Poet