I suppose the fountain of youth would tie in with the end of "At World's End"… also the title styles are similar so they would flow together well.

Hmm..Interesting….will johnny dEpp be back for this one is the biggest question…….

@Prem: Yes, he's already signed on and was at the D3 Disney Presentation today dressed as Sparrow.

I happen to know that much of the Pirate films were inspired by the Powers novel, and that to avoid lawsuit, they are openly adapting this novel now for the fourth film. Powers deserves much credit as a phenominal author (and no, I am not a relative), and I highly recommend his fiction.

@JC: Though I'm glad Powers is getting his due, I'm still disappointed there's not a new take on the Fountain of Youth story. But I'll wait for the movie rather than read the book; I almost always hate the adaptations of novels.

So Jack is back! But without Elizabeth or William. I hope Geoffrey Rush, the Pearl, and the original crew make their returns, if not just a cameo to pay tribute to earlier films.

Spoiler Alert…If you have not seen "At World's End".

Quick question: Does William become the eternal captain of the Dutchman? Or does he get released after 10 years because Elizabeth proves faithful to him? She's seen in the bonus scene at the end of "At World's End" where she is seen waiting for William with her [9 y/o] son. I know the writers of the screenplay say he's released, but is that consistent with the mythology?

@Prem:
Not only is Johnny Depp coming back, he's getting paid over $50 million to do so (I forget the exact figure, but it was somewhere around $53.6mil, and I'm guessing he'll get a percentage of the gross, too).

Personally, I'd rather not see a sequel. I just can't see how it'll be any good. The only way it could be passable is if there was LESS action than the last, and if the story tried to be more reserved and a bit closer to the fun rollicking romp that the first one was. Venturing into the realm of sci-fi will likely screw the whole thing up.

I have decided I won't see this in theaters unless it gets a Fresh rating on rottentomatoes, or somewhere very close. I'm definitely not seeing it opening weekend. But I'm ten times more likely to see POTC4 in theaters than Transformers 3. I don't think I'll see Transformers 3 at all unless its reviews are over the moon.

@JM: You wrote: "Venturing into the realm of sci-fi will likely screw the whole thing up". As if "At World's End" didn't already screw up the story? Like when they messed up the great cliffhanger from the second movie when Rush is seen to return.

I think people will flock to see this at the theaters because its another "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie. It'll be like a "Spider-Man 4" after the debacle of "Spider-Man 3". I doubt reviews for TF3 will be any good, but I'm going to see it because it'll finish off the trilogy. I love action movies. When you're watching them, you have to already be in the mindset like when watching wrestling: you know its fake and retarded, but it's great action and fun.

Just a play on words?
"on stranger tides"

Sound's like Jack Sparrow on a whole new type of different trilogy. With new character's. I'll be honest and say the original trilogy is done. Make your own guesses to what happened. No way in hell, can you squeeze out in 3 hours miniplotholes to the last movie and make them seem semi-interesting in a followup 4th movie allthewhile making sure your making money. The end result newcomer's and fan's will hate it.
There is alot of life and money left in this franchise if they go into new trilogy territory.

Hopefully this is a throwback to Curse of the Black Pearl which In my opinion is the best of the series. The sequels were doomed by the writer's ambition of trying to "up the ante" and the result was an epic mess.

If that book is indeed the source material for "On Stranger Tides", it sure sounds similar to the original.

"…Puppeteer John Chandagnac, bound for Jamaica to recover stolen money from his uncle, becomes Jack Shandy after pirates attack his ship and force him to join their crew. Shandy's struggle to accept his new life grounds the story for readers, even as Blackbeard and vodun magicians whisk everyone away to dreamlike lands where the Fountain of Youth itself awaits…"

John Chandagnac's character sure sounds like the Will Turner character.