When the announcement came, it was with all of the noise and drama of Captain Jack Sparrow, and none of the quiet reserve and discretion of Johnny Depp.  On Friday night, Depp sailed onto the stage at the Anaheim Convention Center in a pirate ship in full Jack Sparrow attire.  Staying in character, he stumbled drunkenly around the stage before hugging Walt Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook, who then announced to attendees of the D23 Expo—a Disney version of Comic-Con—that Jack Sparrow would be back in “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” in 2011.  When Cook suggested that it might be time for some rum, it was the over-the-top Captain Jack who said: “Sounds good!”

The enigmatic star has always chosen roles that were interesting to him in some way, rather than choosing a film that was written to be a blockbuster.  From his role “Benny & Joon” in 1993 to the more recent remakes of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Alice in Wonderland”, Depp has never shied away from playing odd characters.  In fact, he seems rather drawn to them.   “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”, “Chocolat” and “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” were all films not destined to be huge at the box office, but they gave Depp the opportunity to play roles that he found fascinating, and being able to work with the likes of Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Juliette Binoche, Dame Judi Dench, and Benicio del Toro, to name a few.  Having made 49 movies and with 15 other projects lined up, he has worked with some of the greatest actors of his time. 

Always, it seems, he returns to play the character who is the exact opposite of the real Johnny Depp.  For the fourth time, he returns to play a drunken, attention-seeking, skirt-chasing, morally-questionable pirate.

In his real life, Depp has been with girlfriend Vanessa Paradis for 11 years, and they live a quiet life together in France.  This spring, rumors swirled that Depp bought a stunning diamond engagement ring for his love, but that she didn’t like it.  They were, according to reports, going to be married in April.  When April passed without wedding rings, reports said that it was to be a June wedding at Sandra Bullock’s house on Tybee Island, near Savannah, Georgia.  That, too, proved wrong.  Although the couple remains solid, and Depp has said that he would marry Vanessa “in a second” if she wanted to, the couple has, so far, not made it legal. 

Depp and Paradis are happy living away from Hollywood with their two children: nine year-old Lily Rose and five year-old Jack.  Having a wedding ceremony would be a mere formality, and one that they will, undoubtedly, keep to themselves.  Johnny Depp, unlike Captain Jack Sparrow, prefers things quiet and personal. 

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