PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 4 Sets Sail ON STRANGER TIDES in Summer 2011

I know it’s a minor thing but adding a release date and a subtitle to a fourth “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie along with a Summer 2011 release date makes it feel like the film is really happening and it’s not just on Walt Disney’s wish list.  Real details like plot, screenwriters, director, casting, etc. are all in the future but Disney doesn’t want this project in development hell.  It wants people to know that the fourth movie is called “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” and that folks should prepare to set sail in Summer 2011.  Hit the jump to find out where the plot may go and if we’ll see the return of the series unforgettable character, Captain Jack Sparrow.

Yes, we’ll be seeing Captain Jack again.  Sorry to make you hit the jump for that and I promise there’s more but Johnny Depp was present at the announcement and that means Sparrow is back and not just as a cameo.  There are those who soured on the “Pirates” sequels and no longer find the performance worthwhile.  I’ve never been one of those people and while I think the Will/Elizabeth trilogy has found a satisfying end, there are still more stories ready to be told and I can’t wait to see them.  But what stories are they planning to tell?

There are two theories.  The first is the story hinted at in the end of “At World’s End”: Jack and Barbosa are racing to get to The Fountain of Youth.  Not a bad story and not inconceivable to get back Geoffrey Rush and the great supporting pirates of the trilogy.

But Cinematical’s Erik Davis came across a different take based off the new subtitle “On Stranger Tides”.  Davis found a book of the same name by Tim Powers and the plot synopsis (via Publishers Weekly) reads as such:

World Fantasy Award-winner Powers (Three Days to Never) demonstrates a precise control of complex narratives in this reprint of his rollicking and enchanting 1987 novel. 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. The chaotic sea battles sing, though at times key events happen so quickly that they get lost in the shuffle as Jack tries to comprehend where he’s going and what’s at stake. This dark fantasy tale will appeal not just to pirate fans but also to anyone who appreciates Powers’s talent for blending the most unlikely elements into a brilliantly cohesive whole.

Read all that and tell me that this couldn’t very well be an adaptation.  And by that synopsis, I want to read that book AND see the movie.  I love all three of the “Pirates” movies and I’m sure those in the comments will doubt my sanity but this announcement and possibilities for the new story have me even more excited for a fourth voyage.