The success of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchise certainly has not died down with its newest installment, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The fourth film in the series, which premiered in US theaters on May 20, is now on its way to becoming one of the highest grossing films of all time. On Stranger Tides is expected to break $1 billion dollars at the global box office today, a feat that only seven other films have accomplished thus far.
The film, which cost $250 million to produce, was directed by Rob Marshall and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. About the film’s impending record, Bruckheimer said:
“People want to see something fresh and something new, and with the mermaids in this one the writers really delivered. This undoubtedly proves the staying power of this franchise – and, of course, the popularity of Johnny Depp.”
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides will be Disney’s third film to reach the $1 billion mark in the past 16 months alone; blockbuster hits Alice in Wonderland and Disney/Pixar’s Toy Story 3 are the other two. The third installment of the Pirates series, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, also surpassed this mark in 2006. The other films to have grossed over the $1 billion mark are The Dark Knight (Warner Brothers, 2008); The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (New Line, 2003); Titanic (Paramount, 1997); and Avatar (20th Century Fox, 2009).
