The 63-year-old actor last played Captain Jack Sparrow in 2017's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales - the lowest-grossing film in the franchise - but he is set to reprise the role for a sixth time in the upcoming film.
Speaking at D23, producer Jerry Bruckheimer told Deadline: "We're talking with Johnny (Depp), we're working on a screenplay, and hopefully we can get this done."
However, insiders told the outlet Depp's character won't be the main focus of the next film, with a new face, played by Margot Robbie, set to take centre stage in what was described as an "evolution of the franchise".
Bruckheimer had previously addressed speculation the story would focus on the Wuthering Heights star's character and the son of Captain Jack.
Asked if fans are onto something with the theory, he coyly told Entertainment Tonight: "They're close on part of it."
Pressed on whether he means the Robbie side of it, he said: "... you're going up the right road."
He did confirm that the team have had a conversation with the Barbie star, and that they "love Margot Robbie".
Meanwhile, Robbie previously suggested her film had been shelved, but in October, Bruckheimer insisted she was "still involved" in Pirates 6 in some capacity.
He added that franchise veteran Ted Elliott has been involved in the current script.
He told The Wrap: "We had two scripts at one point, and then one kind of dropped out and we kind of went with the other one ... (Elliott) worked on it, and we've brought someone else in to fill in the blanks."
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