Fact Check: Is Jenna Ortega playing Johnny Depp's daughter in Pirates of the Caribbean 6? Viral trailer debunked

A trailer of Pirates of the Caribbean 6 starring Jenna Ortega has gone viral on social media, stirring rumors that she might be playing the daughter of Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow in the film. The purported sixth installment of the popular swashbuckler movie franchise will be called Pirates of the Caribbean 6: Beyond the Horizon, as per the trailer.

As the video starts rolling out, the morally ambiguous Captain Jack Sparrow is seen delivering a dialogue, after which Ortega seemingly appears and tells him:

"Oh, dad! You're always getting into trouble."

The trailer then goes on to show Orlando Bloom reprising his role as Will Turner and Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann. Ortega appears in between while simultaneously addressing Sparrow as her father.

She supposedly plays a young girl who is curious about the mysteries of the untamed waters and wishes to accompany Sparrow in unfolding them. The 65-second-long trailer ends with the announcement that the movie is coming to the theatres soon.

However, the trailer is fake, as well as the claim that Jenna Ortega will be cast as Jack Sparrow's daughter in the supposed upcoming movie.

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Factors contributing to debunking the Pirates of the Caribbean 6 trailer featuring Jenna Ortega

The purported trailer of Pirates of the Caribbean 6 featuring Jenna Ortega was uploaded on YouTube by KH Studio on January 25. One of the very first factors proving the teaser as fake is the disclaimer written in the video's caption. KH Studio noted that the video is only a concept trailer created for entertainment and artistic purposes.

The account detailed about using AI technologies, sound design, film analytics, and various effects and elements to manifest their vision of the movie into life. KH Studio explained the purpose of making the concept trailer is to engage with the fans of the movie franchise. They added:

"My aim is to showcase my creativity and storytelling skills through this trailer. Thank you for your support, and let's dive into the world of imagination!"

KH Studio has also created concept trailers for several other high-demand sequels such as Beetlejuice 2, Avatar 3, Logan 2, and many more.

Moreover, Jenna Ortega’s face in the trailer is visibly deep-faked over the body of Penelope Cruz’s Angelica. The bits and pieces of Captain Sparrow, Elizabeth, and Will are also taken from the previous parts of the movie. The trailer created hype among fans. However, it is fake as Disney did not release an official trailer for the movie.

Although Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer of the films told Entertainment Tonight at the 2023 Oscars that Disney is developing Pirates of the Caribbean 6. He said at the time:

“We’re all working on it, we’ll see how it comes out. We’re very excited, I think we’re gonna have a great screenplay, and I think we’re getting close.”

Johnny Depp’s return to play Jack Sparrow is still uncertain as Disney fired the actor from the franchise in 2018 after Amber Heard publicly accused him of domestic abuse. Depp later slammed Disney during his 2022 defamation lawsuit for removing him before the case reached a final verdict.

As for Jenna Ortega — the 21-year-old actress also seems to have her hands full at the moment. Towards the end of 2023, it was announced that Ortega would not star in Scream 7 due to her busy schedule filming the second season of Wednesday. And so far, there has been no official announcement of Jenna Ortega joining the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.