Johnny Depp Refuses To Sign Up For The Lone Ranger Without Gore Verbinski!

Johnny Depp Refuses To Sign Up For The Lone Ranger Without Gore Verbinski!

Things really aren't going too well for this movie! After Disney put The Lone Ranger on hold due to budgetary concerns, the latest news is that star Johnny Depp is refusing to sign on without Verbinski directing...

News
By JoshWilding - Sep 01, 2011 09:09 AM EST
Filed Under: Action
Source: Deadline

Deadline have once again got the inside scoop on the troubled The Lone Ranger adaptation from Disney, which was originally scheduled to be released next Winter. However, the movie was put on hold due to concerns about the extremely high budget...an expensive Western was not something the studio felt too confident about after the disappointing box office performance of this Summer's Cowboys & Aliens. With the last lot of reports indicating that they were looking at bringing the budget down, it seems that things are still not going too smoothly, as the following excerpts point out.

We’ve learned that producer Jerry Bruckheimer and attached director Gore Verbinski are jointly presenting a new budget "in the $215M range" to Ross after weeks of trimming it from the previously proposed $275M which caused Disney to balk and halt production. That’s still not the $200M number which the studio really wanted but is lower than the $220M at which Disney indicated to all concerned it might compromise.

Now here’s the other complicating factor: insiders tell us that Johnny Depp, who’s attached to play Tonto, really wants to make The Lone Ranger but won’t do it without Verbinski directing. Depp has shown unusual loyalty to his favorite helmers like Tim Burton and made not just 3 successful Pirates Of The Caribbean pics with Gore but also starred in Verbinski’s Rango which is an Oscar frontrunner for Best Animated Picture this year. That leaves Disney no choice but to keep on Verbinski if the studio wants to retain Depp – which of course it does.

Insiders tell us that Verbinski has made it clear to Disney he "won’t take the budget down to a certain point where it’s not the same movie that he started out to make". And Verbinski could walk if the studio pushes him too far and then Depp is out as well. So that’s why Ross is in the midst of a dilemma right now.


I'm not sure about you guys, but I for one will be extremely disappointed to see this movie put permanently on hold. While it does seem things are moving along pretty slowly, and cautiously, this kind of strife is surely never a good thing, and the fate of The Lone Ranger is for now clearly uncertain. Be sure to share your thoughts on this news in the usual place.



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Herosave
Herosave - 9/1/2011, 9:53 AM
Ugh, that could be enough to make them go ahead and recast the part!

Not that I have anything against Depp, he's good in mostly everything he's in. It's just I'm sure he isn't the only person in the world who could not only do justice to Tonto, but also draw in an audience.
marvel72
marvel72 - 9/1/2011, 10:10 AM
it doesn't need a $215,000,000 budget & depp isn't the right choice for tonto.
Daniellantern
Daniellantern - 9/1/2011, 10:12 AM
Totally agreed with @NoRegrets

Depp + Verbinski. Come on it's not PotC anymore!

I hope this movie is better than duo Green Hornet and Kato.
whatevillurks
whatevillurks - 9/1/2011, 10:13 AM
Hollywood, look at the picture at the top of this page. Its of a NATIVE AMERICAN! Find one to be TONTO!
SigmaCenturion
SigmaCenturion - 9/1/2011, 10:24 AM
good get someone else and a new script devoid of the supernatural.
nuck82
nuck82 - 9/1/2011, 10:24 AM
lol people are stupid
write33
write33 - 9/1/2011, 10:27 AM
@marvel72
agreed
and
agreed

'sigh' i sorta hope this version of the movie dies. and i am a big fan of the Lone Ranger & Tonto
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 9/1/2011, 10:34 AM
@LoudLon, from what I've read, there's an outlandish train crash sequence that's the biggest that's ever been put on film.

They say the movie has 4 elaborate, very expensive action sequences.That's where the money is going.

Think about it.Because it's a western, they have to have authentic 19th century clothing, buildings, props and weaponry.I heard that instead of filming on a stage, they were actually building a town to film in.

As for that train sequence, because it's set in the 19th century, you can't just use any modern train, you have to actually build one that would have existed then.

That's what the %275M is for.
tazmaniak
tazmaniak - 9/1/2011, 10:35 AM
That's what the $275M is for.
Greengo
Greengo - 9/1/2011, 10:35 AM
I hope Tonto kicks some werewolf ass.
ClarkFarley2012
ClarkFarley2012 - 9/1/2011, 10:38 AM
@Loud, I'm thinking the same thing. WTF do you need all that money to make a Western?! I smell fish.
EastcoastAvenger
EastcoastAvenger - 9/1/2011, 10:46 AM
The legend of the Lone Ranger had him only using silver bullets. Silver bullets are supposedly one of the things that will bring down a werewolf. Enter in the native american mythology of werewolves and you you have yourself the basis for a 200+ million dollar Disney movie akin to the Pirates franchise.
JWStubner
JWStubner - 9/1/2011, 10:58 AM
One has to assume that the budget comes from set designs and cgi related creatures and settings. They probably plan on this film doing for cowboys and indians what Pirates of the Caribbean did for pirates. It won't work unless they get a better star as The Lone Ranger. The guy who played the twins in The Social Network isn't going to cut it Disney..he may be a really good actor but he's hardly on par with Depp when it comes to star power especially when it comes to being the lead of the film.
SigmaCenturion
SigmaCenturion - 9/1/2011, 10:58 AM
@eastcoastavenger Not werewolves. Skinwalkers. No correlation to werewolves other than that they can turn into an animal form. No silver weakness so either they are getting the myths wrong and are plain stupid or they didnt do their research.
AlexDeLarge87
AlexDeLarge87 - 9/1/2011, 10:58 AM
Make the budge smaller.

Cast Timothy Olyphant as Lone Ranger and Adam Beach as Tonto.

Get a good director and writer and you got a movie.
reverendjonnynemo
reverendjonnynemo - 9/1/2011, 11:03 AM
Pfff - who needs Depp?
AlcoholicA
AlcoholicA - 9/1/2011, 11:06 AM
Rango sucked. It was cool cause it got trippy, but other than that it sucked. Except for the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas easter egg. That was pricless!
RolandD
RolandD - 9/1/2011, 11:22 AM
Fan of Depp and his work. However, he should not play Tonto. They should get a true Native American actor to play Tonto.
Dmon
Dmon - 9/1/2011, 12:21 PM
Drop Depp get Adam Beach!
ThaMessenger07
ThaMessenger07 - 9/1/2011, 12:22 PM
Not really "Lone" if he has a Sidekick......anyways Lone Ranger is awesome. They need to drop the budget, Big time!

Dmon
Dmon - 9/1/2011, 12:27 PM
@ThaMessenger07 he was the "Lone" ranger to survive a massacre that is how he got his name. And Tonto is not a ranger.
Greengo
Greengo - 9/1/2011, 12:44 PM
Well I guess we'll have to wait and see.

I like Johnny Depp. I like the Lone Ranger.

I like wereolves, and the Lone Ranger has silver bullets. It makes sense to me.

Rango was ok, but yeah the Fear and Loathing easter egg was the high point for me.
But it was a kids movie after all :)
tracydavis001
tracydavis001 - 9/1/2011, 1:11 PM
So what !! Get another actor for Tonto , a little younger than Depp!!
Akercocke
Akercocke - 9/1/2011, 2:26 PM
@Dmon If they're gonna spend that much money on a western, you need someone like Depp who guarantees big numbers at the box office. I mean Adam Beach? Who's Adam Beach?
ThaMessenger07
ThaMessenger07 - 9/1/2011, 2:31 PM
I was kidding Dmon. My father was a big Lone Ranger fan.
Dmon
Dmon - 9/1/2011, 2:39 PM
@Akercocke He played in Flags of Our Fathers and Windtalkers. And he won a Golden Globe for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. He is a real Native American unlike Depp. Also there is no reason to spend that much on a Western. Look how much was spent on Open Range granted this should get a bigger budget then that. But I do not want to see this move turn out like Wild Wild West did.
DoomXfactor
DoomXfactor - 9/1/2011, 2:45 PM
F this movie. They should just move on and make a Zorro movie
SigmaCenturion
SigmaCenturion - 9/1/2011, 3:45 PM
@dmon Agreed. They haven't learned from Wild Wild West and Jonah Hex. Don't mix stuff that doesn't belong together or intended to go with the original source material.
CitizenOfAsgard
CitizenOfAsgard - 9/1/2011, 4:08 PM
That's O.K. by me. This movie would have stunk to high heaven, anyway. Johnny Depp as Tonto? Someone is absolutely out of their mind!
SugarYumYum
SugarYumYum - 9/1/2011, 4:08 PM
Tbh, Johnny, it's probably the best thing for this movie if neither you or Verbinski are on the project... and I say this as a big Johnny fangirl. :-/
ROMACK
ROMACK - 9/1/2011, 5:10 PM
GOOD! Let him go!! It was stupid to cast him in the role of Tonto to begin with. Depp is overexposed. Put a Native American in the role of Tonto!
Number1Wolverine
Number1Wolverine - 9/1/2011, 5:59 PM
YES can this movie, i really want to see this movie but can wait a couple of years to see it done right.
Kalabog
Kalabog - 9/1/2011, 6:14 PM
@ EastcoastAvenger
Now that you've explained the analogy the supernatural concept is starting to grow on me....BUT this supernatural concept should be placed on the THIRD installment. I prefer an old fashion gritty western for the first two installment..
Bartman87
Bartman87 - 9/1/2011, 8:44 PM
Drop Depp, Drop the supernatural element, give us a western, which can be profitable while not as profitable as Disney wants, a series of movies based on the actual comics series out now would be great.

As for the money for the sets and all that stuff, that has to be crap because 3:10 to Yuma, True Grit and even Jonah Hex had authentic looking sets and trains for way under 200 million dollars.
FireKnightRises
FireKnightRises - 9/1/2011, 9:02 PM
$215 mill budget huh? I can see where those money going
this film only have $100 million budget because they give the other $115 millon for deep and verbinsky

this movie will focus on tonto on his quest to hunting werewolves with lone ranger as sidekick
comicb00kguy
comicb00kguy - 9/2/2011, 6:42 AM
Nothing would make me happier than to see this project permanently ended. Burn the script and salt the earth where the ashes land.

This thing has as much resemblance to a Lone Ranger story as a turd covered with pink frosting with a candle in it resembles a birthday cake.

That said, I would love to see a LEGITIMATE Lone Ranger movie made, which could be done for far less than $200 million, and could lead to TV shows and a series of sequels if done right. The project described in this article couldn't be any further from that legitimate movie.
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