Mike Newell will direct Johnny Depp's THE LONE RANGER?!?

by Matt Holmes

Mike Newell, currently helming Disney's big 2011 tentpole Prince of Persia with Jake Gyllenhaal has impressed the big mouse so much with his work so far that he is said to be in talks to direct The Lone Ranger, a franchise Disney see as being as big and as profitable to them as Pirates of the Caribbean. harry-potter-and-the-goblet-of-fire-20051025084449581-000 Not least because it comes from the writers who made the Disney ride into a billion dollar franchise but also because they have secured Jack Sparrow himself... Johnny Depp to play the sidekick Toto, and they have set their eyes on George Clooney to play the Lone Ranger. Another billionaire team, do we dare predict? Newell's credits include the big tentpole picture Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and he would seem to be a safe and solid choice. He has also already worked with Depp on Donnie Brasco, so there is already a working relationship there. POTC director Gore Verbinski who I always thought would end up with this gig probably burnt his bridges when he turned down the chance to direct Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Interesting to see if The Lone Ranger of POTC 4 gets out of the blocks first for Depp.

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Matt Holmes is the co-founder of What Culture, formerly known as Obsessed With Film. He has been blogging about pop culture and entertainment since 2006 and has written over 10,000 articles.