Javier Bardem is in talks for the role of a villainous sea captain who will face off against Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 5.
The Disney sequel, Dead Men Tell No Tales, will be directed by Kon-Tiki filmmakers Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg.
Christoph Waltz was previously rumoured for the role but the Skyfall star is producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s choice, reports The Wrap.
According to The Hollywood Reporter Bardem’s character is a ghost captain who blames Jack Sparrow for the death of his brother and sets out on the search for a supernatural object that will aid him in his quest for revenge.
Geoffrey Rush is expect to return as Barbossa along with Ian McShane and Stephen Graham. Orlando Bloom and Keith Richards could also make cameo appearances.
Pirates of the Caribbean 5 is due to start shooting in February next year and is scheduled to reach cinemas July 2017.
Bardem’s wife, Penelope Cruz, appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2008 for his chilling turn as the assassin Anton Chigurh in the Coen Brothers film No Country For Old Men.
Bardem will appear next on screen with Sean Penn, Idris Elba and Ray Winstone in The Gunman.