Up until 2010, Paul McCartney’s legacy was irrefutable. He was a Beatle, he had some great solo work, and Wings were pretty good, too. And then he made Kisses on the Bottom, and then he made a pretty bad song with Kanye and Rihanna. And now he’s gone and signed on to appear in a new Pirates of the Caribbean film.
More specifically, McCartney has signed on to appear in the fifth PotC film, and that’s a number that is disheartening all on its own. This one’s subtitle is “Dead Man Tell No Tales,” so maybe that’s why McCartney, aged 73, decided to sign on to a film when he has no need for money. Was Macca motivated by Keith Richards, who starred in the previous two Pirates films? Is this Beatle trying to catch up with that Rolling Stone? And, given the potential energy of a stone vs that of a bug, does the Beatle have any chance at all?
Further, McCartney’s appearance is reportedly the central motivation for additional shooting ordered after the film had already wrapped, which is not usually the best sign of a film’s quality. Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, and Geoffrey Rush will return to the series, and Javier Bardem will also star as a villain. We’ll see it all when it’s released May 26, 2017.