Gore Verbinski has been the only director the “Pirates of the Caribbean” films have ever known, but what if he doesn’t return for a fourth “Pirates” movie with the film’s gazillion dollar leading man Johnny Depp? Perish the thought! Then again, would the millions who flock to the theaters to see Depp do his Jack Sparrow thing really notice if some guy name “Gore Verbinski” isn’t listed as the director? Or would they even notice if Tim Burton’s name is there instead? Um, probably not. There is a reason why the average actor gets paid an obscene amount of money more than the average director or writer — because people go to the movies to see them. Think about all those Steven Seagal or Jean-Claude Van Damme movies you were all excited to see back in the ’80s and ’90s; know who directed any of those movies? Told ya.

So there’s a rumor floating around the net that Disney has Tim Burton lined up as a possible replacement for Verbsinki should the director not return. You can read the original source over at Cinema Blend, but I would take it with as much grain of salt as you can muster. Meanwhile, these other casting rumors, also from CB, seems a little easier to swallow:

Most excitingly, there are talks of Captain Jack having a brother in the next movie, possibly to be played by Sacha Baron Cohen (perfect!) or Russell Brand (even more perfect!) Of course, that’s probably just fantasy casting, but why would either of those comedians turn the role down? As we’ve mentioned before, the new movie might kick off a trilogy, which would revolve around Captain Jack’s search for the Fountain of Youth.

So, Tim Burton to direct Pirates 4? I wouldn’t count on it. In fact, I would probably just ignore it and go on to the Captain Jack having a brother part. That seems more likely. Cohen would be great in the role, but Brand would be annoying and make me want to blow my brains out.

Below: Pirate booty never looked so good.