THE fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie will be subtitled On Stranger Tides and will be released in cinemas in the summer of 2011.

The announcement was made by Johnny Depp and Walt Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook on Friday (September 11) at the D23 Expo, Disney’s alternative to Comic-Con.

The actor, who will once again reprise his role as Captain Jack Sparrow, appeared in person and received a standing ovation as he helped to unveil Disney’s slate of forthcoming movies. He sailed onstage in a pirate ship dressed as Capt. Jack.

Future Disney releases

Depp also features in another of Disney’s newly unveiled movies, as Tonto in a big-screen adaptation of The Lone Ranger.

Another keenly-anticipated new release is Trollhunters, which marks the first collaboration between Disney and Mexican director Guillermo del Toro.

Based on an original story by del Toro, who will also produce, the film will be the first to be released by Disney Double Dare You, a new label with a mandate to produce spooky animated feature films.

Tim Burton also appeared in person at the event to show footage from his 3-D version of Alice in Wonderland, which again stars Depp as the Mad Hatter and Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen.

He said that the opportunity to tell the story in 3-D seemed “trippy and great”, before revealing that he is also working on a feature-length version of animated short film, Frankenweenie.

Robert Zemeckis, meanwhile, unveiled a behind-the-scenes look at his upcoming 3-D version of A Christmas Carol, featuring Jim Carrey as Scrooge and seven further parts, before confirming that he will write and direct a 3-D adaptation of the Beatles’ 1968 film Yellow Submarine.

And Nicolas Cage unveiled the trailer for The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, an action film based on Fantasia that’s part of Disney’s Summer 2010 line-up along with Prince of Persia.

Confessing that he feels Fantasia is “the most beautiful film ever made”, he also agreed to appear in another National Treasure film when put on the spot.

And Muppets fans were given some good news, too, when a cast of 24 Muppets performed Rainbow Connection aboard an old-fashioned steamboat as Cook announced that a new Muppet movie would be coming “very soon”.

The first all-things-Disney convention will run until Sunday.

Next story: Jeff Bridges in talks for Coens’ True Grit

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