Walt Disney Pictures, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and star Johnny Depp have narrowed their search for a Pirates of the Caribbean 5 director down to Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman), Fredrik Bond (The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman), and the duo of Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning (Kon-Tiki).

Fredrik Bond is said to be the favorite of Jerry Bruckheimer, although Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning's names are being mentioned more often, with Rupert Sanders garnering plenty of buzz as well. The studio is expected to make a final decision within the next few weeks, so production can get under way in either late 2013 or early 2014.

Jeff Nathanson was hired to work on the script back in January, although it is not known if he is rewriting Terry Rossio's original draft, or if he is starting from scratch.