'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales' is an upcoming action-adventure comedy film intended as the fifth installment in Disney's swashbuckler franchise. The absence of Keira Knightley's Elizabeth Swann in the latest sequel sparks rumors of her character's death. Newcomer Kaya Scodelario plans to put a new twist as replacement for lead female protagonist.

According to an article by Moviepilot, the latest in film in the series promises to usher in numerous changes for the franchise. These include the appearance of a fresh new villain in the form of Javier Bardem's Captain Salazar as well as the introduction of Henry, the grown-up son of Knightley's Elizabeth and Orlando Bloom's Will Turner. Despite Bloom's surprising return to the franchise, Knightley remains unattached to the project.

Her absence from the film prompted fan speculations of her apparent death, which may be acknowledged in 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales'. One of the rumors alleged that Elizabeth's demise may be what would lead Henry to find his father Will who has been cursed as the new Davy Jones. Brenton Thwaites has been cast as Henry and will be accompanied by fellow newcomer Kaya Scodelario who will play the newest female protagonist Carina Smith.

Scodelario admitted that she will not be a replacement for Elizabeth in the sense that her Carina will be a totally different character. According to ComingSoon.net, the 'Skins' actress insisted that although she had been compared to Knightley because of casting circumstances, she would want to put a "new spin" to her new leading lady.

She added, "[Carina] is an astronomer, and she is an academic. She's fighting for the right to study at university, because women couldn't at that time...So she's on her own journey - looking for the trident of Poseidon - and she has a diary with clues, and she encounters Jack Sparrow along the way, and he messes everything up. As he does. And it's fun!"

Knightley, on the other hand, admitted in previous interviews that she wouldn't return to the pirate franchise since she was more interested in doing other projects. She is currently attached to star in a new Broadway show called 'Therese Raquin', a production based on the novel by French writer Emile Zola. According to BBC News, the two-time Oscar-nominee is playing the title role in her Broadway debut.

'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales' is an upcoming action-adventure comedy film directed by Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg. It is scheduled to be released on July 7, 2017 and is intended as a sequel to 2011's 'On Stranger Tides'.