Last night, The Walt Disney Company announced that it will not renew its first-look deal with Jerry Bruckheimer. The prolific producer has been making films with the studio for over two decades, but after the flop of The Lone Ranger and a delay for Pirates of the Caribbean 5, it began to look like the writing was on the wall.

Earlier this summer, Disney, Johnny Depp and Bruckheimer looked like a happy family. They were all smiles in June, when Bruckheimer was presented a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. While he did deserve that star, it was turned into a publicity event for The Lone Ranger, with Depp and Disney head Bob Iger both in attendance. But things soured quickly. Over the five-day July 4 holiday box office, the film made just $48.9 million. Considering it cost over $250 million to make, it became the biggest flop of the summer.

In the immediate aftermath, many had to begin questioning Bruckheimer’s future with Disney. There was a report last month that he might lose final cut rights on Pirates 5. And then that project got pushed back indefinitely. It might not be out until 2015.

Earlier this week, Variety reported that Bruckheimer was meeting with Disney studio chief Alan Horn to discuss his future at the studio. His films may have made over $3.4 billion at the domestic box office for Disney, but the studio is entering a new era. In reality, they do not need an exclusive deal with him any more, as it has projects from Marvel and Pixar, plus the reinvigorated Star Wars series starting in 2015 after it bought Lucasfilm.

So, it was finally confirmed last night that Disney will not have first-look rights for Bruckheimer projects. Horn praised his work in a statement, noting “We will continue to work together in the future, and we look forward to seeing more of the films that have made Jerry Bruckheimer a Hollywood legend.”

Bruckheimer also spoke with THR, insisting that The Lone Ranger was not the main reason for the break-up. “We have a full body of work with them. It's not about Lone Ranger,” he said. “It's more about the types of movies Disney is making, and the types of movies we want to make, in addition to Pirates.”

Indeed, Bruckheimer is still hoping to make Pirates 5 and a third National Treasure film at Disney.

Horn told THR that it doesn’t have any interest in reviving the Touchstone label, which many of Bruckheimer's biggest hits were released under. Those films include Armageddon, Enemy of the State and Con Air.

Bruckheimer remains one of the biggest names in Hollywood today and, no matter what you think of his films, he has to be considered one of the most creative producers the business has ever seen. From TV hits like CSI to his blockbusters, he has solidified his stature. Expect to see more big things from him because if Disney’s not interested, you can bet the other studios will be.

image: Wikimedia Commons