Johnny Depp's latest role looks set to be a veritable treasure trove for the Hollywood heavyweight and Pirates of the Caribbean star.

The 49-year-old actor will reportedly return as Captain Jack Sparrow in a fifth instalment in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, netting about £60 million (NZ$117 million).

The Sun quotes a source as saying Depp is wary of overexposure and is "being very careful he does not sign on for too many films".

"This huge deal for Pirates means he will be able to pick his other roles very carefully on the strength of their script rather than their salary," the source told the British tabloid.

According to Forbes magazine's Celebrity 100 list, Depp - who this year split with long-time girlfriend Vanessa Paradis after 14 years - earned an estimated US$30 million in the 12 months to May.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth film in the franchise, was released last year and collected US$1 billion at the global box office. According to imdb.com, that film had an estimated budget of US$250 million.

It appears Walt Disney Pictures, the studio behind the franchise, no longer has reservations about Depp's character in the films.

In an interview with the legendary rocker Patti Smith for the January 2011 edition of Vanity Fair, Depp said Disney "couldn't stand" Captain Jack Sparrow in the original film and one person there even asked if the character was gay.

"They couldn't stand him. They just couldn't stand him," Depp was quoted as saying.

"I think it was Michael Eisner, the head of Disney at the time, who was quoted as saying, 'He's [Sparrow] ruining the movie'.

"It was that extreme - memos, and paper trails, and madness, and phone calls, and agents, and lawyers, and people screaming, and me getting phone calls direct from, you know, upper-echelon Disney-ites, going, 'What's wrong with him? Is he, you know, like some kind of weird simpleton? Is he drunk? By the way, is he gay?'".

-Sydney Morning Herald