Will filming on Pirates of the Caribbean 4 be delayed?

Buried in an article about Tim Burton and his participation on the DreamWorks film MONSTERPOCALYPSE (find out more about that news here) comes word that PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, which was scheduled to begin shooting this month in Hawaii, may be getting pushed back.

As the story goes, Depp just finished filming THE TOURIST with Angelina Jolie and may want to take a break before beginning work on grueling PIRATES shoot. It’s unclear how long a break Depp is looking for but article mentioned that it would be enough to “take Depp of the table for the rest of the year.” The first PIRATES film shot for about four months, which could mean that filming on the fourth film could be pushed back until the beginning of September.

Depp takes a break and filming is pushed back a few months, sowhat whocares? you’re asking. If filming didn’t wrap until the end of the 2010, it’d be really tough for the film to make it’s previously announced May 20, 2011 release date.

I’m sure Disney (and Warner Bros. who wants Depp available for DARK SHADOWS sooner rather than later) would love to pressure Depp into scrapping his vacation plans and starting ASAP (as the article notes, PiIRATES 4 could still move ahead as planned). But Depp now has enough clout to make these kinds of decisions and if he wants some time with his family before PIRATES 4 (and honestly, who could blame him) it could impact quite a few films down the line.