'Pirates' earns $1B at box office

LOS ANGELES, July 5 (UPI) -- The fourth installment of Hollywood's "Pirates of the Caribbean" film franchise has earned more than $1 billion at the international box office, Disney said.

The Hollywood Reporter said "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" achieved the milestone this past weekend.

The movie is only the eighth to ever reach the $1 billion mark. Its predecessor "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" also has the distinction after earning $1.1 billion worldwide.

"This is such a beloved franchise, and Johnny Depp is such a huge worldwide star," producer Jerry Bruckheimer told The Hollywood Reporter, also giving credit to writers Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio, "Stranger" director Rob Marshall and Gore Verbinski, who directed the first three movies in the series.

"The combination of all these talents was really something," Bruckheimer said.