Jerry Bruckheimer has been a staple of summer blockbuster season for pretty much my entire life. That whole time he’s been affiliated with Disney, through Touchstone Pictures. It looks like things may be coming to an end on that front though. Gone are the halcyon days of ConAir and Armageddon.

They’ve been replaced by much more disastrous fare along the lines of The Lone Ranger and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. To be honest aside from the grotesquely successful Pirates Of The Caribbean franchise, Bruckheimer hasn’t really done much good for Disney lately. There’s no guarantee that Bruckheimer is out the door though. The real story here is that his contract runs out in 2014. The question, however, is will Disney bring him back,

There are arguments to be made about loyalty and the success of Pirates, but with the coop full of golden geese that Disney has access to right now is it really a good idea? Pixar, Marvel, and now Lucasfilm are all cash cows for the Disney conglomerate, and they mostly fill in the summer blockbuster slots that were once Bruckheimer’s stomping grounds. I can’t say I’m sad to see him go. I think Disney is moving in a very interesting direction. They’ve been acquiring successful studios and allowing them to do their own thing for the most part, and the results have been mostly excellent.

The end of the Disney chapter does not necessarily spell the end for Bruckheimer however. He has a new Bad Boys project as well as  Beware The Night a new thriller starring Eric Bana (MY DUDE) in the works at Sony. He is also working on a Top Gun sequel at Paramount (AAHHH!!!!) and definitely still holds a fair amount of clout in the industry. This feels like one of those breakups that everyone sees coming and benefits both parties. Letting Bruckheimer focus on fewer things and not be restricted by studio might allow him to recapture some of his old nineties magic. On the other hand, sending Bruckheimer off to stud might give Disney the chance to focus on its major properties and expand them according to whatever nefarious plans have been developed in Club 33. If this is the end of the Jerry Bruckheimer era, let us wish him a fond farewell. Remember him not as the man who dressed Johnny Depp up as Tonto. No, instead recall him as the man responsible for Steve Buscemi driving through three states wearing a little girl’s head as a hat. Are you going to miss Jerry Bruckheimer, or is this good riddance to bad rubbish? What’s you favorite one of his movies? If it’s not ConAir, let’s fight about it.

SourceVariety