Pirate Fever? Fox Adds Another Pirate Series to the Mix with Ridley and Tony Scott

"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" has been declared a disappointment at the box office with a meager $90 million take, but that hasn't stopped anyone else from trying to make the pirate craze still a thing.

Yesterday, Deadline reported that FX and Fox International were teaming up with producer Gale Anne Hurd ("The Walking Dead") for a drama series called "Port Royal," which tells the story of the port's rise as "the richest and wickedest city in the new world." The history of the actual place is pretty interesting, presenting plenty of opportunities for colorful characters and with the right execution this could be the new "Deadwood."

So color me surprised to learn, courtesy once again of Deadline, that Fox is also developed a show called "Pyrates" with Ridley and Tony Scott's Scott Free Productions.

Granted, this is seen as a limited run in the range of 10-13 episodes, and would tell the story of the capture of the Spanish fleet in 1628, credited for kicking off the "golden age of piracy." Obviously, none of them have anything on Napster, but good job for trying, real pirates. That series is being handled by Barry Schindel, who did some writing and producing on "Law & Order" and "Numb3rs," and the pilot will be directed by "24" vet Stephen Hopkins.

As much as television has become a cultural leader in some regards as film falls behind, they are way behind on catching up with this. While there will always be some measure of appetite for "gritty" takes on stock concepts, it's hard to imagine that the yearning for all things pirate is what it was six or seven years ago.

And with even the over-determined "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise getting a big "no thanks" from audiences, can any company hope to successfully market the pirate? After all, Disney reportedly spent half a billion dollars just to market their latest  film; if even that can't buy customers, what hope has Fox?