Production of Johnny Depp's 'The Lone Ranger' Halted

Disney has suspended production of The Lone Ranger because of budgetary concerns, the Los Angeles Times reports. The remake of the classic western film, set to star Johnny Depp as the Lone Ranger's sidekick Tonto, could still hit theaters by its scheduled Christmas 2012 release date depending on financial negotiations.

The film, produced by the same team behind Pirates of the Carribean, is on halt while Disney aims to push down the planned $250 million budget as part of the studio's larger effort to lower film costs.

"It's our intention to take a very careful look at what films cost," Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said. "And if we can't get them to a level that we're comfortable with, we think that we're better off actually reducing the size of our slate than making films that are bigger and increasingly more risky."

Another suspicion, according to MTV News, is Disney executives' caution after watching the box office disappointment of recent Western-themed film Cowboys and Aliens. Despite its star-studded cast, Cowboys has taken in less than $100 million worldwide on a production budget of $163 million. Even with a star as big as Depp, movie analyst Jeff Bock told MTV News: "The Western-sci-fi genre mashup has been a terrible failure in Hollywood."