Set Photos: Ian McShane As Blackbeard In 'Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'; Rihanna In 'Battleship'

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The first set spy photo has emerged to show Ian McShane in character as Blackbeard in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, and to complement that shot there's a first-look shot from another ocean-going adventure. Our second groups of set pics show Rhianna in costume for Peter Berg's Battleship. Larger images and more info after the jump.

First up: Ian McShane in On Stranger Tides. Why is he first? Because he's bloody Ian McShane. I'm praying that his Blackbeard will be something like Deadwood's Swearingen with a bigger beard and broader swagger. After the bloated, hastily written mess of the last Pirates film I didn't think there was much that could get me back on board, but casting McShane is a great move. If this fourth Pirates film takes even slight advantage of the verbal dexterity the actor displayed on Deadwood, the interactions between he and Johnny Depp could be delightful.

Popsugar has this shot, as well as a couple more of Johnny Depp looking (shock!) just like Jack Sparrow. Penelope Cruz is in a couple shots as well.

And then there's Rhianna in gear for Battleship. How this casting happened we still can't say, but it's all part of the weird ensemble that Peter Berg has assembled for the 'military versus aliens' storyline that powers the 2012 tentpole release. Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgard, Tom Arnold, Hamish Linklater and Brooklyn Decker are all in the cast, too, and that's a grab bag of talented actors and seeming stunt casting.

I keep hearing good things about the script and the approach to the film, but it is quite difficult to figure how it's going to come together. I just hope for more than Berg managed to assemble for Hancock, which was a great idea and two very fun acts that suffered from problems before and after primary production.

The shots come via ScreenCrave,