Passage: Disney was unsure whether to release the film in theaters or direct-to-video. The studio was interested in Matthew McConaughey as Sparrow because of his resemblance to Burt Lancaster, who had inspired that script's interpretation of the character. If they chose to release it direct-to-video, Christopher Walken or Cary Elwes would have been their first choices.Stuart Beattie was brought in to rewrite the script in March 2002, because of his knowledge of piracy. When Dick Cook managed to convince producer Jerry Bruckheimer to join the project, he rejected the script because it was "a straight pirate movie." Later in March 2002, he brought Elliott and Rossio, who suggested making a supernatural curse – as described in the opening narration of the ride – the film's plot.In May 2002, Gore Verbinski signed on to direct Pirates of the Caribbean. He was attracted to the idea of using modern technology to resurrect a genre that had disappeared after the Golden Age of Hollywood and recalled his childhood memories of the ride, feeling the film was an opportunity to pay tribute to the "scary and funny" tone of it.Jim Carrey was considered for the part of Jack Sparrow. However, the production schedule for The Curse of the Black Pearl conflicted with Bruce Almighty. Others considered for the role include Michael Keaton and Christopher Walken. Although Cook had been a strong proponent of adapting Disney's rides into films, the box office failure of The Country Bears (2002) made Michael Eisner attempt to shut down production of Pirates of the Caribbean. However, Verbinski told his concept artists to keep working on the picture, and when Eisner came to visit, the executive was astonished by what had been created.

Question: What was Disney unsure about?
whether to release the film in theaters or direct-to-video