ohnny Depp became one of the major
Hollywood stars in the 2000s.
It was then that his most famous characters
appeared, who are now adored and quoted by the audience. But it isn’t that simple as it seems at
first glance. After all, from that moment Johnny's life entered a period, which led him to a loss
of success and problems in his personal life.
Who is he: an altruist or a
despot, a romantic or a womanizer?
What role did ruin his career?
Which actor's film was accused of excessive cruelty and lack of ethics?
And what unusual object did Marilyn Manson give him as a sign of his friendship?
Today on the Biographer channel we continue to talk about the actor's career
ups and downs. Let's figure out what role played his addictions and his women in his life.
But first, click on the subscription button and the bell to find out the secret facts from
the biographies of your favorite celebrities. Subscribe, sit back, and we start.
Captain Jack Sparrow
By the early 2000s, Johnny had
appeared in more than 30 films. At the same time, it was not so much
the commercial success of the movie as personal interest in the idea and
plot was important for the actor. That also explained the choice of several
rather non-standard images for roles.
And, basically, it referred
to independent projects, which caused the indignation of major
studios and even the agents of the actor: many people wanted to work with Johnny, but
Johnny did not want to work with everybody.
"I'm sure it would have made their job a whole
lot easier had I done some of the things that were proposed to me over the years”
But soon the situation changed. It was all because of the legendary image of Jack
Sparrow in the project from the Disney studio, which our character was invited to act in.
Although, he still had to compete to get the role: Christopher Walken and Michael
Keaton were among the contenders.
They didn't have high expectations for the
film. That was due to the fact that the idea was borrowed from the theme attraction of the same
name, which was located in Disneyland. It didn't have great potential, you know. In addition,
pirate-themed films had lack of success. "Cutthroat Island", released in
1995, failed at the box office.
It was Johnny who turned the film into a cult
one, transforming the once minor role of Jack into a central one. After reviewing the
character, he made significant revisions that the studio initially did not like. And he
did it until the image of Jack satisfied him.
If before Jack Sparrow looked like an "ordinary
pirate": with a bandana on his head and an earring, then in the end Johnny turned out to be a
kind of rock star. The actor said that it was due to the fact that he identifies pirates with rock
stars of the 20th century. They were united by a sense of adventure and freedom.
Who inspired the actor?
He “borrowed" a considerable part of the
habits and elements of the image from Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards,
as well as from one cartoon character.
Moreover, he came up with the story of each bead
and dreadlocks, which complemented the character: they were a symbol of the pirate's
vivid and important memories.
As a result, everyone's favorite Captain
turned out to be eccentric and cunning.
The screenwriters, according to the actor,
were shocked by the image of Captain.
"They just couldn't stand him,"
…"I think it was Michael Eisner, the head of Disney at the time, who was
quoted as saying, 'He's ruining the movie.'"
His guess wasn’t not so far from the
truth. The Disney bosses asked:
"Upper-echelon Disney-ites were going,
'What's wrong with him? Is he, you know, like some kind of weird simpleton? Is
he drunk? By the way, is he gay?'
Johnny gave a brilliant answer: he said
that all his characters were gay, didn't they know about it? That puzzled them so much.
Dissatisfaction with the image on the part of the Disney management resulted in several discussions
between the parties. The studio tried to influence Johnny and force him to change the image of the
character to the original one. But the actor argued that the pressure would cause his departure
from the film. Moreover, he defiantly made part of the teeth gold after visiting the dentist.
“I told them, 'Look, you don't like what I'm doing, fire me. You hired me to do a job and
play the character and this is what I want to do.' This is the work. I mean, hadn't they
seen any of the work I'd done previously? You might want to take a look at that before
you hire a motherfucker, you know?”
Disney gave up. They couldn't
afford to lose such an actor.
By the way, during the filming,
Johnny wore special contact lenses that protected his eyes from the sun,
and also really controlled the ship.
There were a lot of improvisations. In addition
to ad-libbing the popular “savvy,” Johnny Depp also improvised the line “bring me that horizon,”
which he uttered towards the end of the film.
In 2003 the release of the first part of the
future franchise - "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" was such a success that
there were no arguments about the image any more.
Captain Jack Sparrow cost the studio $ 10 million,
another $ 40 million was spent on advertising. But the costs were fully recouped, according to
the total box office receipts of $ 564 million. The film was 22-nd of the most profitable
movies in the history of the United States.
All the children were playing Jack Sparrow, the
theme music from the film, written by Hans Zimmer, became the most popular ringtone. Write
in the comments, did you use a melody from "Pirates" for the ringtone?
The phrases of the main pirate became famous quotes.
In 2004, the film received five Oscar nominations, including for "Best Actor" and
a Golden Globe Award nomination for “Best Actor”. You probably already guessed that Johnny
Depp was nominated for both of them.
The actor's interpretation of the Disney pirate
received positive critics' reviews. Later, in an interview Johnny admitted that he did not expect
such a great fame that came after the "Pirates".
“I was freaked out by it. I mean, at
the beginning I genuinely didn't give a fuck about acting. But I began to enjoy it.
I enjoyed creating those characters up there, being in the trenches and sparring with
collaborators, actors, directors…”
On the other hand, the great polarity of
the hero among children and youth gave Johnny the opportunity to use it for good.
The star often came to children's clinics to sick kids, delighting and supporting
them in their difficult situation.
Initially the Disney management had self-interest
and, to some extent, excitement, but after the success of the Black Pearl, they immediately
wanted more. The popularity of the film led Disney to a very dubious idea: to release two
parts of the sequel at once. At the same time, there was neither a plot nor a script.
In 2006, the second part of the franchise, "Dead Man's Chest", was released. It had more
than a billion dollars at the box office. And a year later, the third and final
part "At World's End" was released. Anyway, that was originally planned.
In the interview, the director of the first three movies, Gore Verbinski, said that the production
of the second and third parts was very difficult. Films were choosing the release dates,
but they didn't have the first frames shot. Therefore time was very limited
and everything was done hastily.
“We shot the end of Pirates 3 five days into
shooting Pirates 2, because we were leaving that location. …And there's one scene that
had to be shot for the very end of Pirates 3 five days into 2, not knowing what the script
of Pirates 3 was yet” - Johnny told afterwards.
In addition, from the very beginning
they were plagued with failures.
“We got hit by a hurricane, half the set got
wiped out. Our tank didn't work. We had to pull stuff back to LA. It was pure survival
mode by the time we got to the third one”.
Verbinski had only ten weeks on the "Pirates of
the Caribbean: At World's End" post-production. By the way, some studios spent up to a year on
post-production, especially in serious projects.
That also affected the quality. The third part
of the franchise was received with more restraint than the previous two. Viewers complained about
the slow development of the plot. Despite that, all the first three parts of ”Pirates" are funny
and easy to watch, the film has good visual effects that look good even now.
Gore Verbinski understood that the story was exhausted.
And the screenwriters agreed with him, which was confirmed by the ending of the third
part. The director announced that he put an end to that story: "Myths must die," he once said.
But Disney didn't want to lose the cash cow. Moreover, Johnny happily agreed to
shoot even before writing the script. He fell so much in love with the character.
The quality of the script had decreased since the 4th film "Pirates of the Caribbean: On
Stranger Tides”, which was released in 2011. The fourth part under the direction of Rob Marshall
was supposed to be a relaunch of the franchise. But the updated and too complicated story began to
annoy the viewer. Depp's character became boring, especially since Jack Sparrow began
to gradually lose his positive image, turning into an anachronism.
In addition, the era changed, the viewer changed. It was a time when serious
matters and liveliness, realism and inner conflict of the character became popular. Along with such
films, Jack began to seem trivial and comical.
The 5th part of the franchise - "Dead Men Tell No
Tales”, which was released in 2015, showed that the story was completely outdated. Even the guest
Javier Bardem, who played the antagonist, did not help and Johnny Depp's talent also didn't help.
All that coincided with the actor's career crisis , which we will look at a bit later.
But let's go back to the beginning of the 2000s.
In the intervals between
“Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum”, Johnny successfully starred in other films.
In 2003, two more films with the actor's participation were released: "Once
Upon A Time In Mexico" and "Charlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin". Both films
received generally positive critics' reviews: the actor's performance was called graceful and
relaxed, giving an average rating of 4 points.
The following year, one of Depp's most significant
films was "Secret Window", released under David Koepp's direction. It was film based on Stephen
King's novel "Secret Window, Secret Garden", which had already given it a chance to succeed.
Johnny played the role of a lonely writer Mort Rainey, whose adequacy was made a
question with the development of the plot. An unusual role, an actor's talent and a good
story did not make the film a masterpiece.
The movie received "average” from critics, Roger Ebert - the famous American
film critic rated it 3 out of 5, arguing that "could add up to a straight-faced
thriller about things that go boo in the night, but Johnny Depp and director David Koepp ...
have too much style to let that happen."
On Rotten Tomatoes, Secret Window has an
approval rating of 46% based on 162 reviews: "Depp is quirkily entertaining, but the
movie runs out of steam by the end."
At the same time, two more films with Depp's
participation were released. They were a French comedy “And They Lived Happily Ever After ”, where
Johnny played a cameo role and biographical drama "Finding Neverland”, directed by Marc Forster
about the creator of the famous Peter Pan story.
The touching acting of the actor with Kate Winslet
could barely leave anyone indifferent. There was a Scottish accent and attention to detail.
Depp was drawn to the role of Barrie because he could identify with the author's insistence on
staying in touch with his childlike imagination.
Even if the film didn't fit the real
story in everything (for example, the husband of Sylvia, Winslet's character,
died much later than it was shown in the film), we believed and empathized with the heroes.
2005 was marked by the release of two iconic films with the actor's work: "Charlie
and the Chocolate Factory", directed by Tim Burton and the voice acting of the main
character of the cartoon "Corpse Bride".
"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory '' turned out
to be a very specific movie, like all products of Tim Burton's creativity. Fantasy based
on the novel of the same name by Roald Dahl was modernized and filmed with Burton's usual
individuality, as well as psychedelic manner.
The constant friend and hero of his plots,
Johnny Depp, got an equally specific role. He played an eccentric and multifaceted
manufacturer and misanthrope Willy Wonka, who arranged an excursion for children.
Film producer, Felicity Dahl recalled:
“I think there was a queue of actors...wanting
to play Wonka. So when we heard that Johnny Depp was wanting to play him, we were very
excited. The Three Musketeers are Dahl, Depp, and Burton. You can't beat that.”
Burton and Depp created their own image of Wonka, which was radically different from
the original, but at the same time - it was that interpretation that made him so
colorful and, to some extent, tragic.
The director and Johnny tried to convey the
message of the book as accurately as possible, to follow the idea that Roald Dahl
tried to get the message across.
During that period, Johnny, in
addition to acting talent and skills, became famous for two more things. The first
was his alleged anti-American statements against the United States, which he reportedly said in
an interview with the German magazine Stern:
”America is dumb, it’s like a dumb puppy that
has big teeth that can bite and hurt you, aggressive.”... ”I’d like them to see America
as a toy, a broken toy. Investigate it a little, check it out, get this feeling and then get out.”
The actor officially protested those words, saying that the phrases were taken out of
context. He said that he was an American and loved his country. Even if it meant
sometimes to be critical of reality.
In addition, Depp began to appear more and
more often on the covers of glossy magazines, gradually changing the image of a "bad boy”
and a "teenage heartthrob". It was replaced by the mature status of "Hollywood's It-Man”,
"Man of the Hour” and "Sexiest Pirate Ever”
For the first time, the actor appeared
in the lists of Forbes magazine as one of the highest paid actors.
In 2007, another joint Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's creative product was released.
It was a collaboration with an unusual and bright (who has already guessed it?) Helena Bonham
Carter in the musical-drama thriller Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street..
Before that, the Gothic trio had already worked together on "Charlie and the Chocolate
Factory", as well as the cartoon "Corpse Bride", but starting with "Sweeney Todd" they became
such "Ocean's two", only "Burton's".
Of course, Johnny played the role of “the
very" demon barber who was avenging the bride and a broken life. Helena was nuts
Mrs. Lovett, who was in love with Sweeney.
Later, in an interview, Tim would tell:
“All my drawings look the same but I looked back at it later and I realized, it was johnny
and it was her....... it's shocked me”
Johnny is the only member of the cast who was
selected “on the basis of good faith” because he said that he could sing well. All the others
had to participate in the preliminary auditions. The producers said that they did not
hear Depp singing even when the scenery, costumes and music were prepared for the film.
Fortunately, the actor met their expectations.
The film won the Hollywood Foreign
Press Association award as "Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy", and Depp
won the prize as "Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy". In addition, he became
the winner of the Academy Award for the best work of a production designer.
Reviews of the musical were mixed. On the one hand, the film was praised for the
impressive interpretation of the musical, the colorful images in all their diversity,
the tragedy and bleakness of the movie.
On the other hand, the film was accused
of excessive cruelty and lack of ethics.
Do you like the movie? Write in the comments your
impressions of "Sweeney Todd”, and we go on.
The prime of a career
The friendship story of Hunter Thompson and Johnny Depp (if you don't remember, you can
click here) resulted in the actor's participation in a documentary film. There he talked about
his memories of the famous American journalist and provocateur, and also read Thompson's
voiceover text. The film was released in 2008 and was nominated for the Grand Jury prize in the
documentary genre at the Sundance Film Festival, and for the Best Documentary Screenplay at
the Writers' Guild of America awards in 2009.
Johnny's next role was unusual, but tragic.
In the fantasy film "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus'' directed by Terry Gilliam, he
portrayed Tony Shepard, who was previously played by Heath Ledger. The role of Tony was
the last in the life of an Australian actor.
Since Heath died before the filming was completed,
Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law played the main character for him. The format of the story
allowed the producers to save everything that Heath did, as well as to continue working. By the
way, all three refused royalties for work in favor of Heath Ledger's only daughter, Matilda.
“...Being part of this film was never about filling Heaths shoes as much as seeing them
across the finish line. How I wish he had brought the film to its completion himself….But
there was also a sense of dogged insistence. Insistence that Heaths last piece of work should
not be kept in the shadow of the light of day.”
The film received two Oscar nominations, two for
the Saturn Award and two for the British Academy Award. As for the reviews, the problems with
the movie at the box office took their toll. By the time the film was released in 2009, it
received quite restrained reviews. Critics rated the film 6 out of 10, approximately the same level
as was given to the film on main movie websites.
But, at the same time, Johnny worked
on another film - "Public Enemies", directed by Michael Mann.
The main character of the film was John Dillinger, the legendary robber
of the first half of the 1930s in the USA, public enemy number 1 according to the FBI
classification and just a cutie. Therefore, the movie took place at the time of the great
crime wave of the “Great Depression" period.
Despite some separations from the real story,
the main facts of "Public Enemies" were based on real events. So, the film was shot on
the site of some of Dillinger's ”feats". The death scene of the main character was played
on the place of the real death of the prototype.
The efforts were not in vain: the film got 9 Oscar
nominations and 2 wins. The film paid off the amount more than twice with $ 100 million spent.
It received $ 214 million at the box office.
In addition to acting, as well as
the role of father and husband, Johnny didn't forget about the old youthful dream:
music. He did singles for some of his films: "Chocolat", "Once Upon A Time In Mexico".
They would be followed in the future by “The Rum Diary" and "The Lone Ranger".
In 2000, Johnny recorded two songs for an album called "Bliss” by his de
facto wife, Vanessa Paradis. In 2011, he would accompany with guitar for her third
album, together with the duo Serge Gainsbourg.
Around the same time, he played guitar on
Babybird's 2010 single “Unloveable,” to which he also directed the music video, rejoining the band
in 2011 to record “The Jesus Stag Night Club.”
In the same 2010, the audience was able
to enjoy two wonderful works by Johnny.
The first of them was ”Alice
in Wonderland" by Tim Burton. Depp got one of the key and at
the same time eccentric roles. Namely, he got the role of the Mad Hatter. He
coped perfectly with it. Do you agree with me?
The actor recalled his image with irony:
"Early calls and you sit in a chair and people start painting this kind of grease paint
on your face, and suddenly you start to disappear, and then you're attacked by a giant orange ferret.
Then they attach it to your head. Then you're wrapped in magnificent 19th century surrealist
costume, hat goes on, you're ready to go."
The image of the hatter performed by Johnny turned
out to be so colorful and charismatic that it stole focus from the acting of the main character,
performed by the aspiring actress Mia Wasikowska.
By the way, "Alice in Wonderland" was Burton's
first film, which he shot mainly using green screen. It turned out that the new experience
was naturally accompanied by the challenges.
He later recalled:
"Alice was an experiment,".... "We didn't know what the movie was till the very
end. It was exciting and scary. Working on the CG just got more and more and more intense…The
intensity peaked..when we had to stop."
The audience received the film positively,
which clearly affected the box office. It received 1.6 billion dollars, becoming
the highest-grossing Tim Burton's film.
The main comments were positive, despite the fact
that reviewers criticized the inconsistency of the plot regarding the book. The director's
aspirations to use the computer graphics, as well as humor and expressiveness of the movie
were highly appreciated. And he did succeed.
The image of the mad Hatter became one of the
most beloved in Depp's career for many people. Which of his characters do you like the
most? Write in the comments, let's see which Johnny's role is the most popular.
"Alice in Wonderland" received three Oscar nominations, winning two of them: “Best
Art Direction" and "Best Costume Design", as well as the nominations of the British
Academy Film Awards, the Golden Globe, the Annual Grammy Awards and many others.
Johnny was nominated three times for his role, but unfortunately did not win any of them.
In the next film directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck called “The Tourist”, Depp was able
to play in tandem with the erotic dream of many men in the world - Angelina Jolie. Surprisingly,
Johnny and Angelina had never worked together before, although both had an impressive career.
The movie was filmed in a short time - for 11 months, in Paris and Venice. That's because
Captain Jack Sparrow was preparing for the next shooting of the new "Pirates ...".
Angelina said that she agreed to star for two reasons. That was a short filming period
and a cozy colorful place where her family could relax as a vacation.
But despite that, she fondly remembered shooting with Depp:
He’s just such a nice guy. He’s so funny and so fun to hang out with. He’s just that friend you’re
so happy to come to work and do scenes with. Plus, he’s such a brilliant actor. He’s often
thought of so much for his deep character work, but it really comes from an artist
who is willing to try things.
Although there were some incidents. The
actress made Captain Jack Sparrow to first rinse his mouth with breath freshener and offered
mint candy before the scene of the kiss. That was explained by the fact that Johnny smoked a lot,
and she couldn't stand the smell of tobacco.
The result of the joint work turned out to
be controversial. Perhaps the hurry during filming and in post-production played a big
role. Despite the fact that the film earned back the budget more than twice, viewers rated the
picture 3 out of 10 on various movie sites. They complained about the confusing, drawn-out plot
and the lack of ”chemistry" between the actors.
From that moment on Johnny's career was
slowly but surely moving to the brink. More and more films with his participation
became "average" rating after their release. There was a feeling that the actor was
exhausted for some reason and the films were not good enough.
But not all of them.
In 2011, Gore Verbinski, the same director of the
first three parts of "Pirates of the Caribbean", presented the cartoon Rango. There Johnny
voiced the main character - a domestic chameleon who accidentally got into
the desert and had to survive in it.
All the movements and facial expressions of the
main character were originally played by Johnny, because motion-capture technology
was used in the production.
The cartoon received a lot of positive
reviews, both from viewers and critics.
In addition, the cartoon got such a cherished
Oscar in the nomination "Best Animated Feature Film", which spoke for itself, didn't it?
But "The Rum Diary" was controversial. That was not only because of the result of his
story (you probably know as well as we do how the filming affected Johnny's personal life). But
it was also about the final product of cinema.
As you probably remember from our first video,
The Rum Diary appeared largely thanks to the friendship of Johnny Depp and Hunter Thompson.
The second was the author of the autobiographical novel of the same name, which was released
52 years after its creation. The novel was based on the period of Thompson's life when
he was an unknown young correspondent.
Since 2000, several companies had tried to
make the film, but the work was stopped. And only when Depp's company financed the
filming, the production of the picture started. In addition to money, Johnny also offered
himself as the main character of the movie. It was a journalist tired of life, who gave
up his career in New York and moved to live in a small tourist town in Puerto Rico, San
Juan. There he was waiting for adventures, rum and the quest for truth. Thus, the
actor wanted to honor the memory of a friend and colleague who did not live
to see the film adaptation of his work.
“Initially, my idea was to not
play any of the characters. I didn’t want to play anything in the film. It
was Bruce that talked me into playing Kemp”
Later, in an interview, director Bruce
Robinson would say that he wasn't going to return to Hollywood. It was Johnny who
persuaded him to take the project again, backing up his arguments with wine and a rent-free
island for the director to work on the script and inspire the Puerto Rican atmosphere.
Johnny's colleagues on the set were Aaron Eckhart, Richard Jenkins and Amber Heard, whose
acquaintance radically changed the actor's life.
During the filming, a romance started between
Johnny and Amber, which finally destroyed the relationship with his wife, Vanessa Paradis.
He lived with her for 14 years. They were not officially married, as according to the actor:
“never found myself needing that piece of paper.” …“Marriage is really from soul
to soul, heart to heart. You don't need somebody to say, okay you're married."
Two common children, Lily-Rose and Jack, and a family idyll could not save the
marriage. Although Johnny's friends claimed that with the birth of his daughter,
Depp kicked alcohol, drugs and an idle life, completely devoting himself to the family.
But it couldn't be said that Amber was the only reason for their quarrel. A few years before the
“Rum Diary '' there was a discord in the couple.
The romance of the southern evenings, which
accompanied the lovers Johnny and Vanessa after the meeting, in reality turned out to be
the actors' residence on different continents. Despite joint vacations, periodic
visits of both sides to each other, the family spent most of the time apart. Family
tensions rose while Depp's popularity grew.
In one of the interviews , Johnny said about it:
“Relationships are very difficult. Especially in the racket that I’m in because you’re
constantly away or they’re away and so it’s hard. It wasn’t easy on her. It wasn’t easy
on me. It wasn’t easy on the kids.”
Johnny often started going to filming
after the success of the first "Pirates”. At that time Vanessa stayed in Los Angeles with
her two children or left back to her home.
A few years before the breakup, the actor began
to be increasingly noticed drinking and having fun in bars with girls. The source said that in
those days he was often seen spending time on his yacht in the Caribbean in the company of young
ladies and guys. In 2010, during the filming of the"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger
Tides", he was always noticed in local bars.
“He would chat with girls and was very friendly
and flirty,” says a source. After Paradis and the kids arrived later that summer, Depp
was seen spending low-key time with his family at his rental home.
A year before the breakup, the couple stopped appearing together
on the red carpet. Since November 2011, the couple attended events together, but stayed
in different hotels and they were never noticed together somewhere other than the "promenade".
At the premiere of the film “The Rum Diary” Depp appeared without his wife. She went
to the concerts that day, and the next day, Paradis appeared at the event with Karl Lagerfeld
from Chanel without Depp. She officially announced their peaceful separation, after the actor's
solo performance at the Golden Globes.
“The trajectory of that relationship – you play
it out until it goes, one thing leads to another. So for whatever reason that ceases, it doesn’t
stop the fact that you care for that person, and they’re the mother of your kids” - -
Johnny recalled about their relationship.
The actor was able to numb personal worries in the
company of a friend and in working on a new joint project - “Dark Shadows” by Tim Burton, which
was released in 2012. The dark comedy was adapted from the television series of the same name, which
was popular in the late 60s of the 20th century.
Depp and Burton, being fans of the old
series, tried to capture the atmosphere of the show and the soap opera into the
film, while adapting it to new realities.
The role did not give anything new to the actor.
There was the same slightly eccentric image with a touch of Gothic of a vampire - Barnabas
Collins, who was cursed by an evil witch. Helena Bonham Carter also did not change
the image too much in the new film. The character also had the same shocking and gloating.
Although she was really beautiful in that one.
According to Johnny, the role of a vampire
still had a number of difficulties:
“In every film that I’ve been lucky enough
to do with Tim, there’s always some form of torture. The nails were Tim’s idea. They were the
length of the fingers. But, it was okay because I had a troupe of people who would help me go
to the bathroom. They had to have treatment afterwards, but they’re okay now. That is true.”
The film received mixed ratings from the audience. On the website Rotten Tomatoes, positive
reviews were only 37%, and the average rating was 5 out of 10. The main complaints were in the
superficiality and poor development of the film.
The next film with Depp's participation - "The
Lone Ranger", released in 2013, was no less mixed. Gore Verbinski's superhero western went through
production hell and budget problems. Eventually, even Johnny's playing the role of the crazy Indian
Tonto in a duet with Armie Hammer, who played the Lone Ranger, did not save the situation.
Perhaps the fact was that the image of a colorful madman in the role of Johnny got pretty
boring to the viewer. Or the fact that Verbinski periodically added "Pirate" jokes and tricks into
the film: like, for example, Depp, triumphantly standing on top of a vehicle in big trouble.
But "The Lone Ranger" received negative reviews from most of the American film press and
critics. It was also nominated in five categories of the Golden Raspberry anti-award.
Johnny's character did not avoid the nomination.
That fact really surprised the
film crew, and the actor himself, who was proud of his role in the movie….and
also believed that most of the negative reviews were written before the release of the picture.
The audience received the film less categorically, although with reticence: on IMDb, the rating of
the picture was 6.5 points out of 10. Everyone was very surprised by the dead bird on Johnny's head.
Whatever it was, from that moment films with Depp's participation began to be received
with more restraint and coolness. Besides, the movies that followed in the
next few years were not brilliant.
In 2014, he took part in the Disney film
“Into the Woods”, playing the role of a Wolf. In the same year, Jack Paglen's science fiction
film “Transcendence" was released. It was negatively rated by both critics and the public.
It was quite sad to remember the actor's participation in the dilogy of director
Kevin Smith "Tusk” and "Yoga Hosers". Those were low-budget horror films in which
he got the role of an amateur detective, seemingly suffering from a chronic hangover.
In 2015, David Koepp's “Mortdecai” was released, which got Johnny two more nominations
for "Golden Raspberry" in the position of "Worst Actor” and "Worst Screen Combo",
referring to their duet with Gwyneth Paltrow.
After that, Johnny tried to play a "serious"
role: gangster Whitey Bulger in the biographical drama "Black Mass". The complete change from the
eccentric and boring images played right into the actor's hands. A visual image in tandem with
Benedict Cumberbatch turned out to be strong, and it overshadowed the raw script.
The film received several nominations for “Best Actor", and Depp was able to rehabilitate
himself in the eyes of the audience.
In parallel, Johnny did
not leave a musical niche.
In 2012, he played the guitar and
drums in a cover of Marilyn Manson called "You're So Vain." Later in the
same year they released the tracks “The Beautiful People" and "Sweet Dreams" on
the Revolver Golden Gods Awards' stage.
In general, Manson and Depp were old
friends with quite an interesting story. The performer supported Johnny back in
the 90s, attending his film premieres. After the release of the movie “Blow”, Merilyn
liked the wig of the main Depp's character so much that he exchanged it for his prosthetic
chest, which he wore for performances.
“I did trade my breasts from
Mechanical Animals for Johnny’s wig from Blow,” - Manson said in an interview.
In addition, the musician is the godfather of the actor's daughter. Once Manson admitted that Depp
gave him a whole house after the rocker expressed admiration for the actor's home.
Friends even have the same tattoos. In an interview, the musician admitted that both
have the phrase “Charles Baudelaire, the flowers of evil, this giant skeleton thing” on their
backs and the phrase “no reason” on their wrists.
In 2017, Depp took part in the filming
of the clips "Say10" and "Kill4Me.”
But the actor wanted not only to be a part of
someone's creativity, but also to create his own.
In 2015, he, together with Alice Cooper and Joe
Perry, created a band called "Hollywood Vampires", in which he was a guitarist. Already in September
of the same year, they released their first album, which included two songs written by Johnny.
In addition to participating in the music shows of a shocking friend, the actor
took part in the performances of the Roxy Theater group in Los Angeles and
at the Rock in Rio festival in Brazil.
The actor's relationship with Amber
Heard was developing rapidly.
A whirlwind romance turned into a marriage
in 2015. But already in 2016, the actress filed for divorce, arguing her decision with
"insoluble contradictions." After a while, Amber began to accuse her ex-husband of violence,
accompanied by beatings. As evidence, she provided photos where bruises are visible on her.
A scandal flared up. Johnny categorically denied her claims, saying that she was not a
victim, but a criminal. The court finalized their divorce in January 2017 and Heard received
compensation in the amount of $ 7 million. She promised to give the money received from
Depp to charity, commenting on her position that she had never been interested in money.
Heated discussions of the actors' personal lives did not abate for years.
In 2018, the British newspaper "The sun" called the actor a "wife beater”, after which Depp
sued them for libel. The trial ended in 2020 and the verdict was not in favor of Johnny. But the
actor did not give up. He filed a lawsuit against Heard after the release of her article for the
Washington Post in 2018, where she talks about domestic violence. The claim was accompanied
by a demand for compensation of $ 50 million.
Depp 's lawyers confidently said:
“Mr. Depp never abused Ms. Heard. Her allegations against him were false
when they were made in 2016. They were part of an elaborate hoax to generate positive
publicity for Ms. Heard and advance her career,”
In addition, in November 2021, the court
approved the requirement of Depp's expert team to gain access to Heard's phone records in
order to prove the fabrication of her evidence.
The ex-wife, Vanessa Paradis,
did not believe the accusations and, moreover, stood up for Johnny Depp.
"In all the years I have known Johnny, he has never been physically abusive with me and this
looks nothing like the man I lived with for 14 wonderful years,”-she commented on the situation.
But despite the denials, the trial put a damper on the unstable actor's
position in the movie industry. The final straw was the actor's trial with
the former company that handled his finances.
The image of the "bad guy" played against
the actor. Articles about Depp's crisis began to appear in the publications. They
talked about excessive alcohol consumption, fights with Heard during their life
together and constant lateness to the set.
The “Alice Through the Looking Glass”, where
Depp played a role already familiar to everyone, did not add optimism. It was released in 2016,
but despite all the efforts of the studio, it earned much less than expected. The last,
fifth “Pirates of the Caribbean" also failed.
There was a clear tendency in which Johnny
was gradually stopped to be invited to the main roles or in major projects.
But Johnny still holds his ground.
In the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”
released in 2016, he only briefly appeared in the role of the evil wizard Grindelwald, Professor
Dumbledore's opponent. That role fully showed itself in the second part of the Saga, which
delighted us in 2018. Despite the fears of fans about the image, the actor still managed to fit
into the universe and well-realized his character. It turned out to be so bright that it
was difficult to give it up so easily.
No matter how hard the press
tried to tarnish the actor, colleagues on the set of “Fantastic Beasts” spoke
only positively about him during the interview.
But amid the scandal with Amber Heard, Warner
Bros. decided to fire Johnny from the franchise. The same situation also affected the “Pirates".
Disney abandoned the idea of returning the performer of the role of Jack Sparrow to the
franchise. That fact greatly upset many fans around the world. Admirers were threatening
to boycott the new part of the franchise, clearly hinting that Margot Robbie
did not fit into the plot in any way.
In parallel, Johnny did not
give up trying to come back.
In 2018 , the comedy drama “The
Professor” by Wayne Roberts was released, where Depp got the main role.
But even that film did not get success, rating 2 out of 10 among the world critics'
reviews. Although there were also those who appreciated the actor's performance and
the subtle British humor of the movie.
The American biographical film "City of Lies"
starring Depp also wasn't successful.
According to the plot, the main character of
the film played by Depp - LAPD detective Russell Poole - had not been able to solve the
murder of the rapper for twenty years. As a result, he enlisted the support of
a journalist, played by Forest Whitaker, and together they tried to figure out
the ”infantilism" of the local police.
Either the tragedy of the murder of Tupac
Shakur back in 1996 was no longer so catchy to the audience, or it was affected the change of
the film's release date due to court proceedings. Johnny was accused of beating one
of the team members of the movie. But personally, we found out about the details of
the film when we prepared the material for you.
A certain shift in his career was Depp's
participation in the film “Minamata” directed by Andrew Levitas. The actor got the main
dramatic role of the American photographer Smith, who was collecting evidence of the effects of
mercury poisoning of residents of Minimata, one of the cities of Japan.
That time, intuition had not let Johnny down. He left the image of Jack
Sparrow that everyone was bored with, returned to the world of big complex cinema,
touched upon, among other things, the acute social issue of ecology that was currently relevant.
That's why the premiere of the film in 2020 was successful: critics expressed mostly positive
impressions. The audience also approved of the actor's performance, and the general consensus
read: "Sincere, but confusing, "Minamata" pays an ambiguous tribute to an amazing story from real
life, better reflected by documentary processing"
For many, this film is the long-awaited return of
Johnny, such as we love him: bright, textured and versatile, able to transform into both a dirty
Indian and a balding gangster, and someone who knows how to do it in such a way that you believe
every word, every look until the last frame.
A significant break in filming was finally
finished. This year the tabloids announced Johnny's participation in a
historical drama, in the role of the scandalous King of France Louis XV.
We hope that this will be a new start for Johnny Depp on the way to a brilliant
career and no less brilliant life.
And while we're waiting for new movies with
Johnny’s participation, you can click on this icon and watch a detailed analysis of the Pirates
of the Caribbean franchise. What was the secret of the success of the first parts, and why the last
films turned out to be so unsuccessful. Click and watch, it's worth your attention.
And that's all for today, it was Biographer with you, thanks for
watching! See you in the new videos, bye!
