Johnny Depp’s life became a horror fiction fantasy, thanks to his ex-wife

Johnny Depp was a Hollywood royalty before it all came crumbling down in 2018. His ex-wife, Amber Heard, wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post titled: “Amber Heard: I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.” The op-ed was the start of the end of Johnny Depp as we knew him, at least for a while.

Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)
The 60-year-old actor was slandered by the media, but he was not someone to sit back in silence while the media dragged him to hell and back. After he won the lawsuit against Heard, things started to change for the better. Depp later revealed why Hollywood made an enemy out of him

Johnny Depp’s Life Turned Into a Horror Fiction

Soon after the op-ed came out, Johnny Depp was booted off multiple projects – including Disney’s Pirates franchise and WB’s Fantastic Beasts. He filed defamation lawsuits against The Sun (which he lost) before going after his ex-wife, which culminated in 2022, and he won against her. Soon after the win, Depp was back to work, albeit not directly in Hollywood.

In the summer of 2023, the actor’s first film since the incident – a French movie – titled Jeanne du Barry – premiered in Cannes. Speaking to Deadline, the actor opened up about his experience with the trial and how it felt to be an outcast to an industry he had been part of for so long.
“In regards to me and my life, the majority of what you’ve read is fantastically horrifically written fiction.”
Johnny Depp in a still from his advertisement for Sauvage by Dior
He further added,

“Did I feel a boycott by Hollywood? Well, you’d have to not have a pulse to feel at that point, ‘None of this is happening, it’s just a weird joke or I have been asleep for 35 years.’ Of course, when you’re asked to resign from a film you’re doing, because of something that is merely a bunch of kind of vowels and consonants floating in the air, you feel a boycott.”

But it didn’t stop there for the actor. He found his place in the movie business once more. His performance in the French movie was lauded, giving him a glimpse of what it used to be.

Johnny Depp Doesn’t Feel Boycotted Anymore

The Edward Scissorhands actor said that people are using a catchphrase to promote the movie, saying he is making a comeback. In a way, it is a comeback for the actor, for whom the 2023 movie came after a 3 year-long hiatus. But if you ask him, Depp doesn’t really feel the same.
“They’re using it as a kind of catchphrase. ‘The guy’s making a comeback.’ I’ve had about 17 comebacks by the way, apparently.”

Johnny Depp as Gellert Grindelwald in a still from Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
He also said that he doesn’t feel boycotted by his peers and by Hollywood anymore. But not in the way you are probably thinking. Though he felt isolated during the Amber Heard trial, things have changed.
“Do I feel a boycott now? No, not at all. I don’t feel boycotted by Hollywood because I don’t think about Hollywood. I don’t have much further need for Hollywood myself. I think it’s a very strange, funny time where everybody wants to be themselves, but they can’t, they must fall in line, conform — and if you want to lead this life, I’ll be on the other side.”
To be honest, Depp has always danced to his own music. His projects are a clear indication to that. So, him not wanting to conform to the status quo of Hollywood is not something that comes as a surprise to most of his fans. Recently, Johnny Depp finished filming his directorial venture, Modi, which is yet to have a set release date.