“I’ve been scrutinized since I was 23. Now I kick 60 in the ass. That’s a long time!’
Johnny Depp, one of the world’s most famous faces, relaxes – decked out in tattoos and silver rings – on the roof of a French Riviera hotel. He is conversational, friendly and refreshingly honest.
“I was very lucky and I can’t complain about anything. None of that. I won’t do it,” he said.
But fame does funny things to a man. “The thing hits you and you can’t go anywhere without people looking at you. And it’s a very interesting way to grow up. But after 38 years of something like this…’
He pauses for a second, gathering his thoughts. “The first thing that’s really crazy is expecting anyone who’s been in that kind of situation to be anywhere near normal.
“And to make matters worse, I wasn’t normal before that.” So I had to adapt my world to the way I have to live. How do I live? I live behind windows. I live behind car windows, train windows, plane windows, hotel room windows… fucking windows!
With the release of Depp’s new film, Jeanne Du Barry, the word “comeback” is on everyone’s lips.
Certainly, this is a perilous time in his career, following the horrific fallout from his marriage to ex-wife Amber Heard.
In 2020, he lost a libel case against The Sun newspaper, which had called him a “wife beater”.
Excluded from the Fantastic Beasts film franchise, he has since been persona non grata in Hollywood.
In recent years he has found work in European cinema – in films like Waiting for the Barbarians, Minamata and now Jeanne Du Barry.
When French director Maïwenn asked him to play King Louis done this before. There is a possibility of total failure. I could fall flat on my face. I like this! This is what I should do.
Speaking about his role in French, learned from his time with singer-actress Vanessa Paradis – the mother of his children, Lily-Rose and Jack – Depp dug in.
“I was in the trenches with Maïwenn and the rest of the crew,” he says. “I did my best. I did what I thought was good for the character, for the story and for Maïwenn. So if it works, I’m a lucky bastard, really lucky.
Now aged 60, Depp was surprised to be invited to play such an emblematic figure in French history. “In fact, during our meeting, I asked Maïwenn: ‘Are you sure you don’t want a French actor?’
The film is a nice balance of drama and comedy, particularly when each courtier steps back as they leave the room, as no one is allowed to turn their back on King Louis.
“He was a complicated guy. I thought it was important to start defining the character, showing that he wasn’t, as they say, completely ‘a feather in the ass,’ Depp says. “There was a humanity in him. It’s like… his appendix burst and suddenly everything changed.
The film marks a rare period for Depp, unless you count the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise in which he played Jack Sparrow.
Filming in the spectacular Palace of Versailles, France, was a major plus, he says.
“When you’re walking through Versailles and you hear the commotion in the distance, the murmur – the people, the extras – and then you turn the corner and you’re in a mirrored corridor, and suddenly it’s a trip back in time . It was quite shocking but oddly enough it never felt uncomfortable. It felt like home.
Is it any wonder he feels like a king? For much of his career, Depp experienced being revered.
“Overall, for the majority of the years I was wandering around aimlessly, talking to people, they really wanted the same thing,” he says.
“They don’t want to be fed trash. They are happy when they experience something new or different. That’s why I always felt that as an actor, it’s your responsibility. When you take the plunge every time… you put as much on the line as anyone.
Given that he hasn’t worked in Hollywood in years – “they threw me in the trash” – Depp didn’t hesitate to lash out at studio executives.
“They are disposable and they realize it. Glorified accountants who have the ability to press the green light and make studio films… but they press the green light, they spent tons of money. The budgets are ridiculous on these films…a romantic comedy with two very popular characters. People – real people – are fed up.
Whether they’ll ever see Depp again in a major studio film is another matter.
Jeanne Du Barry is released in theaters today
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