In terms of rumors that come from unconfirmed sources, this latest one about Johnny Depp seems pretty accurate. The Herald Sun of Australia has it from “a source” that Depp will play the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s take on Alice in Wonderland, which he’s making for Disney. Well, I guess he still has the hat left over from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, so at least costumes won’t be an issue.

The source also explains that “[Burton has] held out on doing Alice until he got a big enough budget. Now this film is financed by Disney so money won't be a problem." Seems logical that, now that Burton can play with all the money he needs, he’d bring his buddy and collaborator onboard to join the fun.

Really, it’s hard to imagine anyone better suited to play Burton’s vision of the Mad Hatter than Johnny Depp, and you can count on him to actually make an effort to distance the character from Willy Wonka. Aren’t you ready to see Depp palling around with a giant rabbit, or the Queen of Hearts? (Who, as Awards Daily points out, will inevitably be played by Helena Bonham Carter) We’ll have to wait until there’s official confirmation to get really excited, but I imagine Johnny Depp is flipping through some Lewis Carroll books right about now and deciding what he’s going to do with one of Carroll’s most iconic characters.