If I were to ask someone to name two of the biggest movie stars of all time, Johnny Depp and Nicolas Cage’s names would probably come up. So, it doesn’t surprise me that their paths might have crossed over the years. However, I just learned that Cage was directly involved in Depp’s rise to fame, and I’m absolutely shook.

Somehow, Cage and Depp never starred in the same movie together, but they were briefly roommates back in the 1980s when the Pirates of the Caribbean star was fresh to Hollywood. Here’s how Cage tells it:

He’s talking about 1983, when Johnny Depp was 20 years old and decided to move to Los Angeles from Florida to pursue a record deal with his band. Cage must have been around 19 then, but since he was born in the Coppola family, he already had some connections in the movie industry and had just been in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

Cage told this story about him and Depp to Variety while promoting his project on the 2026 TV schedule, Spider-Noir, which is now streaming for those with a Prime Video subscription. In a previous interview with The New York Times Magazine, he said his agent ended up sending Johnny Depp to his first audition, which was for Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Depp got the part that day, and thus his long-running career was born. Cage and Depp have also reportedly remained friends over the years.

When Johnny Depp first started acting, he apparently thought of it as “a good way to pay rent for a minute," per Paper Magazine, but considering the breakneck speed at which he saw success as an actor, it’s no wonder he stuck with it. Previously, Cage said he “can't really take credit” for jumpstarting Depp’s career since it was “just one small step in his whole career”, but you can certainly argue he was instrumental in the Edward Scissorhands actor getting into the industry.

These days, Johnny Depp has been slowly bouncing back to acting after a very public legal battle with his ex Amber Heard. He’ll star as Ebenezer Scrooge in Ti West’s A Christmas Carol movie, which is on the 2026 movie schedule for this holiday season.

Anyways, I didn’t see this story coming, but leave it up to Nicolas Cage to casually drop some remarkable lore like this.

When it comes to long and turbulent legal battles between celebrities, Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are two of the first people who come to mind. However, these days, the conflict between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni has taken over the headlines. Now, experts are weighing in about the parallels between these two cases, and the potential consequences that could crop up if the Gossip Girl actress brings Depp and Heard’s legal battle into her case.

For context, last month, a claim was made by Lively's camp that Baldoni’s team hired a crisis PR strategist who had been connected to Depp’s legal battle. The argument they’re trying to make is that this shows “intent, not guilt by association,” per Fox News. Meanwhile, Baldoni's team called out this comparison, saying it was a distraction.

Overall, the consensus among the experts who spoke to the outlet centers around the notion of how fast narratives can be flipped. Speaking specifically about the “court of public opinion,” branding expert Doug Eldridge explained that Lively’s initial complaint and early moves were quickly “undercut” by Baldoni’s response and subsequent moves. Speaking about the impact of all this, he said:

This is what led Eldridge to the potential impact of comparing Lively and Baldoni’s case to Depp and Heard’s. According to him, making that highly publicized legal battle a reference point could be detrimental to the A Simple Favor actress:

To contextualize this conversation with where the It Ends With Us battle is right now, it comes after Judge Lewis J. Liman threw out the majority of Livley’s claims. Now, the focus of the case is on the retaliation and breach of contract claims.

Now, with the trial set for this month, entertainment attorney Jordan Matthews explained why the actress potentially connecting herself to Amber Heard could be damaging:

He went on to say that Heard’s loss to Depp was “devastating, not only financially, but also in terms of her career and public image.” Matthews also explained that generally, narratives like this don’t just shape what is said online, it can also impact a jury’s perception.

Another entertainment attorney, Trey Lovell, agreed that drawing parallels between Lively and Heard would not be useful. Explaining why there’s “no benefit” in this, the lawyer said:

Meanwhile, crisis and reputation management expert Dave Quast said that a Depp-Heard comparison here would only be useful if it’s used “as context, not as a direct analogy.” He noted that that’s because the older case provides a “familiar frame for understanding how a celebrity dispute can become a viral referendum on a woman’s credibility, likability and motives.”

Now, as we get closer to the trial date, we’ll have to wait and see if Amber Heard and Johnny Depp are brought up in the legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.

We’ve seen Johnny Depp totally transform on numerous occasions. From Edward Scissorhands to Pirates of the Caribbean to Alice in Wonderland to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, he’s been unrecognizable in quite a few of his most iconic roles. Now, he’s done it again for Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, and people have had big reactions to his “unrecognizable” look.

The release of Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol will mark Depp’s big return to blockbusters following the tumultuous legal battle he was in with Amber Heard. The film, which is being directed by Ti West and will be released on the 2026 movie schedule on November 13, will see Depp in the titular role, and based on the reactions to the first footage from CinemaCon, he’s a good fit for it, as @CaseyMLoving posted:

It will be interesting to see how this all plays out. Ti West is best known for his horror films, like X and Pearl. So, I’ll be curious to see how his background impacts this take on the classic Christmas tale.

Meanwhile, Depp has not appeared in a mainstream blockbuster in years. So, watching him back in action is sure to be an event. The fact that he’s fully transformed himself into Scrooge adds another level of intrigue to this career move, too.

Overall, it seems like people are excited about this project and the part Depp is playing in it. As we know from his work, he is no stranger to fully transforming for a part, and it would seem that the first footage for Ebenezer proves that he’s done that once again, as @TinaLocklair posted:

Now, alongside Depp, Ebenezer will also star Ian McKellen, Daisy Ridley, Rupert Grint, Tramell Tillman, and many more. It’s a truly stacked cast set to tell this timeless tale, and according to the Harry Potter actor, Depp’s take on the lead character is “amazing” and “interesting”.

The people who saw the footage seem to be in agreement, too. For example, @SLTAngst, who is “a Muppets Christmas Carol purist” (you can stream that one with a Disney+ subscription), said that Depp’s transformative performance looks flawless:

Well, if anyone can mix horror, humor and drama, it's Depp.

Along with these takes, Brent Lang from Variety noted that the footage really did highlight how Depp has turned himself into this old, grumpy curmudgeon:

Well, I certainly cannot wait to see Depp’s take on this iconic character. During the presentation, the actor said that playing Scooge has been “an extraordinary privilege.” It’s clear he cares about this, and based on how people are reacting to the footage, that’s evident on screen too.

Now, we’ll just have to wait to see this unrecognizable transformation for ourselves when Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol hits theaters on November 13.

When it comes to Hollywood, we usually see actors follow the adage that if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. You’ll hear one actor praise another, but if they don’t care for somebody, they just keep quiet. At least that used to be the way it worked. If you want to know what Brian Cox thinks of somebody in Hollywood, just ask him.

A new profile in the UK’s The Times of the Scottish actor summarizes many of the actor’s previously stated opinions. They range from everybody from Johnny Depp to Quentin Tarantino, but in it he also adds some new hot takes, including one of the biggest actresses in the world: Margot Robbie.

What Brian Cox Thinks About Johnny Depp And Other Hollywood Stars

Cox wrote a memoir in 2021, and in it, he took aim at a number of other actors. The Times includes several of these quotes, including the fact that he called Johnny Depp “so overblown, so overrated.” Cox nearly appeared alongside Depp in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as he was offered the role of the Governor, which was ultimately played by Jonathan Pryce.

Cox’s memoir came out during the period when Johnny Depp was more known for being involved in lawsuits than for making movies, so it's perhaps not that big of a shock for another actor to take a shot at him. Certainly, there are many who still don’t hold the actor in high regard following the accusations leveled against him.

Cox's less-than-flattering opinions on others, like Edward Norton, Ian McKellen, and Quentin Tarantino, are also raised. The Tarantino comments are perhaps especially interesting considering Tarantino recently made his own headlines for calling out Paul Dano and other actors that he didn't care for. However, another actor who Cox singled out in this interview is a bit more surprising.

What Brian Cox Said About Margot Robbie And Wuthering Heights

It turns out that the 1939 film adaptation of Wuthering Heights is a particular favorite movie of Brian Cox, so the actor is asked about his opinion on the new film from Emerald Fennell that starred Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi. While Cox, at least by the time of the interview, hadn’t seen the new movie, he still had an opinion, saying…

While Cox’s comments aren’t exactly an insult, it’s still somewhat surprising to hear him make such comments. While it may be “wrong” of him to judge, he clearly still has an opinion. And to be fair, he isn’t alone in that opinion. Margot Robbie’s casting in Wuthering Heights was questioned by fans of the original novel who felt she wasn’t the right actress for the part.

Since Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales came out in 2017, there’s been chatter about a sequel. Things got a bit messy after Johnny Depp’s very public split and court battle with Amber Heard. For a while, it looked like he was out as Captain Jack. But now that interest in a rumored Pirates 6 is picking up again, the film’s producer has made it clear where he stands on Depp coming back.

In February 2026, a report emerged suggesting that a new Pirates of the Caribbean movie was in development, focusing on Jack Sparrow's son. This raised questions about whether Johnny Depp would be replaced as the lead character in the franchise. However, when The Direct spoke with franchise producer Jerry Bruckheimer at the Producers Guild Awards, he clarified the situation and shared his perspective:

Bruckheimer has been the driving producing force behind all five Pirates films, making him the one constant throughout the franchise’s two-decade run. If anyone has a major say in what the next installment looks like, and whether the Edward Scissorhands star returns, it’s him. And he’s consistently made it clear that he’d welcome Johnny Depp back.

Bringing the Ed Wood actor into a sixth film would not only energize longtime fans but also provide a natural bridge between the franchise’s past and whatever direction it heads next, especially if the idea of introducing Jack Sparrow’s son is still on the table. Of course, the ultimate decision rests with the actor. Back in July 2023, a source told People that “anything is possible” regarding a potential return, leaving the door at least slightly ajar.

It’s also worth remembering that Bruckheimer famously stood by Depp’s eccentric take on Captain Jack Sparrow in the early days, even when others were skeptical of the performance. His continued involvement in a sixth movie signals stability at a time when the franchise appears to be recalibrating. And the ongoing chatter about the Willy Wonka performer's return is likely one of the reasons Disney continues to quietly develop the project behind the scenes.

Then there’s the Margot Robbie factor. For years, reports suggested that she would produce and potentially star in a female-led Pirates spinoff, essentially a soft reboot set in the same universe. That version seemed to stall out, but Bruckheimer recently offered a cryptic update when asked whether the next film would involve Robbie or Jack’s son. His response? “They’re close on part of it. That’s all I’ll tell ya.”

After his latest comments at the PGA Awards, it’s hard not to wonder which “part” he was referring to, and whether Depp’s return is more realistic than fans might have assumed.

That said, if you’re placing bets on whether Top Gun 3 or Pirates 6 will hit theaters first, you might want to put your money on Maverick. While neither sequel will be ready for the 2026 movie schedule, Bruckheimer, producer of both franchises, has indicated that the next high-octane Tom Cruise installment is further along in development.

Yesterday, news broke that actor Eric Dane died at 53 following a battle with ALS. Fans of his work on projects like Grey's Anatomy and Euphoria are reeling from the news, and re-watching his work to honor the late actor's legacy. Details about his final days are trickling out, including a report that Johnny Depp helped to support his friend financially in his time of need.

Back in April of 2025, Dane revealed his ALS diagnosis, and his fans had been following his health journey ever since. A new report from Page Six revealed that Depp allowed the Grey's Anatomy star to live in his Los Angeles home basically for free, so he could focus on his health. An anonymous insider told the outlet that:

How touching is that? ALS is a terrifying diagnosis, so the fact that the Last Ship actor was able to put his resources into medicine rather than worrying about paying rent must have been a boon. That's one less thing to worry about in an otherwise daunting situation. Talk about a classy move by Depp.

Shortly after his diagnosis, Eric Dane shared how fortune he was to have family and people who loved him. And it looks like the Pirates of the Caribbean star is included in that list. Of course, Dane also shared anger over his diagnosis, which is perfectly understandable. The same anonymous insider went on to share why Johnny Depp opened his doors to his fellow actor, claiming:

As previously mentioned, fans have been closely following the late actor's journey following his ALS diagnosis. He continued to work over the last year, including Euphoria Season 3. Dane also appeared on Brilliant Minds, earning a standing ovation from the cast and crew after filming. Back in June he also attended the premiere of The Countdown, in one of his last public appearances. He showed a ton of courage through it all, which is likely why the news of the actor's death has been such a gut punch to fans of his work.

Aside from working as an actor, Dane also became an ALS advocate, using his notoriety and starpower for the cause. For instance, He partnered with I AM ALS and joined the board of Target ALS. He leaves behind a legacy, in addition to his beloved roles in projects like Grey's Anatomy.

Our thoughts are with Eric Dane's loved ones during this difficult time, including his wife Rebecca Gayheart, who withdrew her divorce filing after his diagnosis.

After getting dropped from projects amid his defamation trial with ex-wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp's Hollywood comeback continues via his role in a holiday movie. Depp is playing the titular character in Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol and is teaming up with A+ horror director, Ti West for the film. Anyone who's curious about how Depp will be approaching the role of Scrooge should know that his co-star, Rupert Grint, has two specific adjectives to describe his work.

It's understandable as to why some may be excited Johnny Depp’s comeback. As Depp's proven with his greatest roles, he has a zany sense of versatility and seemingly limitless range. While speaking with THR, Rupert Grint, who is just one great member of Depp’s best co-star lineup in ages, dropped a pair of keen words when talking up Depp's performance, and I'm intrigued:

“Amazing” and “interesting” are perfect words to describe Johnny Depp. He has an uncanny talent for making each character his own and for completely disappearing into a character. Whether Depp portrays an eccentric outsider in Edward Scissorhands, a haunted antihero in Sweeney Todd, or a frustrated small-town guy in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?, he brings something new to each character he plays.

The notion of Depp putting his spin on Ebenezer Scrooge is also interesting. It’s also refreshing that a horror director like Ti West will be bringing his signature directorial style to the Charles Dickens adaptation. West's hiring does make sense, especially given the holiday classic is supposed to be a ghost story. Given the light tones presented in the best Christmas Carol movie adaptations, the horror fan in me would love to see how West could put a spookier spin on this beloved story.

As alluded to, Johnny Depp will be joined by a roster of stellar actors, including Andrea Riseborough, Sam Claflin, Tramell Tillman, Daisy Ridley and Ian McKellen. Rupert Grint went on to admit that he was a bit starstruck by McKellen:

The British actor speaks the truth. As McKellen has dabbled in Shakespeare, Marvel and Dickens’ David Copperfield BBC adaptation, the knighted actor is another example of a performer who usually does no wrong in his roles.

All in all, this is shaping up to be an interesting production, and I'm curious to see what Johnny Depp and the rest of the cast bring under West's direction. We'll see if Depp's performance really is as "amazing" and "interesting" as Grint teases. Check out Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol when it opens in theaters on November 13th as part of the 2026 movie schedule.

Many remain focused on the saga involving the disappearance of Today Show co-host Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy. The matriarch was last seen nearly two weeks ago and subsequently reported missing, and a criminal investigation was later launched. Amid the reports, Savannah and her family have been garnering significant attention, and that includes her husband, Michael Feldman. For Feldman, this marks yet another public matter he’s been linked to, as he also has ties to Depp v. Heard.

How Is Savannah Guthrie’s Husband Linked To Johnny Depp And Amber Heard’s Trial

Guthrie and Feldman tied the knot back in 2014 and share two children. While Guthrie has covered various new stories as a journalist, her hubby has an interesting career as well. Feldman serves as a founding member of the consulting, communications and advocacy firm The Glover Park Group, where he’s also the managing director. Additionally, Feldman is also a partner with the strategic communications firm FGS Global, which has a key connection to Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s (televised) court case.

Heading up Depp’s legal team were Camille Vasquez (who gained a lot of notoriety) and Benjamin Chew, and the pair consulted with at least one other entity while forming their case. The team sought out FGS Global, and Michael Feldman helped with the consulting work. Savannah Guthrie herself confirmed her hubby’s link to the case when she interviewed Chew and Vasquez on Today in 2022. At the start of the chat, which is on X, Guthrie also specified, though, that Feldman hadn’t consulted with the duo ahead of the interview.

So it’s possible that anyone who thought Feldman’s name seemed familiar around this time may have heard it during Depp and Heard’s highly publicized legal dispute. A verdict in that defamation case was delivered in June 2022 with Heard being found guilty on three counts of defamation and Depp on two counts. As for the specific ways in which FGS contributed to the success of Depp’s camp, the general public isn’t privy to those details.

Michael Feldman, of course, now finds himself involved in a very different kind of legal matter. Throughout the search for his mother-in-law, Feldman has been showing support for his spouse and, through social media. Like his wife, he’s also taken to Instagram in an attempt to garner assistance from the general public in tracking down anyone who might be involved in Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.

What’s Going On With The Search For Savannah Guthrie’s Mother?

Nancy Guthrie was last seen at her residence in Catalina Foothills, Arizona at around 9:45 p.m. on January 31. The criminal investigation was launched due to reported evidence that seemed to indicate that Guthrie was taken from her home against her will. As of this writing, however, no arrests have been made in the case. Since then, Savannah and her siblings, Cameron and Annie, have appeared in videos shared to social media. In one video that dropped earlier this month, the three acknowledged that a supposed ransom note had been submitted and, in another video released days later, Savannah and co. addressed an unspecified person or group linked to their mother’s disappearance.

Because of the situation, Savannah Guthrie has been taking time off from Today and, all the while, she’s received support from her colleagues. Hoda Kotb returned to the program just recently and has been covering for Guthrie in her absence. Having retired from the morning show in 2025, Kotb said she was “happy” to be back, because it meant she was able to show up for her work family. All the while, Today has reportedly seen high viewership due to the combination of the Winter Olympics and coverage of the Guthrie saga.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department continues to investigate leads in the hopes of discovering Nancy Guthrie’s whereabouts. At present, the FBI is offering a reward of $100,000 for information that leads to an arrest or conviction. Based on what’s known, Savannah, Michael Feldman and their loved ones are still awaiting updates.

The Pirates of the Caribbean movies have been some of Disney’s most successful live-action films that aren’t called Marvel or Star Wars. For that reason, it’s not exactly a shock that there have been plans to make more of them. However, it’s clearly been difficult to do so. The project has been in development for years, and there are reportedly multiple scripts being worked on.

One of the big questions fans have is whether or not Johnny Depp will return as Captain Jack Sparrow. Initially, it was reported that the franchise was moving on without him. However, producer Jerry Bruckheimer wants him back, and one version of a potential script would apparently include him in a major role. However, there’s another franchise return I would love to see even more in director Gore Verbinski. Unfortunately, he tells ScreenRant that he doesn’t have much interest in returning. He said…

Whatever else happens with the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie, the choice of who directs is going to be a key one, and honestly, going back to the beginning and grabbing Gore Verbinski wouldn’t be a terrible choice. He’s proven he can do it, though it appears that’s exactly why he doesn’t want to do it. He seems more interested in new challenges than old ones.

Gore Verbinski directed the original Pirates of the Caribbean film, which was a smash success. This led to him returning to helm the next two sequels, which were filmed back-to-back. While I don’t think any movie in the series holds a candle to the original, the trilogy is still pretty solid and far better than the two sequels that followed it.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides was directed by Rob Marshall, who has shown in recent years that he belongs behind big musicals, as he had much better success at Disney with Mary Poppins Returns and the live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid. The most recent film, Dead Men Tell No Tales, was helmed by Joachim Rønning, who has since gone on to direct other Disney sequels with Maleficent: Mistress of Evil and Tron: Ares.

Of course, before Disney can find a director, it has to find a script, and that’s apparently been the sticking point for this franchise for nearly a decade. Multiple writing teams have worked on ideas over the years. High-profile projects, including one that could star Margot Robbie, have been worked on, and while that project may not be as dead as we once thought, a different script is apparently the one being focused on now. Perhaps Disney’s new Chief Creative Officer can help figure out how to get these pirates sailing again.

Sam Claflin has had a pretty amazing career in Hollywood across the past 15 years, including his role in the Hunger Games movies as fan-favorite Finnick Odair, Peaky Blinders and Daisy Jones & The Six, but perhaps the way it all started is the wildest thing. The actor’s first ever movie was in 2011’s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides with Johnny Depp. While it was obviously the experience of a lifetime, Claflin does have regrets about it.

In a new interview on Radio Andy, Claflin got honest about what it was like to star in a Pirates of the Caribbean movie at the age of 25. In his words:

Can you imagine going straight from studying at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts to being cast in a movie with one of Hollywood’s biggest movie stars and Disney’s most massive franchise like he was? We wouldn’t know it while we’re immersed in the adventure of the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel, but Claflin was dealing with some personal struggles in the movie. As he added:

It’s actually pretty cool that the filmmakers of On Stranger Tides actually asked the young actor if he had some ideas about what to bring to his role. However, at the time, Claflin wasn’t confident enough to stick his neck out and really dive into the process.

Can one blame him? Most of us would be the same way if we were offered the biggest opportunity one could ask for at the start of their career. Interestingly enough, Sam Claflin is expected to reteam Johnny Depp soon for Ti West’s take on A Christmas Carol coming out later this year. Claflin explained his Pirates experience further with these words:

Claflin called working on On Stranger Tides as “one of the most dreamlike experiences” of his film career to this far, but he remains regretful about putting “so much pressure” on himself. Hey, it’s all part of growing up, isn’t it? In Claflin’s case, he was learning while being on a massive movie set with Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Ian McShane and Geoffrey Rush.

On Stranger Tides was the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and the first time Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley were not part of the franchise as Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, respectively. The Disney movie opted to bring in new talent, including Claflin’s casting as a captured missionary who serves as part of Blackbeard’s crew alongside a bunch of zombies.

After On Stranger Tides, one more Pirates movie came out six years later before the franchise was abandoned by Walt Disney Studios. There’s been a lot of talk over the years about producer Jerry Bruckheimer reportedly working on reviving the franchise (though one movie starring Margot Robbie has since died). Claflin has previously said he’s interested in returning to Pirates, but we’ll have to see what happens next for the Disneyland ride-inspired movie series.

As conversations around Johnny Depp and Amber Heard resurface once again, new attention is being paid to the earliest days of their relationship, specifically, the moments leading up to their brief marriage. With Heard recently speaking publicly again about the fallout from their legal battles, previously reported accounts about concerns raised before the wedding are circulating anew, including a warning allegedly delivered by the Deadman star’s own sister.

According to Vanity Fair, multiple people close to Depp recalled that the relationship was already volatile by the time the couple married in February 2015, but one of the most direct interventions came from the actor’s sister, Christi Dembrowski, who also served as his longtime business manager. Her message, as recalled by insiders, was direct and urgent:

Bruce Witkin, musician and close friend, recalled that both he and Dembrowski urged the Sweeney Todd actor to delay the wedding, stressing that there was no external pressure forcing him to proceed. Witkin claims Dembrowski became emotional, crying as she tried to persuade her brother to reconsider while also pushing for basic legal protections, such as a prenuptial agreement.

Despite those warnings, the wedding moved forward quickly. Heard reportedly wanted to marry before Depp left for a lengthy shoot on the next entry in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, which would require him to live in Australia for months. Heard later said she believed formalizing the relationship would bring stability. The long-time Jack Sparrow actor’s camp, however, viewed the urgency differently, with some suggesting the timing was financially motivated by how marital assets would be handled once filming began.

Accounts from Depp’s assistants and staff paint a picture of a chaotic lead-up. Several people said they weren’t even aware a wedding was happening until days beforehand. The Los Angeles ceremony itself was described as tense and hurried, with the Lone Ranger star expressing private doubts on the day of the wedding. His longtime bodyguard, Malcolm Connolly, recalled asking him point-blank whether he truly wanted to go through with it. The actor allegedly answered that he didn’t, but still felt unable to walk away.

That unease reportedly carried into the ceremony itself. Witnesses described a small gathering where discomfort was allegedly visible and a lot of drug use. Depp’s mother, Betty Sue Palmer, was said to have openly questioned the relationship during the vows, making remarks that others in the room could hear. Despite the misgivings, the couple completed the ceremony and, within days, hosted a second wedding celebration on the Kentucky native’s private island in the Bahamas.

Multiple attendees later described the island wedding as disorganized and emotionally charged, with the high-profile A-lister appearing withdrawn. According to insiders, Heard took a more active role in hosting. Several people noted that the guest list skewed heavily toward Heard’s friends and family, reinforcing the feeling among the Depp team that the event wasn’t a shared undertaking.

In hindsight, those early concerns have taken on renewed significance given how the marriage unraveled soon after. The couple separated in 2016, setting off years of legal battles, allegations, and public scrutiny that culminated in the 2022 defamation trial. While both parties have offered starkly different accounts of what happened behind closed doors, reports allege that doubts about the marriage existed long before the courtroom.

As Heard now says she no longer wants to speak publicly about her past, and Depp continues his career comeback, these recollections serve as a reminder of how many people close to the actor saw trouble coming and tried, unsuccessfully, to stop it before it began.

Several years ago, former spouses Amber Heard and Johnny Depp became embroiled in a legal situation that ultimately resulted in a trial over alleged defamation. By the fall of 2022, a verdict was delivered, and it was largely in Depp’s favor. Now, over three years later, Heard is discussing her experiences with the situation in a new documentary. As part of that production, the actress not only clarifies her reasons for joining the film but also meditates on the ramifications of previously speaking out on her issues with her former spouse.

Heard is one of several interviewees in the documentary Silenced, which is directed by Selina Miles. At the center of the doc is Australian human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson, who notably represented Heard several years back. The Aquaman alum is one of several women featured in the doc, who made allegations of abuse, sexual misconduct and more against people. As for Heard, she spoke candidly (via Variety) with Miles about how she feels about using her voice at this point in her life:

After The Sun referred to Johnny Depp – who was married to Amber Heard from 2015 to 2016 – as a “wife beater,” he filed suit against publisher News Group Newspapers for libel. Depp, who lost the libel case in 2020, came into direct conflict with Heard after she wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post in which she claimed to have been subjected to sexual violence. Depp eventually sued his ex-wife for defamation, and she countersued. The Depp v. Heard trial lasted from April to June 2022 and ended with Heard being found guilty on three counts of defamation and Depp being found guilty on one count.

Silenced shows the aforementioned situation from the perspective of Heard, who was initially ordered to pay $15 million in damages. (Depp was also ordered to pay out $2 million.) The documentary shows Heard facing public criticism from fans of Depp, who apparently threw trash at her whenever she walked in and out of the courthouse during the Sun trial, for which she was a key witness. During the film, Heard also recalled a conversation she had with Jennifer Robinson at the end of that case:

While Amber Heard is now sharing her account of events, Johnny Depp previously recalled his experiences with the defamation trial. Depp opened up during a 2025 interview, at which point he acknowledged the various statements shared by his ex-girlfriends as well as reported pieces of evidence including photos of feces and a severed finger. The Pirates of the Caribbean star said he felt compelled to prove his innocence and said he knew he’d have to “have to semi-eviscerate” to a degree in order to do so.

Both Heard and Depp are reportedly in different places in their lives at this point. Depp is in the midst of a Hollywood comeback and has since booked Day Drinker and is also set to headline a Scrooge movie. Meanwhile, Heard moved to Spain and, despite reports that she quit Hollywood, she’s still continuing to act in both screen and stage productions.

Given Amber Heard’s comments about no longer wanting to use her voice to talk about her personal journey, it’s unclear she’ll ever discuss her legal battle with Johnny Depp publicly again. Those interested in hearing her segments in Silenced – which recently premiered at the Sundance Film Festival – will have to wait until the doc lands a distributor.

When it comes to holiday classics, few stories have been told, retold, and reimagined more than Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The timeless novella, which introduced readers to the man commonly known as Scrooge a couple of centuries ago, is about to get another adaptation when Johnny Depp and Ti West team up for Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol. It’s safe to say we’re very excited over here, waiting to see what these two have up their sleeves.

If you want to know more about Ebenezer, including its release date, cast, and how this often-told tale will be reimagined by one of the most inventive horror directors of our time (not to mention one of the most electric actors in Hollywood history), come along as we break it all down. Don’t worry, you won’t have to worry about any ghosts here, at least not in this guide…

What Is The Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol Release Date?

So, when can we catch up with everyone’s favorite old miser again? According to Deadline, the Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol release date has been set for November 13, 2026, which has it coming out just in time for the holiday season.

Though this is the only movie currently dated for the second weekend of November on the 2026 movie schedule, Ebenezer is set to come out between Bill Hader’s The Cat in the Hat adaptation and the hotly anticipated The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Then there’s the whole business of Greta Gerwig’s Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew, making this one stellar month for those excited about all those upcoming book-to-screen adaptations.

The Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol Cast

When Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol storms into theaters in November 2026 like a ghost ready to teach Scrooge a lesson and reevaluate his lonely and greedy existence, it will bring with it an incredibly talented and diverse cast. Here’s everyone slated to appear alongside Johnny Depp’s Ebenezer Scrooge in the upcoming adaptation, per Deadline.

• Johnny Depp as Ebenezer Scrooge
• Andrea Riseborough
• Ian McKellen
• Tramell Tillman
• Rupert Grint
• Sam Clafin
• Charlie Murphy
• Daisy Ridley
• Arthur Conti
• Ellie Bamber

It should be noted that at the time of this writing, only Depp’s character has been revealed, and we’ll have to wait and see about the others. However, per the Deadline report mentioned above, there is speculation that Grint will be taking on the role of Bob Cratchit, Scrooge’s underpaid and underloved yet loyal employee. For the others, let the guessing game begin…

What Is Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol About?

As has been the case with every take on A Christmas Carol over the years, this upcoming adaptation of one of Charles Dickens’ signature novellas will follow Ebenezer Scrooge as he is visited by three ghosts – Christmas Past, Christmas Present, Christmas Future – and is given the opportunity to make a change in his life before it’s too late. While it’s not known how much the movie will pull from the original text, the aforementioned Deadline article stated it will be set in Dickens’ London, as opposed to other versions set in more contemporary times.

Ti West Is Directing This Version Of Scrooge’s Story

One of the most exciting aspects of Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol is the fact that Ti West is sitting in the director’s chair. Most commonly known for his X trilogy – X, Pearl, and Maxxxine – West has been one of the most unique and transformative creative minds in the horror world for the better part of the past 20 years. In that time, he’s made some of the best horror flicks in recent memory, like The House of the Devil, The Innkeepers, The Sacrament, and even a segment in the first V/H/S anthology film back in 2012.

With West having dabbled in going back in time with the Mia Goth-led X movies, it will be interesting to see how the prolific filmmaker handles Charles Dickens’ dark and dreary version of 19th-century London. Will it be a little campy, more serious, or somewhere in the middle? We shall see.

The movie was penned by Nathaniel Halpern, who’s best known for shows like Legion, Tales from the Loop, and The Killing.

This Isn’t The Only Christmas Carol Adaptation Coming Out

Ti West’s Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol certainly has a lot of us excited for next year’s holiday season, but oddly enough, it isn’t the only high-profile adaptation of Charles Dickens’ novella that’s in the works. In July 2025, Variety reported that Robert Eggers, who directed the stellar Nosferatu adaptation in 2024, was working on his own take on the literary classic. There’s no release date (or even a window) at this point, but Eggers is planning to bring in one of his most prolific collaborators: Willem Dafoe.

Details are limited at this point, but the prospect of Eggers teaming up with Dafoe for a fourth time (their previous movies include The Lighthouse, The Northman, and Nosferatu) is reason to hold onto hope. Plus, the idea of Dafoe playing Scrooge seems like a dream come true. However, it may be some time, as Eggers is currently working on his much-talked-about Werwulf, which is slated to come out in late 2026.

How To Watch Other Recent Adaptations Of Charles Dickens’ Classic Novella

As mentioned above, there has been no shortage of Christmas Carol adaptations over the years, with everything from more serious versions to those led by Bill Murray to even a genuine classic involving the Muppets, there’s plenty to choose from. That said, if you want to get into the holiday mood before Ebenezer comes out next November, these versions won’t let you down.

• Stream A Christmas Carol (1938) on HBO Max.
• Stream A Christmas Carol (1984) on Disney+.
• Stream A Christmas Carol (2009) on Disney+.
• Stream The Muppet Christmas Carol on Disney+.
• Stream Scrooged on Paramount+.

Expect to hear much more about Ti West's Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, as well as Robert Eggers’ take on Charles Dickens’ beloved story in the coming weeks and months. It’s safe to say it’s a good time to be a fan of this Christmastime classic…

Since the Depp v. Heard trial ended in June 2022, Johnny Depp has seemingly been ready to make a major Hollywood return. He's already filmed one new movie, Marc Webb’s Day Drinker, and he’ll also be teaming up with great horror director Ti West for A Christmas Carol. Not only am I excited to see Depp play the grouchy Ebenezer Scrooge, but his roster of co-stars may be the best ensemble he's worked alongside in years.

Johnny Depp’s greatest roles have placed him in some pretty sweet ensemble films like the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Alice in Wonderland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and more. But his holiday film is seemingly matching those films when it comes to start. It was recently reported by Deadline that Daisy Ridley and Rupert Grint are among the latest to join Ti West’s Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol. And that news comes after the initial bits of casting news, which were already impressive. Check out the list:

• Ian McKellen
• Daisy Ridley
• Rupert Grint
• Sam Chaflin
• Charlie Murphy
• Andrea Riseborough
• Tramell Tillman
• Ellie Bamber
• Arthur Conti

There are so many familiar faces in this group, and this is making me really excited for West’s adaptation. Ian McKellen is known for his Shakespearean work and the grounded presence he brings to his roles. While we don’t yet know which role the X-Men actor is taking on, I can definitely picture him playing one of the spirits (maybe Jacob Marley?) that shows Scrooge the error of his ways.

Daisy Ridley would also make a great spirit. Her star power shone as Jedi prodigy Rey in the Star Wars movies, and she’s got a genuine commanding vibe through which she can also exude genuine warmth that audiences connect to. British stars like Sam Claflin and Andrea Riseborough have both played natural, flawed characters, too, that make audiences root hard for them.

I’m also very excited that Rupert Grint has been cast in the Christmas flick. While he started as a child star in the Harry Potter movies, he’s since moved into creepy projects like the Apple TV+ series Servant and M. Night Shyamalan’s Knock at the Cabin. Deadline’s sources say that Grint’s unconfirmed role could be Bob Cratchit, Scrooge’s selfless employee. That would certainly track, given Grint seems to be around the right age for the role, and he can give off the noble vibes that have long been associated with Cratchit.

While A Christmas Carol may be the story of Ebenezer Scrooge undergoing a major character transformation, it's also a story with a plethora of key supporting roles. So I can understand why West would want to seek out such strong actors to fill out his cast. Given the stars involved, I’m confident that their unique energy and range will complement Depp well and bring about a chemistry that will make this latest Charles Dickens adaptation memorable.

It, of course, remains to be seen how this film might actually perform but, at least right now, it does indeed mark a big step for Johnny Depp as he seeks to settle back into his work in Hollywood. Time will tell what Ti West's vision yields and how Depp and his talented co-stars will approach their roles. Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol opens in theaters on November 13th as part of the 2026 movie schedule.

Growing up, I was a huge Hunter S. Thompson fan. Take from that what you will, but I devoured everything the man wrote. Like many, it was Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas that first grabbed me. It’s an incredible book, and the movie, from director Terry Gilliam and starring Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke, was as close to a visual representation of a book like this could probably be on film. Still, I was surprised at how low its Rotten Tomatoes score is (currently 51%), but thinking about, I get it.

I Think Fans Of The Book Fans May Not Be Fans Of The Movie

I’m not someone who gets super pedantic with book-to-screen adaptations. It’s hard to take the story from one medium and adapt it to another. Changes have to be made, and I’m sympathetic to the choices directors have to make. I think Gilliam and company did the very best they could with Feath and Loathing, but I still don’t love the movie. Thompson's writing is just that hard to adapt.

That’s not their fault; it’s really no one’s fault. I just love the book so much that there was no way the film was going to stack up for me. By the time the movie was released in 1998, I’d already read the book multiple times, and I argued at the time that there was no way to make a movie that would do justice to the manic nature of the story, as so much of it was in Duke’s mind. I don’t think I’m alone in this, either. I think plenty of people who loved the book didn’t love the movie because of this.

Interestingly, it was just announced that Depp will be adapting another of my favorite books, The Master and Margarita, which I've also long held can't work on film. We'll see how that goes.

Some Who Aren’t Fans Of The Book Don’t Seem To Like It Either

Judging by some of the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, those who dislike this classic Vegas movie aren’t fans for other reasons. It’s too druggy, too chaotic, or it’s too disjointed. All of that is by design, of course. The book is very much all three of those things. Thompson's mindset was very much like that, too, both in his writing and in real life, if the stories are to be believed (and I certainly believe them). It’s a chaotic movie because it’s a chaotic story; there is no other way to tell it.

This all leaves the movie as a very polarizing one. Not only does its 50% score reflect that, but people either love it or completely hate it. It doesn’t garner middling reviews. I’ve talked to people who call it their favorite movie of all time, and others who say they’ll never watch it again, and get squeamish just thinking about it. You can see that in the reviews. It’s even been called the “worst Terry Gilliam movie ever,” though I think now that moniker belongs to The Brothers Grimm.

Terry Gilliam is an iconoclast, and so is Hunter S. Thompson. The combination of the two might not work for everyone, so I get it. For me, though, the movie will never match the book’s intensity and insanity, but I fully recognize that only Gilliam could have come close to making a great movie from it.

One thing I definitely did not expect to see news about today was an announcement that Johnny Depp plans to adapt the classic Soviet-era book The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov. According to a new report, the book-to-screen adaptation could begin filming next year with Depp producing and possibly starring in it. It’s a bold choice for anyone to try to adapt this wonderful novel, but it’s one of my favorite books, and I can’t wait to see it play out in a film.

The Master and Margarita Has Been A Favorite Among Artists For Decades

As with many works of art and literature from Cold War-era Soviet history, The Master and Margarita has a fraught history. Bulgakov wrote the book in the 1930s, before he died in 1940. It went unpublished for years. His widow first got a highly-censored version of the novel published in the Soviet Union in mid-’60 (in serial form), and manuscripts of the uncensored book were snuck out of the Eastern Bloc around the same time. It has since been published in its complete form several times and in many languages.

It makes perfect sense that Depp, who is starting to land more and more roles again, would be attracted to the prospect of making the first English-language adaptation of the book (per Variety), as almost immediately, the book was a hit with musicians and artists. Famously, the book inspired Mick Jagger to pen the Rolling Stones’ classic “Sympathy for the Devil” after being given it by his then-girlfriend Marianne Faithfull. The Pearl Jam song “Pilate” was partially inspired by the book, too. Salman Rushdie has said it was one of the inspirations for his controversial novel The Satanic Verses. The list goes on and on.

It’s Not The Kind Of Book You Might Expect From A Soviet-Era Writer

The book follows two timelines: the main timeline in Moscow under Stalin’s rule, and another in ancient times. It tells the story of the trial of Jesus and Pontius Pilate. The book is a biting satire of Soviet life and the communist regime, and a fantastical look at good and evil in the world. People might hear “Russian classic literature” and think “boring,” but it’s not at all. It’s funny, quick-paced, and incredibly approachable.

How to approach adapting the story may be tricky, though. It’s often dream-like, and the subject matter is starting to get dated, to say the least, especially outside of the former Soviet Union. Western directors like Terry Gilliam and Baz Luhrmann have flirted with the idea, but abandoned it eventually. That said, it was adapted in Russian last year by director Michael Lockshin, and the movie was a huge hit in Russia. I’ve never seen it, but you can be sure it’s now at the top of my watch list.

As of now, little has been said about the Depp-led production. There is no director attached, and nothing else is known about the production, other than the news that it may begin filming next year. So while we won’t see it on the 2026 movie schedule, I’m crossing my fingers for 2027.

There's a lot to be excited about if you're a fan of One Piece, regardless of the medium. Season 2 of Netflix's live-action series is coming to the 2026 TV schedule, the anime series will finish its Egghead arc by the end of 2025, and the manga is dropping bombshell reveals as the Straw Hats journey through Elbaph. Oh, and Johnny Depp had his own brush with the fandom recently, and I'm excited to see if it goes anywhere.

Depp was at Tokyo Comic Con over the weekend, and while manga creator Eiichiro Oda wasn't onstage with him, he still made sure the Pirates of the Caribbean star received a gift. The star seemed a bit confused about his present that evoked the spirit of Captain Jack Sparrow, but I'm thrilled and hoping it means the character could show up in, or at least inspire a new character, in One Piece.

Eiichiro Oda Gave Johnny Depp A Special Drawing Of Captain Jack Sparrow

After hearing about how Eiichiro Oda texted One Piece's live-action Zoro actor Mackenyu to hang out, I'm not surprised he would opt out of giving Johnny Depp something he created in person. As such, it was Japanese voice actor for Sanji, Hiroaki Hirata, who gifted Depp with a Noren door curtain with a custom drawing of Captain Jack Sparrow in the One Piece art style. Check it out:

It may seem like a random exchange, but Hiroaki Hirata is the voice of Johnny Depp in Japan. Typically, foreign countries will have one specific voice actor dub the same American actor's voice across all their projects. Hirata has voiced Depp in thirty-six movies and counting, which may explain why he was the one to offer up the gift rather than Eiichiro Oda.

Could One Piece Bring Captain Jack Sparrow Into Its World?

If Captain Jack Sparrow appeared as an actual pirate in One Piece, I think some fans' minds would explode. That said, I think since the actual character is owned by Disney, Eiichiro Oda's series couldn't actually use the character for a 1:1 illustrated recreation.

That said, the One Piece creator has a history of basing characters on actual pirates of the past, as well as iconic celebrities. While Eiichiro Oda has never explicitly confirmed he's based characters he's drawn on popular celebrities, fans have noticed unmistakable resemblances between many characters and some of the biggest stars on the planet. This includes actors and musicians alike, with perhaps the most bizarre one being rapper Eminem.

All things considered, One Piece could definitely introduced a Captain Jack Sparrow-inspired character, and to be honest, I'm surprised that hasn't happened already. The premiere of the anime predates the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie by four years. This is to say, there's undoubtedly been a chance for Oda to pay homage to Depp with some character, but has he been holding off because he may want to make a Jack Sparrow-type of pirate? I think as long as he doesn't ask Depp to reprise the role, it could happen!

For now, I'll keep my expectations low and wait to watch the live-action adaptations of One Piece Season 2 with my Netflix subscription. Meanwhile, I'm very invested as an anime fan to see the rest of Egghead, and the fact that e everyone involved with the live-action series is already working on Season 3.

Anybody who knows me knows that I'm a sucker for a good musical. That's why I absolutely adore 2007's Tim Burton/Johnny Depp collabo, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Because the truth is, Sweeney Todd doesn't feel like your typical musical. In fact, it's one of the most offbeat musicals I think I've ever seen in my entire life, which is very on brand for Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. And, while I know it's an adaptation of an actual musical from Hugh Wheeler with music from Stephen Sondheim, I feel like Burton and Depp added something special to this already bizarre story.

So, why is this film adaptation so good, and how did Burton/Depp knock it out of the park? Well, you're about to find out.

First Off, All Of The Main Actors Actually Sang Themselves...And It Sounded Great!

Have you ever watched the movie adaptation of Les Misérables? Well, while some feel the movie missed the mark completely, I’ve always thought that it was pretty good, even after a rewatch (Though some have been less forgiving). That said, while I still think the film succeeds in many regards, the singing could be a lot better.

Case in point, Russell Crowe. I remember watching this movie with my wife, and she would cringe every time he sang. When I asked her why, she said it was “appalling,” which I didn’t understand until I listened to Philip Quast sing “Stars,” and then I thought, Oh, my God. Why did they even hire Russell Crowe? He’s not even close! (Even though he did try, which counts for something).

However, I think the singing in Sweeney Todd works better with this particular cast. For example, the song where Sweeney Todd sings to his blades really works here. Now, the performers I’ve seen play Sweeney Todd have typically been beefier men than Johnny Depp, so their baritone voices work. That said, Depp is not beefy. He’s lithe and almost wiry, so I wouldn’t expect a baritone voice to come out of his mouth. I believe he's considered a baritenor, which works for this particular version of the story, given the actor.

Helena Bonham Carter is also wonderful with the accent she gives off here. Her voice even sometimes cracks, which sounds super authentic. What’s actually interesting is that Carter and Sasha Baron Cohen are in both Les Misérables and Sweeney Todd, but I think they’re both better in the latter, which I think proves my point. The singing here is more effective.

Johnny Depp Was Nominated For Best Actor For His Performance And Deserved The Nod

Now, I know I just mentioned that Depp does a great job singing in this film, but he also does a spectacular job acting in it as well. In fact, when I wrote an article a while back ranking every Tim Burton and Johnny Depp collaboration, I put Sweeney Todd at number two, which was above even Ed Wood, which is one of my favorite movies of all time. It’s just that Depp is so good as Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd that his performance really stands out in both of his and Burton's filmographies.

And, I think it’s because Johnny Depp has to go through so many emotions in this film’s 116-minute runtime. The story of Sweeney Todd is an interesting one. A crooked man of the law named Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) falsely accuses our protagonist, Benjamin Barker, of crimes that he didn't commit and has him shipped to Australia. Turpin's intention is to steal Barker's wife, but she's driven to end her life after the deed. In turn, Turpin adopts their daughter, and in time, falls in love with her (gross!).

Barker returns to London as a changed man (with a new name), and is now out for vengeance. The thing is, even though he’s literally murdering people in his barber’s seat, we actually sympathize with him to a certain extent, and I think it’s mostly due to Depp’s charm. We admire his newfound enthusiasm for murder, and Depp makes it feel justified with his acting.

It’s not a weird performance, but it’s a weird scenario, and Depp eases into it perfectly. He’s really good, is what I’m trying to say.

Alan Rickman Is Always Great, But This Particular Performance Is A Stand Out

I’m going to say something that could probably be considered a “warm” take, but nobody played a villain better than Alan Rickman. Nobody. Absolutely crushing it in his first major movie role as Hans Gruber, Rickman ruled because he could play smarmy bad guys who always seemed to think they were better than everybody else. That is, of course, until they realized that they were completely out of their depth.

We saw it in Die Hard, we witnessed it in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and we saw it in the Harry Potter movies, in which we initially think he’s a villain, only to learn that he’s a hero. Well, in Sweeney Todd, there is not a heroic bone in Rickman's body. In fact, this may be his most dastardly performance of his career, just because he uses his power so unjustly, literally putting people in jail without any real reason besides the fact that he doesn’t like them.

For example, Judge Turpin gets Todd out of the picture, does horrible things to his wife (which drives her to suicide), and then, as if things weren't bad enough, later courts their daughter, whom he’s taken under his wing, and wants to marry her.

And, he’s just so oily and awful. There’s a certain charm to him, but it’s the charm of a scoundrel. Not only that, but he even has his own hype man in Timothy Spall’s Beadle Bamford, who actually has my favorite song in the whole movie. But, yeah. I love Alan Rickman, but I hate him in this film, which means he must have done a good job. I approve!

The Set Design Really Transports You To The Time And Place

Another aspect of Sweeney Todd that just works is the grungy London setting, as the Victorian-era costumes and designs just fit so well. This is likely why it won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction (but lost Best Costume Design to Elizabeth: The Golden Age, which I guess is fair. Those costumes were amazing).

Anyway, Burton, who is no stranger to setting stories in the past (see: the excellent Sleepy Hollow), did another great job hiring people who could make these characters feel like they're living and breathing in old-time London. The streets look dirty, the interiors are cramped, and the area feels authentic.

And, this is important because it shows the close attention to detail that went into the making of this movie. There are scenes where I genuinely forget that I'm watching a film, as my mind is just transported to London. But, not a nice London, mind you, but rather, the kind where I feel like I want to take a shower every time I see it.

The set design and costumes make this one of the best settings I've ever seen, and I understand why this film is often considered one of the better modern musical adaptations, which is really important because this movie honestly could have been a disaster, but it wasn't, which is a true testament to how much work was put into this film.

So, what do you think? Are you also a fan of 2007's Sweeney Todd? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Since Johnny Depp’s victory in the highly-publicized defamation lawsuit with ex-wife Amber Heard back in 2022, we’ve been curious if the actor would be getting a career comeback. He’s since starred in the French film Jeanne du Barry, has a movie with Penélope Cruz on the way, and has just signed on to his highest profile movie post-trial yet. Depp is allegedly in “final negotiations” to star in a movie called Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol for Paramount Pictures. The project comes from a celebrated filmmaker and seems to directly be competing with another one like it.

Johnny Depp Is Starring In An Upcoming Version Of A Christmas Carol

As Deadline reports, Johnny Depp is getting ready to work with filmmaker Ti West on Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, who famously made the critically-acclaimed X trilogy with Mia Goth. Depp will be joined by Oscar-nominated actress Andrea Riseborough, and the movie has already earned a place on the 2026 movie release calendar for November 13, 2026. The latest adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic comes from a script by Legion and Tales From The Loop writer Nathaniel Halpern.

While it wasn’t necessarily confirmed in the report, we of course expect Depp to play Ebenezer Scrooge. Knowing some of the actor’s choices in the past, this is right up his alley. And since Ti West has grown a following with his work in the horror space, we’re certainly curious about what his version of the holiday staple will look like.

But, There’s Already A Similar Project In The Works With Willem Dafoe

This brings me to why this is such a surprising project, outside of it being Johnny Depp's biggest one in years. Back in June, it was actually announced that Nosferatu director Robert Eggers was making his own version of A Christmas Carol with Willem Dafoe as Scrooge. This one doesn’t have a release date yet, but Paramount seems to be competitively beating this film from Warner Bros. to the punch by turning around with a date that could very well have Eggers being haunted by Christmas’s future.

Surely if Johnny Depp and Ti West’s A Christmas Carol take comes out before Eggers’ version, people will be comparing it to Eggers version whenever it comes out. Also, Eggers’ current priority is a movie called Werwulf, which is also with Dafoe, along with Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp (who is Depp’s daughter). Werwulf is currently in production and set for a Christmas Day 2026 release.

Things like this happen all the time in Hollywood. Just look at how there’s two Frankenstein-related movies coming out within months of each other between Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix version and The Bride! helmed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. We’ll keep our eyes peeled as we wait for more information of these A Christmas Carol movies here on CinemaBlend.

The future of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is in a very weird place right now. We know that Disney is actively working on a new movie, but what that movie is, is anybody’s guess. It might see the return of Johnny Depp, but it might not. It apparently includes the involvement of Margot Robbie, despite previously being told it would not. At this point, we don’t know who might appear in the new film, though one former, and largely forgotten, cast member is ready for his own return.

Following the success of the initial Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, we saw Captain Jack Sparrow throw in with some new characters for the film Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The film introduced several new characters, like Ian McShane as Blackbeard and a young Sam Claflin as Philip, a missionary captured by Blackbeard who falls in love with a mermaid. Speaking with comicbook.com, Claflin says he’s willing to grovel to rejoin the franchise. He said…

If Sam Claflin wants to go beg Jerry Bruckheimer to become part of the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie, I might be willing to join him. I would love to see the franchise return to characters of Philip and the mermaid Syrena, if for no other reason than to put some sort of an end to that story.

On Stranger Tides is something of a strange movie in the Pirates franchise now because it stands so alone. It sent Captain Jack Sparrow on a new adventure for the Fountain of Youth, and ended with Philip swimming off to seemingly become a merman, and female lead Penelope Cruz marooned on an island with a Jack Sparrow voodoo doll.

These story elements were then dropped for the next film, Dead Men Tell No Tales, so they’ve never been followed up on. If the next film in the franchise isn’t a complete reboot, then it would be great if it found a way to connect back to this orphaned movie.

While I would love to see Sam Claflin return primarily for story reasons, his own reasons for being interested in rejoining the franchise are more personal. He indicates he didn’t have nearly as much fun making the movie as he now feels he should have, largely because On Stranger Tides was his first movie, and he found the experience somewhat overwhelming. He explained…

The current understanding is that there are multiple versions of the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie, with one including the return of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, something Jerry Bruckheimer wants to see, and the other not. It's highly unlikely either version would see the return of Sam Claflin's Philip, but I, for one, wouldn't be against it.

Pirates of the Caribbean is one of Disney’s most successful live-action franchises, which makes it more than a little surprising that we haven’t seen an entry in the series in eight years. That hasn’t been for lack of trying, as there have been multiple scripts in development for the series at different points. One of those scripts might see the return of Johnny Depp, and another, that we thought was dead, would have starred Margot Robbie.

The most recent comments, from both Margot Robbie herself and franchise producer Jerry Bruckheimer, were that the project was, if not dead, on the back burner, but now it appears that may not entirely be the case.

What Margot Robbie Said About Her Pirates Of The Caribbean Movie

Back in 2020, three years after the last PotC movie and two years after Disney reportedly decided to move forward with the franchise without Johnny Depp, there were reportedly two different Pirates movies in development at Disney, one was believed to have been more of a direct sequel to the previous films, with writers Ted Elliot and Craig Mazin attached. The other would have rebooted the franchise, starring Margot Robbie and written by her Birds of Prey scribe, Christina Hodson.

At some point, Disney decided to move forward with the first script, not the one Robbie was involved in. While the actress and producer has never said a great deal about what that movie would have been, she did confirm its existence, as well as its apparent demise back in 2022, saying…

Later comments from producer Jerry Bruckheimer seemed to indicate that Robbie’s project wasn’t entirely dead and might still happen down the road. At that point, the case was that the other movie would happen first, but considering we’ve heard nothing about it in years, and that Disney has yet to produce any Pirates of the Caribbean follow-up in the ensuing years, the project certainly seemed over.

What Jerry Bruckheimer Is Now Saying About Robbie’s Future In the Franchise

But that may not actually be the case. In a recent conversation with The Wrap, when Jerry Bruckheimer was asked about the status of Pirates of the Caribbean 6 and Margot Robbie’s involvement specifically, he said:

This was reportedly in reference to the upcoming film, which was written by franchise scribe Ted Elliot, but is reportedly undergoing rewrites from an unnamed screenwriter.

So now it appears that Margot Robbie is part of the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie after all. That said, the word “involved” covers a lot of ground. It could mean that plans are for her to play a role in the film, possibly even the lead, but it could also mean that she’s involved as a producer.

Robbie’s LuckyChap Productions has also been previously attached to another Disney movie based on a theme park ride, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. However, that’s another project we haven’t heard much about in a while.

At this point, the only thing that’s clear about the future of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is that very little is clear. As a fan, I’m certainly looking forward to getting something soon, and as a fan of Margot Robbie, I’m up for whatever part she may play in the franchise’s future.

It’s been nearly a decade since the last of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies set sail, but talk of a reboot or sequel has never really gone away. Orlando Bloom, who once considered passing on the role of Will Turner before embracing it as a career-defining part, has now taken some time out of his busy 2025 movie release schedule to weigh in on how Disney could “win” with another installment. And honestly, his idea makes a lot of sense.

Bloom reminded fans at Fan Expo Chicago (via Entertainment Weekly) this weekend that dead franchises just might be back. The Lord of the Rings veteran didn’t pitch an elaborate spin-off or a bold reinvention. Instead, his idea was refreshingly simple: bring the band back together. He said:

It’s hard to argue with that logic. While the Pirates franchise (which is streaming ith a Disney+ subscription) has experimented with new characters and shifting focuses in later films, what fans often crave is the original dynamic that made the series a global sensation in the first place and the chemistry between Bloom, Keira Knightley, Geoffrey Rush, and, of course, Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow. The Kingdom of Heaven actor doubled down on his belief that a true reunion is the only way forward:

In other words, if Disney wants to revive Pirates in a meaningful way, half-measures won’t cut it. The audience doesn’t just want a nostalgic callback; they want the whole crew back aboard the Black Pearl. And a big factor in getting everyone on board will, of course, hinge on the script's quality.

Of course, there are some stormy seas to navigate. Johnny Depp’s highly publicized legal battles have complicated any potential comeback, and even Geoffrey Rush has weathered his own court fight in recent years. Still, longtime Pirates producer Jerry Bruckheimer hasn’t ruled out the possibility of Captain Jack and the original crew hoisting the sails again. The 48-year-old English actor also speculated on where Disney might be steering the franchise next. As he put it:

Disney has previously floated ideas of spin-offs (including Margot Robbie’s much-discussed female-led project), but Bloom’s comments cut through the fog: no amount of fresh angles or reboots can replicate the lightning-in-a-bottle chemistry of the original cast.

And maybe that’s the point. If Pirates of the Caribbean really does hoist the sails again, perhaps the “way to win” is not reinventing the wheel, but bringing the crew back together one last time for a proper voyage.

If you want to revisit the best of the series, all five movies are streaming on Disney+.

I recently revisited Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, and came away completely understanding why it remains one of the best movies of the ‘90. The gothic fairy tale helped define the auteur director’s movie career while also further launching Johnny Depp into superstardom. In a recent interview, Oscar winner Gary Oldman addressed the fact that he was on Burton’s short list for the dialogue-lite role, but that he'd turned it down because he simply “didn’t get” the script.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Oldman admitted that he was given the script in the late ’80s, before Tim Burton was fully established as a tonal visionary. Even if Beetlejuice and Batman were both already out at the time, those distinct stories still wouldn't have provided Oldman a blueprint to understanding Edward Scissorhands on the page. As he tells it:

Honestly? Fair. It's hard to imagine something like Edward Scissorhands from just words on a page without hearing Vincent Price's voice or seeing Winona Ryder in snowglobe mode. There are so many ideas that go into making a movie as iconic as this flick, and not having Burton around to paint a mental picture would have made it challenging indeed.

Oldman explained that without Burton’s later filmography to help contextualize the project, the concept just struck him as confusing and even unappealing. The actor continued:

That decision meant Oldman never actually met with Burton to discuss the part, which propped the the door open more for Johnny Depp to take on what would become one of his best roles.

Despite his initial disinterest, Oldman wasn’t immune to the finished film’s magic eventually. He confessed:

It’s a classic “sliding doors” moment in Hollywood history where one actor passes on a role because it seems too odd or risky, only for another to step in and help turn it into a cultural phenomenon. It's wild to think about where both of their careers would have gone, and what Edward Scissorhands merch would look like with Oldman in the role.

Of course, Oldman’s career didn’t exactly suffer. While he missed out on playing Edward, he went on to build a decades-spanning résumé that includes a ton of great characters. He’s done everything from punk legend Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy to Sirius Black in Harry Potter, Commissioner Gordon in The Dark Knight trilogy (available to stream with an HBO Max subscription), and Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour — a role that finally earned him an Oscar.

Oldman frames the Scissorhands episode as one of many moments where instinct, timing, and perspective shaped his path. As THR’s profile highlights, his willingness to pivot away from typecasting and later embrace quieter, more internalized roles gave him staying power in a business that often chews up actors known for intensity alone.

Gary Oldman’s 2025 movie slate has been quiet, but his series Slow Horses returns for its fifth season on September 24, 2025. Available to anyone with an Apple TV+ subscription.

For years, it seemed Johnny Depp’s swashbuckling days as Captain Jack Sparrow (one of his best performances) were over. Disney severed ties with the actor in 2018, and during his highly publicized 2022 defamation trial with ex-wife Amber Heard, the Edward Scissorhands actor famously declared he wouldn’t return “for $300 million and a million alpacas.” Now, Pirates of the Caribbean producer Jerry Bruckheimer says the tide may be turning.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Bruckheimer revealed that he has spoken to Depp about coming back for the sixth Pirates film, and the actor is at least open to the idea. The famous Producer explained:

It’s been a long eight years since Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales hit theaters in 2017, reuniting the former 21 Jump Street performer with Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom, and Keira Knightley. Talks of a sixth film have been swirling since at least 2019, but the project has been stalled by script rewrites, shifting creative visions, including a version that would have starred Margot Robbie, but has reportedly been shelved, and most recently, the 2023 dual Hollywood strikes.

Bruckheimer confirmed the new installment is still in active development. Craig Mazin (The Last of Us) was initially collaborating with original series writer Ted Elliott before the strikes, but Jeff Nathanson (Dead Men Tell No Tales) has since taken the lead.

The longtime Pirates of the Caribbean shepherd has described the upcoming movie as a reboot, but that doesn’t necessarily mean a Sparrow-less voyage. He was previously quoted, saying:

Depp’s influence on the character is the stuff of Hollywood legend. Jack Sparrow’s eccentric blend of Pepé Le Pew charm and Keith Richards swagger wasn’t in the original script, but was the actor’s invention. And it’s hard to imagine the franchise without it.

If the Ed Wood star does step back into Captain Jack’s boots, it would signal a major thaw in his post-2018 split with Disney and years of self-imposed distance from Hollywood studio fare. The Pirates of the Caribbean producer once admitted he couldn’t secure even a cameo for Depp in future installments. Since the trial, the actor has largely focused on independent projects, but Bruckheimer believes the right script could lure him back to the helm.

That’s the caveat: the script needs to be something the Rango star feels is worthy of Jack’s return. As Bruckheimer puts it, “It’s all about what’s on the page.” Until that’s locked, the Black Pearl’s course remains uncertain. But for fans, the fact that Johnny Depp and Jerry Bruckheimer are talking and that the door isn’t closed might be the most hopeful sign in years.

As we wait for more news on the possible return of Captain Jack, fans of the Pirates franchise can revisit the first five installments with their Disney+ subscription.

Hollywood press tours can be chaotic enough without a little extracurricular activity in the mix. But according to Armie Hammer, there was at least one junket where things went hilariously off the rails. In a recent Podcast episode, the actor shared a story from before the 2025 movie schedule, recalling how he was effectively banned from promotional appearances, likely for Disney’s The Lone Ranger with Johnny Depp, after getting the Pirates of the Caribbean star “super stoned” before a press day.

On the July 28 episode of his Armie HammerTime podcast, the actor chatted with his assistant and cohost, Ashton Ramsey, about the “most trouble” he’d ever gotten into on a set. As Ramsey put it:

Ramsey teed up the story by calling it “the most trouble that you ever got into,” recalling that The Social Network actor had essentially gotten Depp “super stoned” before the day’s interviews. The Call Me By Your Name star said the incident had immediate consequences:

Hammer didn’t elaborate on how Depp reacted in the moment, but it’s not hard to imagine the studio wanting its leads alert and ready for hours of repetitive press questions.

The 38-year-old The Man from U.N.C.L.E. actor didn’t name the project outright, but the timing — along with multiple mentions of working with Depp during the same conversation — strongly suggests he was referring to 2013’s The Lone Ranger, available to stream with a Disney+ subscription. In that film, he and the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory star shared top billing, and the Crisis actor recalled that during that period he was “smoking upwards of 15 to 20 joints a day” and often tried to get others just as high:

This isn’t the first eyebrow-raising headline for Armie Hammer, who’s weathered everything from highly controversial allegations — including claims of cannibalistic fantasies — to sexual assault accusations. However, those specific claims never led to legal action. He’s spoken openly about the heightened cannibal rumors, as well as revealing painful experiences with childhood sexual abuse and a past suicide attempt. These days, the Los Angeles-born performer says he can look back on that turbulent chapter with a bit more humor. And while the controversy left a lasting mark on his career, 2024 saw him start easing back into acting, with a new Western set to release later this year.

Whether or not The Lone Ranger press team truly had to keep its two stars on opposite sides of the junket schedule forever, the story now lives on as one of those only-in-Hollywood anecdotes, part cautionary tale, part comedy. It’s a reminder that even the most carefully managed movie campaigns can go sideways when off-screen chemistry turns into off-script behavior.

Armie Hammer’s first big-screen role post-controversy, Frontier Crucible with William H. Macy, does not yet have a set release date, but it wrapped in January, so it's safe to say that if it doesn't land this year, the 2026 movie schedule is a pretty safe bet.

We’re currently living through the era of sequels, reboots and revivals, and Johnny Depp hasn’t been immune from that. The past few years have seen Depp caught up in Pirates of the Caribbean 6 chatter and, as of right now, that project seems to be far from a sure thing. As commonplace as sequels are, though, I can’t say I was expecting to hear that one of Depp’s classic films is receiving one. Not only that, but this particular follow-up is also happening in a way that I wouldn’t have expected.

One Of Johnny Depp And Tim Burton’s Films Is Receiving A Sequel

Years ago, Johnny Depp teamed up with Tim Burton for 1999’s Sleepy Hollow, an adaptation of Washington Irving’s short story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The movie may not be among Burton’s most acclaimed works or feature one of Depp’s greatest roles, but it has garnered a following. On that note, the film is now set to receive a sequel by way of a comic book published by IDW Publishing’s horror brand, IDW Dark. Per EW, Return to Sleepy Hollow is being penned by Casey Gilly, with Savanna Mayer contributing the artwork.

Sleepy Hollow centers on Ichabod Crane (Depp), a police constable who is summoned to the titular town to investigate a string of grisly decapitations. It’s there that Crane discovers the supernatural force that is the Headless Horseman and draws the romantic interest of Katrina Van Tassel (Christina Ricci). The comic-based sequel will see Ichabod return to the town 15 years later to investigate more murders, and he’ll also reunite with Katrina, from whom he’s estranged. Casey Gilly said this about landing the gig:

I’ve honestly never had Sleepy Hollow on my bingo card as a Tim Burton movie that was in dire need of a follow-up. And, of course, what’s even more surprising is that this new chapter in the horror series is coming by way of a comic book. However, there is precedence, as other movies have been expanded upon using that medium. Even the series Batman ‘89 builds on the continuity launched by Burton’s two superhero films. Neither Burton nor Johnny Depp seem to be involved with Return, though Depp has something else in store.

Johnny Depp Is Launching A Comic Book Property Of His Own

As the sequel to his late-’90s, dark fantasy flick remains in the works, Johnny Depp is working with filmmaker Ridley Scott to develop a new IP. The pair of creatives joined forces for Hyde, a graphic novel series that’s based on Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde and will be released this Halloween. The story follows Mr. Hyde, who’s fully suppressed Dr. Jekyll and is now living in the sewers while attempting to turn others into Hydes. The titular character bears Depp’s likeness, though he’s playing coy on a live-action adaptation.

That aforementioned graphic novel will be jointly owned by the Fantastic Beasts alum, Ridley Scott and the production company Johnny Cake. With this latest business move, the actor continues to forge a professional path amid this latest chapter of his career (which he wouldn’t call a “comeback”). Still, in the aftermath of his legal issues with ex-wife Amber Heard, the veteran actor is working his way back into the industry. He’s also making a major Hollywood return with Day Drinker, his first film from a U.S. studio in several years.

I can’t help but wonder whether the Sleepy Hollow comic could spawn a live-action adaptation should it gain buzz. Theoretically, that would be another feather in Johnny Depp’s professional cap. Realistically, the chances of that happening are probably slim but, then again, the notion of this particular Tim Burton film receiving a follow-up seemed unlikely, too. Return to Sleepy Hollow will be released on October 29, and fans looking to prepare for it can stream the OG film for free on Pluto TV now.

It never ceases to amaze me when an actor is the spitting image of the real person they are selected to play. I do not think a historical portrayal necessarily lives or dies by the performer’s resemblance to the subject, but I think it is something to appreciate, especially when you consider the amount of biopics starring actors who bear absolutely no resemblance to their role. Here are a few notable examples of actors who were clearly hired for their talents above anything else.

Michael Shannon As Elvis Presley (Elvis & Nixon)

The most requested photo in the National Archives depicts Elvis Presley shaking hands with Richard Nixon in the Oval Office, and the events surrounding this historic meeting at the White House are dramatized in 2016's Elvis & Nixon. Kevin Spacey makes for a visually believable depiction of the 37th United States President, but the otherwise wonderfully talented Michael Shannon simply does not cut it as the one many call the King of Rock 'n Roll, even with a decent jumpsuit and wig.

John Wayne As Genghis Khan (The Conqueror)

Oh, boy, where do we begin with this one? The only visual evidence we have of what Genghis Khan looked like is artist renderings, but it does not take an expert to notice that John Wayne was not Asian. Still, the legendary Western movie star was cast as the Mongol chief in 1956's The Conqueror, which has since been regarded as one of the worst films ever made.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson As John Lennon (Nowhere Boy)

Director Sam Taylor-Johnson's 2009 music biopic Nowhere Boy focuses on the pre-Beatles life of John Lennon, as portrayed by Aaron Taylor-Johnson. If you ask me, the Golden Globe-winning actor might have been a better fit to play, perhaps, Paul McCartney or, better yet, George Harrison.

Tom Cruise As Barry Seal (American Made)

If more people knew about Barry Seal and what he looked like, I believe Tom Cruise's portrayal in 2017's American Made would have been criticized as one of the most egregious miscastings in Hollywood history. The otherwise talented movie star did absolutely nothing to alter his appearance and pass for the ill-fated, heavy-set CIA smuggler, save what I regard as an embarrassing Southern accent.

Julia Roberts As Erin Brockovich (Erin Brockovich)

Julia Roberts gives, arguably, the finest performance of her career as a single mother and paralegal who uncovers a small town pollution scandal in Steven Soderbergh's Erin Brockovich from 2000. However, if a resemblance to the person an actor is portraying were part of the Academy's voting criteria, she might not have won the Oscar.

Denzel Washington As Frank Lucas (American Gangster)

Ridley Scott's 2007 biopic American Gangster dramatizes the career of mobster Frank Lucas, played by Denzel Washington, and also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as Lucas' brother, Huey. Curiously, Ejiofor actually looks a whole lot more like the real Frank than the two-time Oscar winner. However, Washington was a good friend and frequent collaborator of the director's brother, Tony Scott, so he probably had the role in the bag for that, among other reasons.

Johnny Depp As J.M. Barrie (Finding Neverland)

Oddly enough, J.M. Barrie boasted a striking resemblance to another influential author, Edgar Allan Poe, with his tall forehead and small moustache. However, Johnny Depp, who played the Peter Pan author in 2004's Finding Neverland, does not boast a resemblance to either of them, if you ask me.

Hugh Jackman As P.T. Barnum (The Greatest Showman)

Let's not even bother talking about the many historical inaccuracies from The Greatest Showman, 2017's musical retelling of the origins of the circus, and even ignore the fact that P.T. Barnum was not the kindhearted man Hugh Jackman portrayed him as. All that matters to this list is whether or not the Wolverine star looked the part, and the famously attractive Australian actor most definitely was not a match for Barnum in that regard.

Michael Fassbender As Steve Jobs (Steve Jobs)

Michael Fassbender's Oscar-nominated performance in director Danny Boyle and writer Aaron Sorkin's Steve Jobs from 2015 is widely regarded as superior to Ashton Kutcher's portrayal in Jobs from two years earlier. However, at least the former That '70s Show cast member can say he resembled the tech pioneer more closely.

Jesse Eisenberg As Mark Zuckerberg (The Social Network)

Mark Zuckerberg once made a surprise SNL cameo, during which he stood right next to host Jesse Eisenberg on the Studio 8H stage, proving that they are certainly not a visual match. The actor does not even bother to imitate the Facebook founder's distinctly low voice when portraying him in 2010's The Social Network, but his Oscar nomination proves that that is not what really matters in the end.

Tom Hanks As Fred Rogers (A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood)

Casting a universally beloved actor such as Tom Hanks to play a universally beloved children's television personality like Fred Rogers, of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood fame, is brilliant in theory. However, even giving the Oscar winner the icon's signature haircut and sweaters is not quite enough to distract from the fact that you are still unmistakably watching Hanks on screen.

Leonardo DiCaprio As Howard Hughes (The Aviator)

A major inspiration for Marvel's Tony "Iron Man" Stark was Howard Hughes, whose resemblance is actually a striking match for both Robert Downey Jr. and Dominic Cooper, who plays Howard Stark in his early years in the MCU. In fact, I think either one of them would have been a better visual fit for the eccentric millionaire in The Aviator than Leonardo DiCaprio, even if his performance in the 2005 biopic makes it one of his best collaborations with the director, Martin Scorsese.

Warren Beatty And Faye Dunaway As Clyde Barrow And Bonnie Parker (Bonnie And Clyde)

From a performance standpoint, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway make a great onscreen duo portraying the titular notorious bank robbers in 1967's Bonnie and Clyde. However, the screen legends' casting does not earn the film any points for historical accuracy, considering Beatty does not have Clyde Barrow's jug ears, nor does Dunaway boast Bonnie Parker's sharp, thin face.

Taraji P. Henson As Katherine G. Johnson (Hidden Figures)

Taraji P. Henson gives an undeniably commanding performance in 2016's Hidden Figures as Katherine G. Johnson, a mathematician who was pivotal in helping NASA figure out space travel. Yet, when comparing the Empire star to photos of the real Johnson, it is clear the actor does not resemble her much at all.

Anthony Hopkins As Richard Nixon (Nixon)

Reportedly, Anthony Hopkins had some hesitation about taking on the lead role of Oliver Stone's 1995 biopic about Richard M. Nixon. Ultimately, I would say the Academy Award winner went on to give a great performance in Nixon, but I find myself distracted by his struggle to hide his accent and his obvious fake teeth and hairpiece that really do not help make him look any closer in resemblance to the disgraced U.S. president.

Margot Robbie As Queen Elizabeth I (Mary Queen Of Scots)

Cate Blanchett previously gave an Academy Award-nominated performance as the lead of 1998's Elizabeth, and even bore a strong resemblance to the royal based on artist renderings. I cannot say the same about Margot Robbie, even if the Australian actor's portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I in Mary Queen of Scots was still worthy of praise.

Benedict Cumberbatch As Alan Turing (The Imitation Game)

Benedict Cumberbatch has such a distinct appearance, making it difficult for him to resemble anyone else without heavy alterations. However, nothing was done to make him look any closer to World War II-era computer scientist Alan Turing in The Imitation Game.

Javier Bardem As Desi Arnaz (Being The Ricardos)

Oscar winner Nicole Kidman went above and beyond to physically become Lucille Ball for writer and director Aaron Sorkin's dramatization of what went on behind the scenes of the beloved TV sitcom, I Love Lucy. However, playing her onscreen husband is Oscar winner Javier Bardem, who does not pass for Desi Arnaz in the slightest.

Ray Liotta As Shoeless Joe Jackson (Field Of Dreams)

Technically, Ray Liotta plays the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams, but even a person's spectral remnant should look something like them. The infamous MLB player had a much narrower face and wider ears, not to mention that he pitched left-handed, while the actor did the opposite in the beloved sports movie.

Beyoncé As Etta James (Cadillac Records)

No one could possibly deny that Beyoncé has the pipes to match Etta James, which had to have been the reason why she was cast in 2008's Cadillac Records. However, the "At Last" singer was short and round-faced, and the former Destiny's Child member is neither.

Dominic West As Prince Charles III (The Crown)

I mean no disrespect to Prince Charles III, but is it just me, or was The Wire star Dominic West just a little too handsome to play the Royal Family member on The Crown? Then again, any one cast member's portrayal on the historical Netflix series might pale in comparison to Elizabeth Debicki's striking resemblance to Princess Diana.

Kane Hodder As Ed Gein (Ed Gein: The Butcher Of Plainfield)

The most famous actor to wear Jason Voorhees' hockey mask in the Friday the 13th films must have seemed like an inspired choice to play one of the most notorious serial killers in history in 2007's Ed Gein: The Butcher of Plainfield. However, the 6'2", broadly built Kane Hodder does not boast Gein's narrower face and small stature.

Clive Owen As Bill Clinton (Impeachment: American Crime Story)

In most cases, prosthetics can be very helpful in making an actor look more similar to the person they are portraying, such as when Charlize Theron became Megyn Kelly for Bombshell. Clive Owen adopted this method to play Bill Clinton on Impeachment: American Crime Story, but the makeup only caused the English actor to resemble the 1990s-era President even less.

Angelina Jolie As Christine Collins (Changeling)

Christine Collins is the subject of Clint Eastwood's 2008 period film, Changeling, which is based on the true story of when her missing son was replaced by an impostor. Had she been an even better-known historical figure, there might have been more criticism over casting Angelina Jolie, an actor known for her voluptuous lips, as the thin-lipped 1920s woman.

Fred Armisen As Barack Obama (Saturday Night Live)

Considering the fact that the otherwise extremely talented SNL star Fred Armisen is a white man with a subpar impersonation of the 44th. U.S. President, I'll just say that I am glad Jay Pharoah eventually took over as Barack Obama.

Tom Hulce As Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Amadeus)

Just based on artist renderings of the seminal composer, Tom Hulce was nowhere near a match to play the title role of director Milos Forman's Best Picture Oscar winner, Amadeus, from 1984. However, the actor is widely admired for his performance as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which earned him a well-deserved Academy Award nomination.

Robert Redford As Harry Longabaugh (Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid)

I wonder how many others like me had no idea that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was based on a true story, which might be how the film was able to get away with casting actors who look nothing like the Western outlaws they play. For instance, Robert Redford's mustache works just fine for the role, but Harry Longabaugh, a.k.a. "The Sundance Kid," did not have long blonde locks.

Diana Ross As Billie Holiday (Lady Sings The Blues)

Most would agree that 1972's Lady Sings the Blues is the superior biopic about the trailblazing "Strange Fruit" singer over The United States vs. Billie Holiday from 2021. However, those same people might also agree that Andra Day was a better fit to play Holiday, physically speaking, than the otherwise wonderfully talented Diana Ross in the earlier film.

Robin Williams As Patch Adams (Patch Adams)

The real Patch Adams hates Tom Shadyac's biopic based on his life, which has nothing to do with the fact that Robin Williams looks nothing like the influential doctor. However, it's still impossible to ignore, especially with how they do not even bother to give the Oscar winner Adams' signature mustache.

Mel Gibson As William Wallace (Braveheart)

In the most well-known illustrations of William Wallace, the Scottish warrior is depicted as having short hair and a beard. Why director Mel Gibson opted against this look when he portrayed Wallace in Braveheart is beyond me.

Serena Scott Thomas As Princess Diana (Diana: Her True Story)

Many actors have portrayed Princess Diana to varying degrees of success, but most consider Serena Scott Thomas from the 1993 two-part miniseries, Diana: Her True Story, to be one of the weakest matches, purely in terms of her physical resemblance.

Zoe Saldaña As Nina Simone (Nina)

The 2016 biopic, Nina, sparked controversy when Zoe Saldaña donned skin-darkening makeup and a prosthetic nose to better resemble singer Nina Simone, which the actor would later admit she regretted.

Johnny Depp’s legal issues dominated headlines years ago and, amid the drama, he experienced professional blows. In 2020, Depp was asked to vacate his role as the villainous Gellert Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts movies. Depp’s professional standing has changed since then, as he’s now gradually working his way back into the Hollywood landscape. With that, he’s been opening up about his experiences from the past few years, and he didn’t mind dropping a four-letter word when recalling his Wizarding World gig.

The 62-year-old actor spoke about his life and career during a wide-ranging interview with The Telegraph. Eventually, the topic of his high-profile Fantastic Beasts gig came up. When discussing the situation, Depp suggested that he was taken aback by the turn of events. That was especially due to the fact that he was in the midst of working on the film when the request from the powers that be came down to him:

Johnny Depp was asked to vacate his role as the dark wizard after he lost his libel case against News Group Newspapers. The Oscar-nominated actor sued the company due to one of its publications, The Sun, referring to him as a “wife beater” in an article. In the aftermath of the case and Depp’s dismissal from the Harry Potter spinoff series, it was reported that the star had already shot three scenes for 2022’s Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.

Ultimately, Mads Mikkelsen was tapped to replace Johnny Depp in the role, and the news was met with much fanfare. Mikkelsen opted to take a different approach to the character on multiple levels and even sported a less grandiose look than Depp’s version of the villain. During this latest interview, Depp went on to explain exactly how he felt after being asked to relinquish his role. The four-letter word he dropped along with his additional sentiments seem to convey just how Depp was feeling at the time:

The Secrets of Dumbledore (which is now streamable with an HBO Max subscription) would be the Ed Wood star’s final film from a major U.S. film studio for several years. After parting ways with the franchise, he became embroiled in a defamation case with ex-wife Amber Heard. Depp received a favorable verdict in that case, as he was awarded $15 million in both compensatory and punitive damages. However, the sum of the punitive damages were later reduced due to a Virginia state law.

Lately, Johnny Depp has been candid about the case and how many details of his personal life were revealed as a result of it. Despite that, Depp said that he knew he’d have to “semi-eviscerate” himself if he wanted to prove he’d committed no wrongdoing. Now, Depp is making a “comeback,” though he wouldn’t refer to it as that. After spending the last few years working on international films, Depp is now working on Day Drinker, his first major movie with a U.S. studio since he was asked to step away from Fantastic Beasts 3.

In an era where Hollywood is defined by the successful film franchise, no studio has found more success than Disney. Having said that, outside of Marvel and Star Wars, the franchises the studio purchased, the only live-action franchise success Disney has actually found success with that is 100% homegrown is Pirates of the Caribbean. And much of that success is laid at the feet of one Captain Jack Sparrow.

It’s hard to understate the way Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow became a cinematic icon overnight. The performance was unlike anything we had seen before. Of course, that wasn’t necessarily a good thing at the time. Jerry Bruckheimer recently told Deadline that when he first saw what Depp had come up with, he didn’t think Disney would ever accept it. He said…

The story behind the creation of Captain Jack Sparrow has been talked about before over the years. The character, as Bruckheimer indicates, was originally seen as a more traditional heroic leading man, making Depp’s idea to find inspiration in Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards a significant curveball, to say the least.

Depp himself has said he thought then Disney CEO Michael Eisner would fire him when he heard Disney wasn't happy with what the actor was doing. Bruckheimer says that they were able to get Depp to tone down some of his ideas. Then, they showed the studio what Depp was actually doing, and moods improved. Bruckheimer continued…

In the end, Disney is certainly glad it went along for the ride. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was a massive hit, which has since spawned four additional films. It’s no wonder that despite the fact that we haven’t seen a new entry in the franchise in eight years, Disney has continued to work on multiple ideas for a new Pirates of the Caribbean movie.

The big question is whether or not that entry will include Captain Jack Sparrow. Disney had previously indicated the franchise was in line to be rebooted without Johnny Depp, following the actor's troubled legal issues. However, as time has passed, rumors of Depp’s potential return have continued to circulate. Most recently, Jerry Bruckheimer himself has indicated there are two different scripts for a future Pirates movie currently being considered, one that includes Jack Sparrow and one that does not.

Whether or not we see Jack Sparrow again, there’s no denying the character’s importance.

Encouragement is something that everyone can use from time to time. For every hit show or big newcomer you see on the 2025 TV schedule, there’s likely at least one person that showed their support to make it happen. In the case of Rosie Perez, her fledgling career included a guest spot on 21 Jump Street, which saw her get the vote of confidence from Johnny Depp himself.

Talking to Variety, the Brooklyn-born icon talked about her appearance in the Season 4 episode “2245” back in 1990, which as it happens can be streamed through a Peacock subscription. More specifically, she provided this anecdote about how her first interaction with Mr. Depp went so well, the following events transpired:

Considering this moment took place after Perez’s spot in the stacked cast of up and coming actors that was the ensemble of Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing, it appears that Mr. Depp knew what “the good stuff” was when it came to acting. It wouldn’t be too long until that statement would be proven to be even more valid, thanks to accomplishments such as her award-nominated run for In Living Color and her 1993 Oscar nomination for the Peter Weir film Fearless.

Unfortunately for her, that was also the year that one of the most surprising Oscar upsets gave that Best Supporting Actress trophy that Rosie Perez was vying for to Anna Paquin for her performance in The Piano. Still, the promise of her career was something that her 21 Jump Street co-star could spot in a second.

Fast forward to the present day, and she has several other award nominations to boast of, most recently as a part of the cast of the HBO Max series The Flight Attendant. Now if only we could get Rosie Perez and Johnny Depp to reunite for a project of some sort, things could come around full circle.

For now, we'll just have to look forward to her next big movie role, which just so happens to be the reunion between Rosie Perez and her Do The Right Thing director, as she's playing herself in Spike Lee's long awaited Denzel Washington crime thriller Highest 2 Lowest. That film opens in theaters on August 22nd, with its Apple TV+ debut set for September 5th.

Johnny Depp has made headlines in recent years, though a significant portion of that news was in relation to personal matters as opposed to professional ones. The 62-year-old actor was involved in a few high-profile legal matters involving his ex-wife, Amber Heard. At this point, those situations appear to be behind Depp, who’s been having a Hollywood resurgence as of late. Now, Depp is opening up about the fact that so many details regarding his personal life were made public amid his legal skirmish with Heard.

In 2018, after The Sun referred to Johnny Depp as a “wife beater” in an article, the star filed suit against the outlet’s publisher – News Group Newspapers – for libel. Ultimately, Depp lost his case in 2020, with the court ruling that many of the reported acts of violence that he purportedly committed were proven true. Depp later sued Amber Heard for defamation in 2019 over an op-ed she wrote the year before in The Washington Post about sexual violence. Heard also countersued Depp for alleged instances of defamation.

Amid this particular Heard/Depp legal battle, the two former spouses leveled various allegations against each other. As noted in The Times’ profile of Depp, statements were also submitted from his former girlfriends and photos of a severed finger, wine and more were included as evidence. Reflecting on all of that while speaking to the aforementioned news outlet, Depp shared his belief that it was necessary in order to present “the truth” of the situation:

The Oscar nominee went on to say that he understood that the legal battle would be difficult for him. However, he says he was willing to “fight” as necessary to make his case:

The case of Depp v. Heard was conducted in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2022, running from mid April to early June of that year. (Said trial was also available for viewers to watch on TV.) Depp enlisted the services of several attorneys while attempting to make his case, including Camille Vasquez, who frequently fielded questions about her client and her team’s legal strategy. Ultimately, the verdict went in favor of Depp, who was awarded $15 million in compensatory and punitive damages combined (with the latter later being reduced due to a VA law.) Heard, who was found guilty of three counts of defamation, also received $2 million in compensatory damages.

Since the trial, Johnny Depp has gradually been making career moves. He’s since starred in Jeanne du Barry, a historical drama that was released in 2023, and Depp also teamed up with Al Pacino by directing and producing a biopic, Modì, Three Days on the Wing of Madness. Right now, Depp is looking towards the release of his first Day Drinker, which marks his first film with a major Hollywood studio since 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

Overall, in the aftermath of his legal woes with Amber Heard (who’s now living in Spain), Johnny Depp is reportedly focused on his work. Depp, however, prefers that the public doesn’t call this a “comeback,” as he says that he “didn’t go anywhere.”

Johnny Depp was once one of the biggest movie stars in the world. However, following a pair of major legal battles the actor’s career had once appeared to be completely over. He’s recently been working on a comeback, however, and if recent rumors are to be believed, he could be on the verge of a major return in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

Johnny Depp’s Biggest Movie Since His Legal Battles Is On The Way

Johnny Depp is currently working on the film Day Drinker, which will be the actor’s highest profile movie since his lengthy legal battle with ex Amber Heard. He’ll co-star alongside Penelope Cruz, who publicly defended Depp. And an unnamed source recently told InTouch Weekly that the actor is looking to return to his previous level of success, saying…

Of course, for Johnny Depp to have a “full” return to his former glory, as the unnamed source suggests here, that’s going to mean a return to major blockbuster movies. And surprisingly, according to some reports that may actually be happening.

Could Johnny Depp Return For Pirates Of The Caribbean 6 After All?

The Pirates of the Caribbean movies have been some of the most successful live-action films Disney has made outside of Marvel and Star Wars. A sixth movie in the franchise seemed like a sure thing, but following Johnny Depp’s legal troubles, the decision was made to reboot the franchise without him.

There have been multiple scripts in development in the last few years. A project that would have starred Margot Robbie was considered, but has reportedly been shelved., However, most recently, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who has not hidden his desire to keep Depp involved, revealed that there are two scripts for a new Pirates movie currently in development, and one of them would have Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow returning.

What’s more, a story from Express indicates that Depp is in “advanced” negotiations with Disney for a return. While we have to take this report with a grain of salt, if it’s true, it would seem that not only is Johnny Depp’s return to the Pirates franchise possible, it’s actually becoming likely.

It would certainly be a major shift for Disney. The studio has continually insisted that the franchise was moving on from Captain Jack Sparrow. Jerry Bruckheimer had indicated he’d been unable to secure so much as a cameo for Depp in a future Pirates movie.

Of course, nothing will be official until we hear it from Disney. A new Pirates of the Caribbean movie being officially confirmed will be big news, and the inclusion, or lack thereof, of Johnny Depp will be a big part of the ensuing conversation.

Throughout the ‘90s and the ‘00s, Johnny Depp commanded the screen every year with his best performances, such as Jack Sparrow, Sweeney Todd, Edward Scissorhands, and more. Then, when allegations from the Depp Vs. Heard defamation trial made headlines, Depp’s roles were affected, like being dropped from Fantastic Beasts 3 and the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Now that the Oscar nominee is returning to main stream moies with Day Drinker, he doesn’t prefer fans to think of this as a “comeback.”

Ever since Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s defamation trial came to a close in 2022, the transformative actor has been slowly making his way back into movies. His first post-trial movie, Jeanne du Barry, premiered at Cannes with Depp reportedly feeling “fantastic” about his new chapter. However, the Ed Wood actor previously told The L.A. Times why he doesn’t prefer people use the term “comeback” to describe his return to movies:

What Johnny Depp could be referring to is all of the new career chapters he’s made throughout his life. Starting off in the industry as a teen idol, Depp made a name for himself in A Nightmare on Elm Street and in the police drama series 21 Jump Street. However, he hated being thought of as a teen heartthrob. Therefore, you could argue that his “comeback” as a serious actor came from starring in the title role of Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, which led to him being one of Burton’s most frequently chosen actors for his projects.

While Johnny Depp’s Tim Burton movies and other artsy films like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas showed the actor’s extensive range, they didn’t earn a lot of money at the box office. So you can say that another career milestone of Depp’s came from playing the lovable trickster Jack Sparrow in The Pirates of the Caribbean movies (which are streaming on your Disney+ subscription). He went from a quirky cult status star to a global superstar.

Jeanne du Barry may have highlighted Johnny Depp’s tense, French return to movies with a seven-minute standing ovation at Cannes. But, its decision to premiere at the festival left a selected screening. Fortunately, Depp’s major Hollywood return will come from the Marc Webb thriller Day Drinker. Reuniting with his frequent co-star Penélope Cruz, the bankable actor will play a cruise ship bartender who meets a mysterious day drinker, only for the pair to be wrapped up in a criminal plot. Based on the Lionsgate film’s first look photo with Depp looking like a different person, I can see his knack for transformative roles will be making a return, too.

Johnny Depp may not prefer to think of his return to movies as a “comeback,” considering how many returns he’s made to Hollywood. However, there’s no doubt that his newest Hollywood role in Day Drinker will mark another significant chapter in the actor’s life.

It feels like the right time on the 2025 movie schedule to release a thrill ride that could take our breaths away. And judging from what I’ve read through Drop’s critical reactions, I have a feeling that director Christopher Landon’s latest is going to fit the bill rather nicely.

However, I’m not here to talk about Meghann Fahy’s date from hell, because if you’re here, you’ve probably seen it by this point, and you want more. Well, allow me to introduce you to what I consider to be one of the best ‘90s movies, if only for the fact that it started my love for this underseen subgenre.

Johnny Depp’s Nick Of Time Walked So That Real Time Thrillers Could Drop

The 1995 release of the Johnny Depp starring Nick of Time may not have been the moment the real-time thriller was invented, but for Young Mike, it was a mindblower. The premise is deadly simple: accountant Gene Watson (Depp) is given a choice that could change his life - kill a California gubernatorial candidate or lose the life of his young daughter.

What makes director John Badham’s execution of this premise so amazing is that it’s a 90-minute movie, in real time, in one location. Also, Johnny Depp being terrorized by Christopher Walken, who plays the picture’s villain, Mr. Smith. In one of Depp’s most restrained performances, it’s Walken who gets to go nuts in Nick of Time, and gleefully so.

Throughout the single location of the hotel that’s hosting this campaign rally of death, twists and turns unfold. Gene tries to get smart, with Mr. Smith beating him most of the time, with everything leading up to a nail-biting conclusion that awaits when the deadline arrives. It’s fun, it’s tense, and for reasons that Drop director Christopher Landon has previously laid out, it has the two key ingredients that any real-time thriller needs to actually work.

Even Christopher Landon Recognized Nick Of Time’s Game When Making Drop

I had the privilege of speaking with Mr. Landon at Drop’s trailer debut at BlumFest 2024. As we met up at this New York Comic Con press line, I told the man of the hour (and forty minutes) that Nick of Time was the first movie that came to mind after being introduced to Violet (Meghann Fahy) and her brush with danger.

His reaction, as recalled during my own Drop trailer reaction, was one of pure joy. Highlighting how he saw writers Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach’s script as a “good clean premise” that was also character-driven, this project had found a home in his heart. This leads me to how those very reasons apply to Nick of Time, connecting these pictures in heart and mind.

While Nick of Time missed out on my list of 32 great movies under 90 minutes, it exhibits the same economy of story that any proper example of this genre possesses. As far as the character-driven half goes, following Johnny Depp’s Gene Watson through a journey that introduces him to friend and foe is a tense exercise. Not knowing who to trust makes it difficult to plan, especially in a situation where time is literally not on your side.

As for the “clean premise,” writer Patrick Sheane Duncan really puts his protagonist through his paces. Centering itself in one location, focusing on a singular protagonist, and limiting the time frame of the story all contribute to the simplicity that sharpens the hands on Nick of Time’s clock into dangerous weapons.

Put it all together, and you’ve got a movie that primed Young Mike to seek out other films like Phone Booth and TV series like 24 - both of which feature the unofficial king of real-time thrillers, Kiefer Sutherland. I think I’ve hyped this one up enough, as you can currently stream Nick of Time for free on Pluto TV, or rent the film on Digital HD. No matter which method you prefer, if you’re picking up what Drop’s putting down, you shouldn’t waste time jumping into this cult classic.

It’s been a few years now since Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s defamation trial came to a close and, since then, the former has been seeking to make a comeback of sorts. Depp’s lined up a few acting gigs and even directed a film. He's now headlining what’s arguably his most mainstream movie in sometime. Depp is starring in Day Drinker, which will reunite him with Penélope Cruz. The first look at the leading man in character has been released and, with the gray hair he’s sporting, he doesn’t look like himself.

The 61-year-old actor has been known to don some eclectic looks for films over the years, and, even today, he continues to surprise audiences with his aesthetic choices. In Day Drinker, he’ll not only be sporting longer hair and a beard but, as mentioned, those locks will also be gray. Lionsgate officially released a still of the star as he will appear in the movie, and you can check it out for yourself below:

Honestly, I had to do a bit of a double take when I first saw the still above. It’s true that it’s not one of Johnny Depp’s most grandiose looks for a film. (This is, after all, the man who played Edward Scissorhands, Captain Jack Sparrow and Gellert Grindelwald.) Still, the changes are just striking enough that it would arguably be easy for someone not to recognize Depp at first glance. I can’t help but wonder if his character was described as having gray hair in the screenplay or if this was a creative suggestion on Depp’s part.

This upcoming feature marks Johnny Depp’s first collaboration with a big studio in several years. The last film he was a part of that fell into that category was Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, which opened in theaters in 2018. Announced in 2024, Depp’s latest film is written by Zach Dean and directed by Marc Webb, who notably helmed the Amazing Spider-Man movies, 500 Days of Summer and Disney’s recently released Snow White remake. Day Drinker centers around a bartender on a private yacht (Madelyn Cline) who crosses paths with an enigmatic figure (Depp) and, in time, both find themselves in conflict with a criminal (Cruz).

Marc Webb’s film was embroiled in a bit of controversy a little over a year ago due to a casting rumor. It was reported at the time that Sydney Sweeney had been tapped for a role in the film. However, Sweeney’s team eventually clapped back at the claim that she’d joined the film, brushing them off as just "rumors."

In the aftermath of his legal battle with his ex-wife, Johnny Depp starred in a handful of films shepherded by international production companies. One of those titles is the French historical drama Jeanne du Barry, and it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023. Depp previously spoke about how “grateful” he was that director Maïwenn took a chance on him. Depp then directed his second movie, 2024’s Modì, Three Days on the Wing of Madness, a biographical drama about Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani.

Johnny Depp’s latest film marks a major step for him professionally, considering the jobs he’s landed in the past few years. It’s far too early to say whether this will produce a performance akin to Depp’s greatest work. At the very least, though, the first-look photo indicates that the actor decided to treat this as a somewhat transformative role, from a physical standpoint.

As of this writing, an official release date has not been announced for Day Drinker. While you wait for further developments on that front, check out the 2025 movie schedule for information on big-screen titles headed to a cinema near you soon.

Johnny Depp has been back at work in the film world ever since his high-profile defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard. His first post-trial movie was Jeanne du Barry, and Depp’s upcoming movies include directing Modì, as well as starring in Day Drinker and Carnival: At the End of Days. Despite all of the brand-new projects that talented actor has under his belt, he can’t forget about the years he spent working with frequent collaborator, Tim Burton, believing “Tim is the real thing.”

In the first episode of the four-part Tim Burton docuseries, actors from many of the director’s movies shared some sweet words about him. With Johnny Depp at the top of that list, you better believe the American actor had plenty to say about working with Burton, with a video preview revealed in his Instagram Stories:

There’s no denying that Tim Burton is “the real thing.” In every movie from the gothic horror filmmaker, he has an amazingly eerie, yet magical touch that easily resonates with audiences. Whether you get melancholy feels seeing a man with metal shears in Edward Scissorhands or supernatural dark humor in Dark Shadows, Burton has a style that can’t be matched by anyone else. Plus, the Academy Award nominee has either directly delivered or been involved in the making of stop-motion animated movies like Corpse Bride, Beetlejuice, and The Nightmare Before Christmas, which showcase what a visionary storyteller he is.

If you look at every Johnny Depp performance in a Tim Burton movie, these two are the perfect match. With Depp’s ability to blend in with any role thrown at him, no matter how whimsical, it’s clear that Burton played a big role in exposing the actor’s wide range to audiences. For instance, the Golden Globe winner brought out his oddball, yet lovable self in Edward Scissorhands and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. We also got to see his haunting musical skills in Sweeney Todd and his deadpan humor in Dark Shadows. Each role brings something new to the actor’s resume and highlights Depp’s gifts.

As it’s been 12 years since the last time Johnny Depp collaborated with Tim Burton when they did Dark Shadows, it makes me wonder if the two ever plan to work together again. Unfortunately, we have yet to get a clear answer on this. After the Depp vs. Heard trial ended, the Big Fish director shared his thoughts on working with Depp again, saying that it would depend on the project. But as Burton hinted at “bouncing ideas off the people around you,” maybe a future collaboration is in the works that we don’t know about yet. I, for one, can’t wait to find out eventually.

From Edward Scissorhands to Dark Shadows, Johnny Depp will never forget about the years he worked with "the real thing” like Tim Burton. The director’s unique vision brought out the best in the Pirates of the Caribbean actor and shaped some of Depp’s most memorable roles. Once a premiere date is announced for the Tim Burton docuseries, we'll add it to our 2025 TV schedule.

In the weeks since Blake Lively filed her initial complaint against Justin Baldoni, the director of It Ends With Us has sued The New York Times as well as the actress and her husband, Lively has countersued back, there are multiple other lawsuits in play, and it's all being discussed online. So, this whole situation is being compared to the notorious Amber Heard vs. Johnny Depp case. Now, Depp’s lawyer, Ben Chew, has opened up about Baldoni's legal strategy, calling it “bold,” “aggressive” and not something that is normally done.

Depp’s lawyer Ben Chew was asked about Baldoni’s recent amended complaint and the website the actor’s team created on Law & Crime - Sidebar with Jesse Weber. The host explained that he thought it was a “bold” move to do something like that, and then he asked the lawyer if this was a good idea. In response, Chew said:

Jesse Weber explained that posting all this information not long after it was revealed that Lively and Reynolds were trying to get a gag order for Baldoni’s lawyer was a big decision. Notably, later, a judge explained that if this case was "litigated in the press" more, he'd have to move up the trial date, per The Independent.

To that point about so much information being released publically, Chew said:

Chew went on to say that he’d stay “agnostic” when it came to making claims about who might have the upper hand in this It Ends With Us battle. However, he did explain the value of both teams releasing audio and video – Baldoni’s team has dropped footage from the film as well as a voice message over the last few weeks to try and support his case. To that point, the lawyer explained:

Of course, a lot of text messages have been used on both sides of this battle. Lively’s initial complaint featured texts that tried to prove that Baldoni sexually harassed her and conducted a smear campaign against her. Then, the director’s suit against the New York Times as well as his lawsuit against his co-star and her husband Ryan Reynolds use texts to try and show exactly what happened and point to the idea that the actress and her team were cherrypicking information.

Overall, there’s a lot of information and lawsuits coming from both camps, and it’s overwhelming to keep track of it all. Chew’s comments seem to confirm that putting everything out there is a “bold approach.” However, he also noted that using evidence like audio and video files is very effective. Now, it’s time to wait and see how all this plays out in court.

Some of the most extraordinary performances in movie or TV history have seen the actor completely disappear into a role, not only changing their appearance but also adopting a voice almost entirely different from their own. Take a look at some of the most impressive voice alterations that an actor took on to perfect their unique portrayal of a now iconic character (or characters).

Robert De Niro (Cape Fear)

One thing that makes the 1991 remake of Cape Fear one of the most amusing Martin Scorsese/Robert De Niro collaborations is the actor's approach to playing Max Cady. The Academy Award-winning Italian-American dons a thick, over-the-top Southern accent but is still no less chilling as the sadistic, recently released convict seeking revenge on the defense attorney (Nick Nolte) who put him away.

Lupita Nyong'o (Us)

One of the scariest modern horror movie villains is Red (Lupita Nyong'o) from writer and director Jordan Peele's 2019 sophomore feature, Us. The Academy Award winner brilliantly differentiates the vengeful, "tethered" person from her above-ground double, Adelaide, and gives her an even more unsettling presence, with a raspy voice inspired by a condition called spasmodic dysphonia, which inhibits airflow and is commonly a symptom of traumatic experiences.

Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

As he would with any other role, Daniel Day-Lewis went to great lengths to become the sixteenth President of the United States for his Oscar-winning performance in Steven Spielberg's 2012 biopic, Lincoln. He even made sure to match Honest Abe's voice, which was high-pitched and reedy (according to the Library of Congress), as opposed to the low bellow many previous portrayals mistakenly attempted.

Mel Blanc (Looney Tunes)

To this day, it is almost shocking to learn that most of the original Looney Tunes characters were brought to life by just one actor. Until he passed away in 1989, Mel Blanc provided the diverse voices of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, and plenty more favorites under the Warner Bros. animation umbrella.

Austin Butler (Elvis)

The key to portraying Elvis Presley is nailing his distinct Southern drawl, which Austin Butler went to great lengths to perfect when he was cast as the influential musician in Baz Luhrmann's 2022 biopic. The work he put into the voice seemed to have a lasting effect on the actor, whom audiences could not help but notice continued to speak in the same accent during public appearances.

Seth MacFarlane (Various)

In addition to being one of the creative forces behind two of TV's longest-running hit animated shows for grown-ups, Seth MacFarlane is also responsible for bringing many of their most important characters to life. He voices Peter, Stewie, and Quagmire on Family Guy and plays Stan and Roger on American Dad – all of whom require him to be completely unrecognizable, while Family Guy's Brian is no different from his real voice.

Catherine O’Hara (Schitt's Creek)

What makes Moira Rose (Catherine O'Hara) one of the funniest characters on Schitt's Creek is the way she pronounces certain words with her over-the-top, posh accent. Classic examples include "baby" (beh-beh) and "enchiladas" (ahn-chuh-lah-dahs).

Jim Carrey (How The Grinch Stole Christmas)

It is still sometimes hard to believe that it is Jim Carrey playing the title role in Ron Howard's live-action adaptation of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas from 2000. Not only is he covered head-to-toe with green skin and matching fur in the Christmas movie classic but the comedic mastermind disguises his voice with an accent that earned comparisons to Sean Connery, as he told Entertainment Weekly.

Eddie Murphy (Coming To America)

Eddie Murphy started a career staple of playing multiple roles in the same movie with 1988's Coming to America. He dons an African accent to play Prince Akeem and brings his voice to higher octaves as Randy Watson and Clarence, but he undergoes the most intensive alteration of both his appearance and voice when playing elderly barber shop patron, Saul.

Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)

The Dark Knight is a superhero movie that won Oscars for Sound Editing and for Heath Ledger's astonishing, transformative performance as The Joker. No matter how many times you watch Christopher Nolan's acclaimed 2008 sequel to Batman Begins, it is always shocking to hear that wheezy, menacing voice coming from the late Australian actor.

Dan Castellaneta (The Simpsons)

If you have ever seen any of comedian Dan Castellaneta's live-action acting credits, it might shock you to learn that his most famous role is Homer Simpson. However, the Simpsons cast member provides the voice of plenty more characters than the infantile, Duff-swilling family man, including Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, and Groundskeeper Willie.

Bill Skarsgård (Nosferatu)

Bill Skarsgård is no stranger to dramatically altering his appearance and his voice for the sake of scaring the living daylights out of audiences, having played Pennywise in back-to-back creepy clown movies, It and It Chapter Two. However, his transformation into Count Orlok for Robert Eggers' 2024 reimagining of Nosferatu was an even more challenging process, requiring a month-and-a-half of vocal training to perfect the vampire's dread-inducing growl.

Joaquin Phoenix (Walk The Line)

Joaquin Phoenix did all of his own singing when portraying Johnny Cash in James Mangold's acclaimed music biopic, 2005's Walk the Line. While appearing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien that year, the future Oscar winner told the late night talk show host that he worked with a dialect coach to replicate the Man in Black's deep baritone voice as authentically as possible.

Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout)

For her Emmy-winning performance on the Hulu original true crime miniseries, The Dropout, Amanda Seyfried had the challenge of imitating the infamous low voice of Elizabeth Holmes, the founder and CEO of the fraudulent blood-testing company Theranos.

Hugh Jackman (X-Men)

Many have been shocked to learn that Hugh Jackman is an Australian as his most famous role is the Canadian-native, Adamantium-clawed mutant, Wolverine. Of course, the Tony winner does more than just drop his natural accent for the X-Men movies but also incorporates a deep, nigh-animalistic growl.

Stephanie Beatriz (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

When Stephanie Beatriz debuted in the Brooklyn Nine-Nine cast, she used her natural, higher-tone voice to play Det. Rosa Diaz. However, over time, the character's voice became progressively deeper until the actor settled on a low, more gruff tone that better suited the cop's hard-edged exterior.

Christian Bale (The Dark Knight Trilogy)

To play the lead in Christopher Nolan's beloved live-action Batman movies, Christian Bale pulled double-duty on changing his voice. In addition to dropping his Welsh accent when appearing as Bruce Wayne, he adopted a gravelly, identity-concealing growl when patrolling Gotham as the Dark Knight.

Kristen Stewart (Spencer)

Kristen Stewart did more to earn her Academy Award nomination for portraying Princess Diana in the 2021 biopic, Spencer, than donning a blonde hairdo and an English accent. The actor revealed to Howard Stern that she went so far as to dramatically evolve her vocal inflection by opening her mouth more widely than she normally would and, as a result, practically altered her physical appearance in the film.

Phil LaMarr (The Adventures Of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius)

Prolific voice actor Phil LaMarr, in addition to his transformative characters as a MADtv cast member, has made himself unrecognizable for countless iconic animated roles, such as John "Green Lantern" Stewart on Justice League or the title hero of Samurai Jack. However, no blip on his resume is nearly as surprising as the recurring role of foreign exchange student Bolbi Stroganofsky on Nickelodeon's The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.

Mark Hamill (Batman: The Animated Series)

There are two different kinds of Mark Hamill fans. There are those who know the actor as Luke Skywalker from the Star Wars movies and then there are those who know him as The Joker on Batman: The Animated Series and many subsequent animated Batman movies. The voice he puts on for the role – a wonderful mix of comically over-the-top theatrics and scintillating intimidation – has been recognized as the definitive portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime in the eyes of many DC fans.

Robin Williams (Popeye)

Robin Williams proved that he was the perfect choice to lead director Robert Altman's live-action adaptation of the Popeye comic strip. He matched the brave, spinach-swilling sailor's fast-paced growl, as originated by voice actor Billy Costello, to a tee in the 1980 film.

Maggie Wheeler (Friends)

Maggie Wheeler stole the show from the Friends cast with her recurring role as Janice Hosenstein, who was famous for her signature catchphrase, "Oh. My. GAWWWWWD!" What sold the character was her thick, nasally Brooklyn accent, which the actor came up with when she auditioned to play the character, as she revealed to Access Hollywood.

Idris Elba (Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom)

Idris Elba earned rave reviews for his portrayal of Nelson Mandela in the Oscar-nominated 2013 biopic, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. Being raised by West African immigrants helped the English-born actor develop an appropriate dialect to play the influential South African President, as he revealed to Oprah Winfrey.

Mia Goth (X)

Mia Goth played dual roles in Ti West's acclaimed A24 horror movie, 2022's X – both of which required her to conceal her mousy English accent. She spoke with a raspy Southern drawl as young aspiring starlet Maxine Minx and sounded similar, but significantly aged up, when playing homicidal elder, Pearl.

Megan Mullally (Will & Grace)

Megan Mullally absolutely earned her two Emmy Award wins for her committed performance as Karen Walker on the classic TV sitcom, Will & Grace. The key to the spoiled socialite's scene-stealing presence was her ear-piercing voice, which truly sounds nothing like the actor in real life.

Ana De Armas (Blonde)

Cuban-born actor Ana de Armas is known for having a strong accent, which she concealed in order to portray Marilyn Monroe in Blonde. Her commitment to matching the Hollywood icon's dialect in the 2022 Netflix original biopic would earn her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Billy West (Various)

Billy West could be called the Mel Blanc of his generation as he can claim to have played about as many memorable animated characters as the iconic voice actor behind much of the Looney Tunes line-up did. To list just a few of West's best-known credits, he was both of the title characters from The Ren & Stimpy Show, took over as Popeye at one time, led Futurama as Fry, and plenty more.

Nicole Kidman (Being The Ricardos)

Nicole Kidman's Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Lucille Ball in 2021's Being the Ricardos was achieved with more than just makeup. The actor shed her Australian accent and added a smokiness to match the I Love Lucy star's natural voice but was also challenged to imitate the more high-pitched tone of the comedy icon's onscreen alter ego.

Melissa Rauch (The Big Bang Theory)

Dr. Bernadette Maryann Rostenkowski-Wolowitz easily boasts one of the most impossibly high-pitched voices in sitcom history. However, The Big Bang Theory cast member Melissa Rauch actually sounds nothing like Howard Wolowitz's bride, yet maintained the façade convincingly for 10 seasons on the hit CBS comedy.

Chris Pratt (The Super Mario Bros. Movie)

Despite making "total sense" to the directors of Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie, fans of the original Nintendo video game series had some initial hesitation over Chris Pratt's casting as the older Mario brother. However, the actor wisely avoided the plumber's stereotypical Italian dialect from the games in favor of a Brooklyn accent that effectively masked his natural voice.

Robert Pattinson (Mickey 17)

Robert Pattinson plays the title role of Bong Joon-ho's 2024 sci-fi comedy Mickey 17 with an entirely unrecognizable and, admittedly, kind of goofy voice. According to IndieWire, the English actor based the voice for his "expendable" character and his many clones off of comedian Steve-O.

Johnny Depp (Charlie And The Chocolate Factory)

Say what you want about Tim Burton's 2005 adaptation of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but you have to admit that Johnny Depp did try something amusing with the role of Willy Wonka. To play the eccentric chocolatier, he adopted a high-pitched wheeze that almost makes you question if it really is the same guy who played Capt. Jack Sparrow under that top hat.

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has been one of the few live-action brands that Disney has seen success with outside of Marvel and Star Wars. However, following a fairly successful fifth outing, the film series has been in a holding pattern. Disney still insists that a new Pirates of the Caribbean is coming, but we have no idea when, or which characters will return. We’re still not expecting Johnny Depp to return, but could we see Orlando Bloom again?

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer has repeatedly stated his hope that Johnny Depp will return for the next PotC movie, despite Disney’s statements that the franchise was moving on without him. While the passage of time makes a Depp return more plausible, EW recently asked another franchise star Orlando Bloom if we would be interested in returning for the next film. He left the door open, admitting he had fun the first time around, and so he’s at least open to the possibility. Bloom said…

After not appearing in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Bloom appeared in a small role in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. His return, and a literal one-shot cameo by Kiera Knightley, allowed the franchise to put a button on their relationship and the franchise’s major outstanding plot point.

While Bloom admits to having fun making the Pirates films, Kiera Knightley has made recent comments that making the movies were tougher for her, indicating she has zero desire to return to the franchise. Bloom appreciates his time in the movies but understands that Knightley did not, saying…

At this point, a return of Orlando Bloom to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is as possible as anything else. There have been multiple movie projects in development for the series, including one that would have starred Margot Robbie, that movie is not the one currently in development, but Bruckheimer has said that making the movie in the future is still on the table.

Bruckheimer has also indicated that a return of Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow is also a possibility. The more time passes, the more likely it is that Disney could change its mind on not including him in the next film.

If the next Pirates movie is a direct sequel to the last one or is even simply set in the same universe, then roles for Depp and/or Bloom are at least possible. The next film could also just as easily be a full franchise reboot, however. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens, whenever it happens.

Some of the biggest and best actors have never won competitive acting Oscars. Some of those names might completely shock you as they have certainly put in the performances that make them worthy of winning the awards. There are a few on this list who have won honorary Oscars or won in other categories, like directing or acting, but none of these stars have been bestowed with the one they probably want the most. So here is our list of actors and actresses who have shockingly never won an Oscar for acting.

Glenn Close

At the top of the list of actors who have shockingly never won an Oscar has to be the great Glenn Close. For decades Close has been putting amazing performances on film, and yet that golden statue has eluded her. She has won multiple Tonys, Emmys, and Golden Globe awards, yet, despite an amazing eight nominations for either Best Actress or Best Supporting Actress, she's yet to win one.

Tom Cruise

There is no bigger "movie star" on the planet than Tom Cruise. While no one would realistically expect Cruise to be nominated for his action roles like in the Mission: Impossible movies (though, his stunt work in those movies should really be acknowledged), the Top Gun star has put in the work with Oscar-worthy performances in films like Rain Man, Jerry Maguire, Born on the Fourth of July, and Magnolia. He has been nominated four times, but he's yet to take home the prize.

Angela Bassett

In 1994 Angela Bassett lost out on the Best Actress Oscar for her incredible, transformative performance as Tina Turner in What's Love Got to Do with It. Not to take anything away from the winner, Holly Hunter for The Piano, but it's frankly astonishing Bassett didn't win. Sadly, though she was honored in 2024 by the Academy, she still has yet to win a competitive Oscar.

Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp has gotten a lot of bad press in recent years and that may hurt his future chances to win an Academy Award, but frankly, it's amazing he hasn't already won multiple Oscars, and yet he's never won even one. Despite three nominations and many other amazing performances, the Pirates Of The Caribbean star is still Oscar-less.

Sigourney Weaver

It's hard to believe that Sigourney Weaver hasn't even been nominated for an Oscar since the 1980s, when she was nominated thrice. In spite of wonderful performances in huge hits like Avatar and Aliens, she's still searching for that golden statue.

Bradley Cooper

Honestly, you can almost smell the desperation on Bradley Cooper to win an Oscar and that's completely understandable. Cooper is one of the best actors of his generation and has been nominated five times in an acting category (and another seven times in other categories), but hasn't won...yet. He'll surely get one.

Annette Bening

Five nominations and no wins. That's Annette Bening's resume at the Oscars and that is shocking. For decades she's been crushing it on screen and despite those nominations, most recently in 2023 for her incredible performance in Nyad, a win has eluded her.

Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey may have burst on the scene in wild comedies like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and The Mask - and we can argue that amazing comedic performances don't get nearly enough love from the Academy - but his more serious roles, like in Man on the Moon and even The Truman Show are certainly worthy of Oscars. Despite multiple Golden Globe nominations and wins, the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind actor has never even been nominated for an Oscar.

Amy Adams

When Amy Adams was first nominated for an Academy Award in 2005 for her breakthrough performance in Junebug, a betting person would have bet everything that she would win an Oscar in her career. Yet here we are more than 20 years later and despite five more nominations, Adams is still Oscar-less.

Samuel L. Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson has played every kind of character and starred in every kind of movie. From mega-franchises like Star Wars and the MCU, to more indie films like Pulp Fiction and Do The Right Thing, Jackson has done it all in Hollywood, except win a competitive Oscar and he's shockingly only been nominated once. He was honored by the Academy in 2021 for his body of work.

Scarlett Johansson

In 2020 Scarlett Johansson was nominated in both the Bet Actress category for Marriage Story and Best Supporting Actress for Jojo Rabbit. She lost out in both that year and despite an incredible career, they remain her only nominations.

Laurence Fishburne

Literally, since his breakout movie role when he was only 16 in Apocalypse Now, Laurence Fishburne has been putting in award-worthy performances. One of the most astonishing facts on this list, Fishbourne has only been nominated once, for What's Love Got to Do with It in 1994. Despite roles like Furious Styles in Boyz n The Hood, Professor Phipps in Higher Learning, and countless others, he still hasn't won.

Hugh Jackman

While he's best known for his work as Wolverine these days, the multi-talented Hugh Jackman has a ton of performances that have deserved more attention from the Academy. He's won every other award on the planet, including three of the "EGOT" awards, but he's still missing the "O."

Michelle Williams

Michelle Williams has been nominated for an Academy Award five times, starting with her breakout role in 2005's Brokeback Mountain. She has yet to break through with a win though. Certainly, she will at some point, right?

Saoirse Ronan

Saoirse Ronan was just 13 years old when she landed her first Oscar nomination for her performance in Atonement. The Lady Bird star has been nominated three subsequent times but hasn't been able to nail down an award yet. A win for Ronan at some point seems inevitable, given how she crushes every role she's in.

Matt Damon

Another one of the biggest movie stars in the world who has yet to win an acting Oscar is Matt Damon. His most recent of three acting nominations was for 2015's The Martian, and while he has won an Oscar for Best Screenplay for Good Will Hunting, an acting award has eluded him.

Salma Hayek

Despite her transcending performance in Frida, the great Salma Hayek wasn't able to win an Oscar in a stacked category in 2003 (Nicole Kidman won for The Hours). Despite numerous great performances, that remains Hayak's only nomination. For shame.

Willem Dafoe

Despite being one of the most reliable actors in Hollywood for more than four decades, somehow Willem Dafoe has yet to win an Oscar. It seems like every single role he takes on is award-worthy, and yet, despite four nominations, starting with Platoon, he still has yet to take home an Academy Award.

Carey Mulligan

2009's An Education garnered Carey Mulligan her first Oscar nom, and she's since nominated another couple of times, for Promising Young Woman in 2021 and Maestro in 2024. She's run into some stiff competition, but surely at least one of those performances was Oscar-worthy.

Mark Ruffalo

Mark Ruffalo has been acting his butt off for decades. For that hard work, he's received four Best Supporting Actor nominations, and shockingly, not for his work in Dark Waters, which might be his best performance of all. It's confounding.

Michelle Pfeiffer

The great Michelle Pfeiffer landed her first Oscar nomination in 1988 for Dangerous Liaisons and picked up two more for The Fabulous Baker Boys in 1989 and Love Field in 1992. Since then? Nothing. Zip. She has not even received a nomination as one of the best actresses of her generation. That has to be remedied, as it makes no sense.

Ralph Fiennes

Between 1996 when he was nominated for The English Patient and 2025 when he was nominated for Conclave, the great Ralph Fiennes wasn't even nominated for an Oscar despite countless award-worthy performances.

Naomi Watts

With two nominations and zero wins, Naomi Watts finds herself on this list. She was first nominated in 2004 for 21 Grams and again in 2013 for The Impossible, but she hasn't lucked out with a win yet. Surely one is in her future though, she's too much of a force not to win one.

Ryan Gosling

Year after year Ryan Gosling has put up fantastic performances, so his inclusion on this list is among the most surprising. He seems like a shoo-in to have won at least one Oscar, right? In not for Barbie or Half Nelson, both of which he was nominated for, then certainly for La La Land. Alas, he's yet to take home a trophy.

Alfre Woodard

When Alfre Woodard was nominated for her first (and to-date only) Oscar nomination way back in 1983 for Cross Creek, you'd be crazy to predict she would not get another one for what is now more than 40 years. Despite amazing performances in films like 12 Years A Slave and many others, she has been shut out.

Warren Beatty

There was no bigger movie star than Warren Beatty in the late '70s and '80s and despite a slew of hits, Beatty has never won an Oscar. Beatty has been nominated four times for Best Actor, yet his only Academy Award win came for Best Director for Reds in 1982. He didn't even win for Dick Tracy! He wasn't actually nominated for that iconic role though, which is understandable.

Laura Linney

Over her long, impressive career, Laura Linney has been nominated for many awards. She's won multiple Emmys and multiple Golden Globes, but she's never taken home a golden statue from the Academy. Linney has been nominated three times, for 2000's You Can Count on Me, 2004's Kinsey, and 2007's The Savages, but lost out each time. Linney has never been in a movie that has won Best Picture, either.

Ed Harris

Ed Harris is one of the best character actors of the last 50 years and yet he's never won an Oscar. He's been nominated three times for Best Supporting Actor, for Apollo 13, The Truman Show, and The Hours, plus picking a nomination for Best Actor for Pollock, but alas, he's never won. Weirdly, he's also 0-3 on Emmy nominations too. He has picked up two Golden Globes though.

Joan Allen

Joan Allen is an actress flies a little under the radar despite putting in amazing performances in everything she is in. It might because she's been incredibly unlucky at winning awards, despite multiple Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG nominations. That luck includes her Oscar nominations, of which she has three, for Nixon, The Crucible, and The Contender, but sadly no wins.

Richard Gere

Despite being box office gold since the early 1980s, Richard Gere has shockingly never been even nominated for an Oscar. He's been in beloved movies that have stood the test of time like Pretty Woman, An Officer And A Gentleman, Primal Fear, Runaway Bride and so many more, but no nominations. Crazy.

Isabelle Huppert

It might not be a huge surprise that a French actress like Isabelle Huppert hasn't won an Oscar, as obviously the winners are almost always from English-language films. Still, Huppert is one of the most decorated actresses of all time in her native France, having been nominated 16 times (and winning twice) for the César Award (France's version of the Academy Awards). She was nominated for an Oscar in 2016 for Elle but lost to Emma Stone (for La La Land).

Paul Dano

It almost seems pre-ordained that at some point Paul Dano will win an Oscar. In performance after performance, he just crushes it. From There Will Be Blood to Love & Mercy, the list of his amazing performances just keeps growing. Like others on this list, the fact that he hasn't even been nominated for an Oscar is mindboggling.

Celebrity couples have a way of capturing the public's attention, just look at A-list pairs like Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce or Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. But the downside to this is there's a huge audience when things go bad, such as Johnny Depp and Blake Lively's break-up and long legal battle. And Depp’s lawyer admits they were worried he might "lose his temper" during the trial.

The verdict in the Depp/Heard case largely put the Pirates of the Caribbean actor on top, although he was also found guilty on a charge of defamation. Information about his legal team's strategies are being revealed in the A&E special called Interrogation Raw: Celebrity Under Oath, where lawyer Benjamin Chew admitted to concerns about putting Depp on the stand. In his words:

This is likely a sentiment that's been shared by countless attorneys over the years. But with the high stakes and accusations of abuse made by Amber Heard, keeping Depp calm and collected was likely doubly important. And losing his temper could potentially change the way the jury perceived the 61 year-old actor.

Both Depp and Heard took the stand during their trial, for entire days at a time. And during this time, it was the other team's job to try and poke holes in their stories. In the same special, Chew spoke about how the actor performed while on the stand. In his words:

This sentiment might be correct, given how the verdict ultimately shook out in his favor. Although as previously stated, he was also found guilty on one count, so it wasn't a total victory.

Since then, both Heard and Depp have been living out of the country, presumably in hopes of stepping away from the public eye. Fans keep waiting for the Edward Scissorhands actor to return to Hollywood, with some hoping he'll join another Pirates of the Caribbean movie. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates.

Last year marked the 20th anniversary of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, which adapted the premise of the popular Disney Parks attraction and launched a film series that’s collectively grossed over $4.5 billion worldwide. However, it’s been seven years since the last movie, Dead Men Tell No Tales, was released in theaters, though there certainly hasn’t been a lack of effort in trying to get Pirates of the Caribbean 6 or something else off the ground. I just found out the latest details about what might become the next upcoming Disney movie., and it seems like the project is coming together in a pretty wild way.

Previously, executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer said there were no plans at that point for Johnny Depp to return to the Pirates film series, with this statement coming in the midst of Depp’s defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard. The actor also once said he had no interest in reprising Jack Sparrow, not even for $300 million and a million alpacas. But in the years since, there’s been talk about Depp potentially reprising this role after all, and now Variety reports that Bruckheimer is actually developing two versions of the Pirates of the Caribbean 6 script “parallel tracks.”

It's so wild. One of those scripts apparently includes Jack Sparrow, although it could only be made if, as the publication described it, “the actor and Disney can reconcile.” A source added that “nothing has been ruled out.” The other seemingly does not include the actor.

As in months past, nothing is set in stone just yet, but if this information is accurate, then the Mouse House is at least entertaining the idea of bringing Johnny Depp back aboard. Jerry Bruckheimer would certainly make it happen in an instant if he had his way, saying earlier this year that he’d “love having him back in the movie” and that he’d spoken to Depp on the subject. The two men are still quite chummy, with this news coming a month after Bruckheimer and Depp reunited at the latter’s art exhibition.

As of July 2023, Depp was allegedly open to the possibility of returning to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, with an unnamed insider saying that “if it’s the right project, he’ll do it.” If he were to do Pirates of the Caribbean 6, and assuming it was able to get into production relatively quickly, then it would make Depp’s big return to Hollywood. His filmography of late has consisted of smaller projects and foreign movies, like Minamata and Jeanne du Barry.

However, if Disney and Johnny Depp can’t mend fences, and Jack Sparrow sauntering back onto the big screen has been ruled out, then there’s always that second Pirates of the Caribbean 6 script that could move forward instead. Presumably this is the script that’s been written by Craig Main, who said last year that he thought Disney wouldn’t accept it because it was “too weird.” Instead, the studio found it to be “fantastic,” and Mazin had hoped to work on the script further with Ted Elliot, who co-wrote the first four Pirates movies with Terry Rossio. It’s also rumored that Austin Butler has been approached to lead a new Pirates movie.

If Johnny Depp does agree to do Pirates of the Caribbean 6, count on CinemaBlend to let you know. Until then, keep yourself entertained by streaming the first five Pirates movies with your Disney+ subscription… drinking rum while doing so is optional.

The long-awaited sequel of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice was a hit at the box office and those who saw it. With critics calling the legacy sequel “whimsically macabre,” this poses the question of whether the gothic-style filmmaker has any other legacy sequels in store for us. While Burton reveals an Edward Scissorhands sequel is out, he said it doesn’t mean his days of “bouncing ideas” with frequent collaborator Johnny Depp are over.

Tim Burton has created successful sequels like Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and Batman Returns. However, there are certain sequel ideas that he’s put his foot down on like turning down fans who want a Nightmare Before Christmas 2. Another sequel idea that the Academy Award winner has refused to do is Edward Scissorhands and he told Indiewire why that's so:

I can’t say that I blame the Big Fish director for not wanting an Edward Scissorhands return. As much as I loved the Tim Burton movie, it seemed like the gothic romance-fantasy film already closed up really well. The ending of the film had Winona Ryder’s Kim as an elderly woman telling her granddaughter the story of the ageless humanoid. As the movie also ends with Edward spending eternity making ice sculptures, I don’t see that as much to go on for a next movie. The sad tale of the young man with razorblades for hands showed us that forming a relationship would be difficult for him and that expressing love through art would be all he could do. While the ending was tragic, the story was beautiful the way it was in that the heartfelt memories you make can give you strength.

Tim Burton tends to bring familiar faces into his dark yet kooky movies like then-wife Helena Bonham Carter, Christopher Lee, Michael Keaton, and more. But, Burton’s frequent collaborator who’s been in eight of his movies has been Johnny Depp. Even if an Edward Scissorhands sequel is out, Burton said “I’m sure there will be” another team-up with Depp and I'm so looking forward to it:

It’s understandable that Tim Burton wants to choose actors based on the projects he comes up with. When you think about every Johnny Depp performance in Burton’s movies, he knows how to absorb himself so well into the Golden Globe winner’s world. Maybe the Alice in Wonderland filmmaker doesn’t purposefully write his characters with Depp in mind, but he certainly knows how to shape them around the Sweeney Todd actor’s transformative qualities. If anything, I thank Burton for allowing Depp to show us his versatile acting chops in giving us emotional yet eccentric performances through each of Burton’s characters.

An Edward Scissorhands sequel is out of the question, but Tim Burton is still going with his idea of remaking the sci-fi classic Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. With Burton’s artistry of mixing practical and CGI effects to be a success, I have no doubts that he’ll bring a uniquely fascinating twist to the modern remake. Plus with there being no casting news announced yet and Johnny Depp slowly making a Hollywood comeback, hopefully this will be the movie that brings the frequent collaborators to team up for their ninth movie.

You can watch the Tim Burton classic Edward Scissorhands available on your Hulu subscription, Peacock subscription, and Paramount+ subscription.

Ah yes, the nepo baby debate. It’s been a frequent topic of conversation around Hollywood over the past few years. Actors like Zoë Kravitz, Maya Hawke and Dakota Johnson and so many more sons and daughters of big stars have since shared takes on the discussion. Years after Lily-Rose Depp fired back on the topic, the actress set to star in this winter’s most exciting upcoming horror movies, Nosferatu, and the daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis shared an honest perspective about people wanting to see her fail.

Lily-Rose Depp has been making a name for herself in the world of acting in a big way during the last few years, between starring on the controversial HBO drama The Idol as well as booking around of indie flicks. As Depp gets ready for the world to see her biggest movie to date with the aforementioned 2024 move release, she spoke to her personal struggles from the role:

While the rising actress has technically been acting in movies now for a decade, since her small role in 2014’s Tusk at the age of 15, she still feels like she’s “still starting out”. Nosferatu puts her at the center of a remake of 1922 classic film of the same name (which was based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula). By all accounts, it marks the actress' first true leading role on the big screen. While speaking to Vanity Fair about the public's perception of her, she acknowledged those who'd rather she not succeed professionally:

There’s a perception that because Lily-Rose Depp is the daughter of one of the most famous Hollywood stars, it’s been easier for her to nab roles. However, it was the 25-year-old’s intense audition with The Witch’s Robert Eggers that brought her to Nosferatu. Apparently, the Zoom audition brought the filmmaker to tears, and Depp decided to go all out by throwing things around her space to show she “wasn’t scared to go there.” As for how she feels about people wanting to see her fail, she said:

In the film, the starlet co-stars with big names like Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgard, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Emma Corrin. During the interview, she also recalled feeling “so out of [her] depth” alongside them, but it sounds like she rose to the occasion. Based on the Nosferatu trailers, though, she seems to be holding her own.

Ahead of the Nosferatu's release, the remake has received positive reactions, with first audiences calling it Robert Eggers’ “magnum opus” and his “best film." Not only that, but people are also giving Lily-Rose Depp props for being “haunting” and “astounding.” Perhaps this will be the project that proves to people and to Depp herself that she deserves a place in Hollywood, and not only because of her name. You can see for yourself when the film opens on Christmas Day!

While Disney has tried time and again to make successful movies out of theme park attractions, there has only ever really been one success. The Pirates of the Caribbean movies have been massive box office hits, even when they’re not particularly loved by critics. The franchise has been in limbo for years following the decision to move forward without Johnny Depp but the franchise producer Jerry Bruckheimer has been, and continues to be, a major supporter.

Bruckheimer has made no secret of the fact that he personally would still like to include Depp in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, even if it’s only by having Captain Jack Sparrow appear in a cameo role. The producer is only continuing to show support for the actor, and the two were recently seen together.

Jerry Bruckheimer And Johnny Depp Reunited At Depp’s Art Exhibition

A new exhibit of Johnny Depp’s art recently went on display in New York City and when the exhibition opened Jerry Bruckheimer and his wife were in attendance. Just Jared has a picture of the pair together, likely for the first time in several years.

It’s not surprising to see the pair together as Bruckheimer has remained steadfast in his support for Depp. The two are clearly friends, and Bruckheimer has been the strongest voice in favor of seeing Captain Jack Sparrow turn to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. While the major producer is in favor of it, most signs have pointed to it not happening, though the exact state of the franchise today is unclear.

What’s Going On With The Pirates Of The Caribbean Franchise

While Disney has repeatedly indicated that there is a future for the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, what that future looks like, other than it not including Johnny Depp is unknown. At one point there were two different PotC scripts in development. One project that would have included Margot Robbie has been shelved, though Bruckheimer says that idea could still see the light of day down the road.

The most recent rumor indicated that Austin Butler was being eyed for a role in the new film, but so far that has remained unsubstantiated. The recent D23 event from Disney went by without any mention of a new Pirates film, so at this point, it seems the film isn’t coming in the short term.

Several upcoming movies based on Disney Parks attractions are still planned, though none of them seem to be any closer than the next Pirates sequel to actually happening.

The more time passes, the more possible a Johnny Depp return to the Pirates of the Caribbean becomes. Of course, that assumes that a new movie does happen at all. Considering the franchise's popularity it seems certain that movie will come eventually but what it looks like when it gets here is anybody's guess.

Before the infamous Depp Vs. Heard trial, Johnny Depp’s face was all over the big screen throughout the ‘90s and ‘00s. His greatest roles that have truly brought out his versatility and range have included playing Edward Scissorhands, Captain Jack Sparrow, Sweeney Todd, and more. Two years after a verdict was announced in Depp’s favor, the Oscar-nominee is finally ready to make a major Hollywood comeback and it involves The Amazing Spider-Man director Marc Webb.

Johnny Depp’s defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, as seen in the Netflix docuseries Depp V. Heard, interrupted the momentum of his acting career. Due to the massive attention both parties faced during the trial, Depp’s career faced consequences like being reportedly dropped out of the Pirates of the Caribbean reboot and Fantastic Beasts where he was replaced by Mads Mikkelsen.

After a verdict was reached where the 21 Jump Street actor was paid $1 million by Heard’s insurance, Johnny Depp is finally ready to make a major Hollywood comeback with The Amazing Spider-Man director Marc Webb on board. According to a Lionsgate press release, Johnny Depp will be reuniting with frequent co-star Penélope Cruz in the upcoming thriller Day Drinker about a cruise ship bartender and a mysterious day drinker who get wrapped up in a criminal underworld. Lionsgate Chair Adam Fogelson commented about high hopes for the upcoming movie as well as the gifted talent who will be part of it:

I’m already excited for this new project to get up and ready. Other than Marc Webb doing a great job constructing action sequences, another superb quality involves creating chemistry between his leads like we’ve seen in The Amazing Spider-Man films and 500 Days of Summer. I have a good feeling that Webb will deliver plenty of steamy scenes between Depp and Cruz we'll enjoy seeing.

Day Drinker will also be produced by Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee, responsible for the John Wick franchise, and Adam Kolbrenner who’s produced The Tomorrow War, Free Guy, and Prisoners. We also can’t ignore that Fast X screenwriter Zach Dean will be involved in the project. With all of these important names from successful action films coming together to make this upcoming thriller, I have a feeling we’ll be getting an entertaining piece of high-stakes action to be excited about.

Lionsgate’s new film will present the fourth collaboration between Johnny Depp and Penélope Cruz who shared the screen together in Blow, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, and Murder on the Orient Express. The two are such good friends that the Spanish actress defended Depp during the Amber Heard court case who she said provided him “sweetness, protection and kindness” when they worked on Pirates together. With a fourth collaboration under their belt, I’m sure their chemistry in Day Drinker will continue to go strong.

The What’s Eating Gilbert Grape actor has slowly been making a career comeback. His first post-trial movie Jeanne Du Barry debuted at Cannes and was greeted with a seven-minute standing ovation. Depp also directed his second movie in 27 years called Modi, Three Days on the Wing of Madness portraying 72 hours of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani’s life. The American actor also has The Carnival at the End of Days expecting to be filmed in January where he’ll be playing Satan. The bankable star even has new teeth to show he’s ready to turn his health and career around. Considering Jeanne Du Barry and Modi were both smaller-scale projects, something tells me a blockbuster like Day Drinker will put Depp’s name back on the map.

Johnny Depp collaborating with Marc Webb is the Hollywood comeback we’ve all been waiting for. With Webb’s knack for visuals and emotional depth and Depp's multiskilled range coming through in a new role, I don’t see where we can go wrong. Take a look at our upcoming 2025 movie releases in case Day Drinker ends up there.

Sean Combs a.k.a. P. Diddy is currently facing various lawsuits as well as a number of charges for alleged sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, racketeering and more. Back in September, Combs was arrested in New York and, since then, he’s been incarcerated in Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center and is awaiting trial. A number of people – including some celebrities – have weighed in on Diddy’s legal woes during this time. Now, an attorney, who represented Johnny Depp a few years ago, is sharing thoughts.

Benjamin Chew recently appeared on an episode of Piers Morgan Uncensored, where he participated in a panel discussion on P. Diddy’s ongoing legal situation. When the eponymous host asked Chew for his take, Chew acknowledged the raids on Diddy’s homes as well as the 2016 security video that showed the rapper assaulting his former girlfriend, Cassie Ventura, at a hotel. As for how the video, in particular, could impact the case, Chew said the following:

Several years ago, Benjamin Chew helped represent Johnny Depp amid his (televised) defamation trial with former wife Amber Heard. The lawyer’s efforts – along with those of his colleague’s – were ultimately successful, as the verdict involved Heard being found guilty in three cases of defamation against the Pirates of the Caribbean star. While appearing on Piers Morgan’s talk show (as shared on YouTube), Chew went on to share more thoughts on the aforementioned video involving Cassie and how it could play into the legal proceedings to come:

Cassie Ventura filed suit against Puff Daddy in November 2023 for allegedly subjecting her to rape, sex trafficking and more during their relationship, which lasted from 2007 to 2018. The suit was settled less than 24 hours later and, in May 2024, the hotel video was released and showed the Grammy winner throwing Cassie to the ground by her neck and kicking her multiple times, before dragging her and throwing an object at her. Diddy later apologized for his actions via a video posted to social media, though his statement was criticized by Cassie’s lawyer. Alex Fine, Ventura’s husband, also spoke out after the footage was released and chastised anyone who would condone domestic violence.

A 14-page indictment that became public amid P. Diddy’s arrest laid out the previously mentioned allegations against him along with bribery, arson and more. While sharing more thoughts on the Sean John founder, Benjamin Chew further emphasized the need for Diddy to testify and show legitimate remorse, especially in regard to the hotel video:

As of right now, Sean Combs’ sex-trafficking trial is set to begin on May 5, 2025. In the meantime, it remains to be seen if anyone else – whether they be a legal professional like Benjamin Chew or not – will weigh in on the matter.

While Johnny Depp is no longer part of one of the biggest movie franchises in the world, the actor is still a big name and one of the biggest movie stars in the world. But every star has to start somewhere. If nothing else a big movie star's early roles is a fun trivia question. Most fans are probably aware of Johnny Depp’s early role in one of the best horror movies ever. the original A Nightmare on Elm Street movie. Star Heather Langenkamp remembers the first time she hung out with Depp and how they bonded over a classic movie.

Somehow A Nightmare on Elm Street is 40 years old this year, and while that doesn’t seem possible, Heather Langenkamp, who starred in the movie that launched the franchise recently spoke with E! About meeting on-screen boyfriend, Johnny Depp. Since the pair were playing a couple, Langenkamp thought it would be a good idea for the two to get to know each other before production started. So after Depp was cast, she called him up. The actress explained…

It’s fairly normal for actors who are going to be working together to spend some time together off the set. It’s just nice to get to know the people you’re going to be working closely with for the next couple of months. In the case of Nightmare, Langenkamp and Depp were playing girlfriend/boyfriend, so being comfortable with your co-star is all the more important.

And as it turns out, the two had something in common. They were both fans of Rebel Without A Cause. The pair decided to spend their day at the Griffith Observatory. While the location has been shown in numerous films, perhaps its most famous use was by James Dean and Natalie Wood in the iconic film. Langenkamp continued…

It sounds like the two young actors had a wonderful time. Langenkamp said Depp was very easy to talk to and described him as kind. Apparently it was very different than seeing him on the set as Langenkamp called Depp "tortured" on the set.

The events at Griffith Observatory in Rebel Without A Cause were quite tragic in the end, but perhaps that was fitting. The relationship between Heather Langenkamp’s Nancy and Johnny Depp’s Glen doesn’t exactly have a happy ending.

Johnny Depp is known for his unique style and rebellious approach to life and more recently, has been going through a bit of a transformation. It's one that includes the star receiving a new set of teeth and is making more alterations. Apparently, the changes aren't iabout following the latest trend or making a fashion statement, though. Insiders say that Depp's decision to get a new set of teeth was a health necessity rather than a vanity project or a decision based on his 2024 movie schedule and is part of an overall plan for his health and career.

An inside source recently spoke to OK Magazine and claimed that the veteran 21 Jump Street star "had no choice" but to upgrade his teeth. Per this unnamed individual's assertion, the Oscar nominee's chompers had reportedly deteriorated to a dangerous level. The source said the actor’s oral health had declined to the point where it was affecting his overall well-being. They also added:

Johnny Depp, 61, reportedly debuted his new look over the summer while vacationing in the Bahamas. Fans couldn't help but notice his gleaming new smile. This transformation comes after what has been described as "years of letting himself go," which included neglecting his oral health. A source explained that his deteriorating teeth showed how the Edward Scissorhands performer had been caring for himself—or, more accurately, how he hadn't been.

According to the same source, the Finding Neverland star has become "hyper-aware" of other areas of his health and appearance that need attention. After dealing with the high-profile fallout between him and his ex-wife Amber Heard, which included their televised court battle, it seems the Ed Wood actor is turning his focus inward, taking stock of the toll that stress, age, and lifestyle may have taken on his body and is still pushing forward with his Hollywood comeback. The source added:

This alleged health “reboot” appears to align with Johnny Depp’s reemergence in the public eye, particularly at events. For instance, he appeared at the 72nd San Sebastian International Film Festival, where he looked noticeably refreshed. The Hollywood heavyweight was in attendance promoting his first directorial effort in over 30 years, the upcoming film Modi – Three Days on the Wing of Madness. According to reports, Depp seemed put together and content, signaling a positive shift in his overall demeanor.

During a press event for Modi, which stars Al Pacino, Johnny Depp reflected on his character's challenges and how they parallel his life. The actor alluded to his legal issues with Amber Heard, stating, "I can say that I've been through a couple of things here and there. But I'm alright.”

The Public Enemies star has yet to comment publicly on his reported health kick, but it seems he's not just thinking about what’s next for his career but also how to maintain his well-being, which is understandable.

Modi debuted at the 72nd San Sebastián International Film Festival on September 24, 2024, where it wowed the crowd, earning a lengthy standing ovation from the audience. As for when the film will hit theaters for a wider release, there’s no official word just yet. However, it wouldn’t be surprising to see it land somewhere on the 2025 movie release calendar.

While many of us grow up wishing to be famous, there's a definite downside to that level of notoriety, especially when one's personal struggles become a public matter. Johnny Depp and Amber Heard know this all too well, as their battle in court was televised and made countless headlines. And Depp seemingly alluded to the brouhaha of his court case with Heard in a new interview, saying "I've been through a number of things."

After months of news coverage and reports from inside the courthouse, a verdict was given for Depp and Heard's defamation trial in September of 2022. Since then the Edward Scissorhands actor has been keeping a low profile, although Depp's comeback is seemingly upon us. The 61 year-old actor recently promoted his new movie Modi at a press conference (via THR), where he seemingly addressed the controversy. In his words:

There you have it. It sounds like Depp has a fairly good attitude about his past, including the drama with Heard that became so ingrained in the pop culture lexicon that Starbucks tip jars offered customers a chance to take a side. But everyone has struggles in their lives, and his comments seem to indicate that art can be created out of it.

The timing of this statement is no accident, as Depp directed Modi, his first directorial project in over two decades. While the Pirates of the Caribbean icon hasn't signed on for any big Hollywood projects since the defamation trial, he's been getting involved in film in other ways. That includes directing Modi, as well as starring in his first post-trial movie, Jeanne du Barry.

It remains to be seen how easily, if at all, Depp is able to return to the Hollywood scene in a significant way. There are definitely fans out there who are closely monitoring Johnny Depp's upcoming movies, and want to see him back in the mainstream space. Case in point: a fan petition for Depp to return to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as Captain Jack Sparrow.

We'll have to see if Johnny Depp an Amber Heard are able to get out of the shadow of their legal battle. Both actors made sobering allegations of abuse against the other, remaining synonymous with the defamation case as a result.

Modi - Three Days on the Wings of Madness will be released in Italy on December 5th, but it's unclear when it's coming to the states. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates.