Johnny Depp Film Career
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Initially known as a teen idol thanks to his role on 21 Jump Street and tortured pretty-boy looks, Johnny Depp survived the perils of adolescent heartthrob status to earn a reputation as a respected adult actor. His numerous collaborations with director Tim Burton, as well as solid performances in a number of critically acclaimed films, have allowed Depp to carve a niche for himself as a serious, if idiosyncratic performer, a real-life role that has continuously surprised critics intent on writing him off as just another photogenic Tiger Beat casualty.
Born in Kentucky and raised in Florida,Depp had the kind of upbringing that would readily lend itself to his future portrayals of brooding lost boys. After his parents divorced when he was 16, he dropped out of school a year later in the hopes of making his way in the world as a musician. Depp fronted a series of garage bands; the most successful of these, The Kids, was once the opening act for Iggy Pop. During slack times in the music business, Depp sold pens by phone. He got introduced to acting after a visit to L.A. with his former wife, who introduced him to actor Nicolas Cage, who encouraged Depp to give it a try.
The young actor made his film debut in 1984′s A Nightmare on Elm Street (years after attaining stardom, Depp sentimentally played a cameo in the last of the Elm Street series), and his climb to fame was accelerated in 1987, when he replaced Jeff Yagher in the role of undercover cop Tommy Hanson in the Canadian-filmed TV series 21 Jump Street. Biding his time in “teen heartthrob” roles, Depp was first given a chance to exhibit his exhausting versatility in the title role of Tim Burton’s fantasy Edward Scissorhands (1990).
Following the success of Edward Scissorhands, the actor made a conscious and successful effort never to repeat himself in his subsequent characterizations. He continued to gain critical acclaim and increasing popularity for his work, most notably in Benny & Joon (1993), in which he played a troubled young man who fancies himself the reincarnation of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), which cast him as its title character, a young man dissatisfied with the confines of his small-town life. Following Gilbert Grape, Depp outdid himself in Burton’s Ed Wood (1994), with his outrageous but lovable portrayal of the angora-sweater-worshipping World’s Worst Film Director. The same year, he further exercised his versatility playing a 19th century accountant in Dead Man, Jim Jarmusch’s otherworldly Western. With his excellent portrayal of the titular undercover FBI agent in Mike Newell’s 1997 Donnie Brasco, Depp continued to ascend the Hollywood ranks. After a starring turn as Hunter S. Thompson’s alter ego in Terry Gilliam’s trippy adaptation of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Depp tried his hand at sci-fi horror with The Astronaut’s Wife in 1999. That same year, he again collaborated with Burton on Sleepy Hollow, starring as a prim, driven Ichabod Crane in the remake of Washington Irving’s classic tale of gothic terror. Appearing the following year in the small but popular romantic drama Chocolat, Depp jumped back into the big time with his role as real-life cocaine kingpin George Jung in Blow (2001) before gearing up for roles in the Jack the Ripper thriller From Hell (2001) and Robert Rodriguez’s Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003). In what was perhaps his most surprising departure since Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Depp shed his oftentimes angst-ridden persona for a flamboyant role as a long undead pirate in 2003′s Pirates of the Caribbean.
In addition to his acting, Depp has also gained a certain dose of fame for his romantic involvements with several female celebrities, including Winona Ryder, Sherilyn Fenn, and Kate Moss, and in 1999, fathered a daughter with French singer/actress Vanessa Paradis, as well as a son in 2002. He was also the owner of the Viper Room, a popular L.A. nightspot which gained notoriety when actor River Phoenix died of a drug overdose on its doorstep in 1993.
Depp has collaborated with director and close friend Tim Burton in seven films, beginning with his breakout role in Edward Scissorhands (1990), opposite Winona Ryder and Vincent Price. His next role with Burton was in the 1994 film, Ed Wood. Depp later said that “within 10 minutes of hearing about the project, I was committed.” At the time, the actor was depressed about films and filmmaking. By accepting this part it gave him a “chance to stretch out and have some fun”, and working with Landau, “rejuvenated my love for acting”.
Producer Scott Rudin once said, “Basically Johnny Depp is playing Tim Burton in all his movies,” although Burton personally disapproved of the comment. Depp, however agrees with Rudin’s statement. According to Depp, Edward Scissorhands represented Burton’s inability to communicate as a teenager. Ed Wood reflected Burton’s relationship with Vincent Price (very similar with Edward D. Wood, Jr. and Béla Lugosi).
Depp’s next venture with Burton was the role of Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow (1999), opposite Christina Ricci. Sleepy Hollow reflected Burton’s battle with the Hollywood studio system. For his performance, Depp took inspiration from Angela Lansbury, Roddy McDowall and Basil Rathbone. Depp stated, “I always thought of Ichabod as a very delicate, fragile person who was maybe a little too in touch with his feminine side, like a frightened little girl.”
Depp did not work with Burton again until the 2005 release of two films, the first of which was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, in which he played Willy Wonka. Depp modeled the character’s hair on Anna Wintour. The film was a box office success and received positive critical reaction, although Gene Wilder, who played Willy Wonka in the 1971 film, initially opposed this version. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was released in July, followed by Corpse Bride, for which Depp voiced the character Victor Van Dort, in September.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) followed, bringing Depp his second major award win, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy as well as his third nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Burton first gave him an original cast recording of the 1979 stage musical in 2000. Although not a fan of the musical genre, Depp grew to like the tale’s musical treatment, commenting “How many chances do you get at a musical about a serial killer?” He cited Peter Lorre in Mad Love (1935) as his main influence for the role, and practiced the songs his character would perform while filming Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.
Although he had performed in musical groups, Depp was initially unsure that he would be able to sustain Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics. Depp recorded demos of himself in West Hollywood, working with Bruce Witkin to shape his vocals without a qualified voice coach. In the DVD Reviews section, Entertainment Weekly’s Chris Nashawaty gave the film an A minus, stating, “Depp’s soaring voice makes you wonder what other tricks he’s been hiding… Watching Depp’s barber wield his razors… it’s hard not to be reminded of Edward Scissorhands frantically shaping hedges into animal topiaries 18 years ago… and all of the twisted beauty we would’ve missed out on had Burton and Depp never met.”
Depp has referred to working with Burton as “coming home”, and he wrote the introduction to Burton on Burton, a book of interviews with the director, in which he called Burton “…a brother, a friend,…and a brave soul”. The next Depp-Burton collaboration was Alice in Wonderland (2010). Depp played the Mad Hatter alongside Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway and Alan Rickman.
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