His career has been marked by his dedication to unique and captivating characters.
Fans were shocked when mysterious and diverse actor Johnny Depp decided to play a new sort of character in the 1995 movie “Nick of Time” as he is best recognized for his compelling depictions of oddball characters.
Depp accepted the chance to work with his idol, Christopher Walken, in a gripping thriller, departing from his customary range of roles, despite concerns about the film’s potential box-office success.
The actor has developed a reputation for playing characters that deviated from social conventions and were unique and eccentric. But “Nick of Time” was a change from his customary options. Depp revealed that he took the part with his unique image in mind in an interview with The Washington Post.
He said at that time, “I liked the script. I thought it was a good time to make a change. I figured I’d do something else after being accused by everybody of playing weirdos. It was an opportunity to play the straight man. It’s really a challenge to do that — you’ve got to keep the guy interesting. It’s tougher.”
Years later, after giving some thought to his decision, Depp admitted that he had first been wary about taking projects that had a strong commercial appeal to avoid coming across as a sellout.
He acknowledged having tried previous ventures that had received comparable criticism. However, in the case of “Nick of Time,” Depp made an exception, as he remarked in an interview with Gainesville.
“I’ve attempted things in the past where people thought I tried to sell out. For example, I did this film Nick of Time with [director]John Badham. I don’t know if the film was particularly good. I did that film not for money or not to sell out. I didn’t think it was going to be successful at all.” the actor stated.
“I didn’t care. I did it because I wanted to work with Christopher Walken, and I wanted to work with John Badham. The script was very much like an old-school Hitchcock film. All of those elements were intriguing to me, so I took it,” Depp added.
Early in the 2000s, Depp began work on the hugely popular “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, which changed the course of his career. The actor’s depiction of Captain Jack Sparrow drove the Disney adventure movies to previously unheard-of levels of worldwide success, ultimately grossing billions of dollars.
Due to the franchise’s enormous success, Depp was nonetheless accused of selling out by certain fans. In an interview with The Guardian, Depp responded to the criticism and defended his decisions.
“I wouldn’t change anything, no. Because I think I went into it innocently, and it became what it became,” he explained. “And now they want to tear me down. Instantly, as soon as I did Pirates II, they say: ‘Oh, he’s selling out.’ What the f*** does that mean, selling out? What if I did Ed Wood II, is that selling out? I mean, it’s not like I was ever looking to become franchise boy; I was never looking to become anything like that. I just latched on to a character I loved.”
Overall, rather than focusing just on commercial success, Depp’s professional decisions have been driven by a desire to push himself as an actor and to collaborate with brilliant people.