Johnny Depp

I know, I’m way behind -but I do have some sitings of our elusive Johnny for you!

On March 10th, while I was bemoaning my son’s turning 17 (seriously, how does that HAPPEN?) Disney execs were happily getting their first glimpse of Johnny as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. It was buried in a video montage to kick off the Walt Disney Company’s annual meeting, but there he was - Victorian top hat, crimped hair that sticks straight out and a swirl of brightly colored make-up on his eyes, cheeks and lips that “resembled the blur of a pinwheel blowing in the breeze.”

While it was said to be a “blink and ya missed it” glimpse, the shareholders were on the ball and caught it - leading to a chorus of “ooohs” and “aaahs” but there was no picture made available afterwards. Harumph. But that’s ok - because the company’s Disney 23 magazine had pictures and a story, and we’ve got the scans!

In the interview - Tim Burton says “It’s kind of a mixture of ome distorted live action and animation. I’m not sure what o relate it to. It’s kind of new territory for me.”

While it may be new territory, it sounds like it’s also classic Burton mixed in. There’s no frame of reference what to really expect, so hopefully he’ll wow us like always! I cannot WAIT to see this movie! Check out the scans of the article below, and I’ll update ya’ll on more as it comes down the line!

The rumors have surfaced once again - is Johnny Depp going to finally walk down the aisle with Vanessa Paradis? According to MTVuk, the answer is yes, and that it will happen in a chapel on the grounds of their estate in France, sometime in late April. The rumors have been circulating since Johnny was seen shopping for an engagement ring in California.

According to previous reports, the main thing keeping them from getting married was that Johnny adores Vanessa’s surname, as he loves the way her name sounds, calling it perfect and beautiful. “It would be a drag to stick her with Paradis-Depp! It’s like a flat note! But if she ever said ‘Hey, let’s get hitched’, I would do it in a second.”

Awwwww! Could he BE any more perfect?

We all know that they are a private couple, so it’s no surprise that there’s not a single confirmation from Johnny’s people about the possible wedding. If it is in the works, we fully expect it to be as MTV said - small and intimate as possible, with 50 or so of their closest friends. Naturally it’ll still be a star-studded affair, as we know Tim Burton and wife Helena Bonham-Carter will certainly be in attendance, with Burton standing as best man. I’m not sure how understated it can be though, if rocker Keith Richards shows up too!

To add to Johnny’s upcoming gigs, it was reported today that he’ll soon join Sponge Bob Squarepants in Bikini Bottom. ET reports that he’ll provide the voice for surfer “Jack Kahuna Laguna” in an upcoming special, “Sponge Bob vs. The Big One.” Good thing my kids already watch the silly sponge, I won’t have to sneak the episode in on the sly!

Are we surprised? OF COURSE NOT! However, it was officially announced this week that the number one popular movie star according to the Internet Movie Data Base, is Johnny Depp, for the fifth year in a row! They have some fancy smancy Starmeter tool that ranks the celebs by popularity, and Johnny claims the top spot once again. The others in the top five are no surprise either, with Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie. The rest of the top ten include Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Kristen Steward, Will Smith and Gerard Butler. According to the managing editor of IMDB.cm “The Starmeter list is a true gauge of what’s hot in pop culture based on actual user interest and visits to a star’s page.”

Like we need THAT to tell us Johnny tops ANY list!

In other news - Dark Shadows is coming! Richard Zanuk, in an interview with Collider, confirmed that it WILL be the next project for Director Tim Burton after Alice in Wonderland wraps. Naturally, Johnny is slated to take the lead roll in the movie adaptation of the seriest that featured all manner of supernatural creatures; Vampires, Werewolves, and Zombies - Oh my! Johnny is said to be on tap to play the vampire patriarch Barnabas Collins, which is only fitting as Johnny has often said he was so obsessed with the show as a child that he wanted to be… yup, Barnabas Collins.

Lucky for us, he may finally get that wish!

Though we don’t know what direction the script itself will take, with 1225 episodes of the television show, there is certainly enough material to work with.

In a recent issue of Entertainment Weekly, the High School Musical star, Zac Efron voiced his desire to pick the brains of Hollywood’s elite A-listers - Leonardo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp in particular. Seeking advice, he confessed to wanting a sit down session with the men to pick their brains about their early careers and get some advise for where he should head next. He respects them, for having maneuvered well in the industry that’s littered with wrong turns. “They do it because they love it, not because they enjoy being famous.”

He may get his wish, after all. According to recent reports, Efron will be joining the cast of Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Further reports suggest that he was actually being groomed as Johnny’s successor (good luck with that, buddy boy!) but it was decided that it wasn’t Pirates without Depp (GOOD CALL DISNEY!), and instead offered Zac a smaller part to join with our Johnny. While the paycheck for Johnny Depp is said to be in the $55 million range, Zac stands to get a cool $6 million, double his HSM earnings, to join the swashbuckling crew.

Zac’s ok. But he’s no Johnny. Just sayin’.

In fact - NO ONE can play an oddball like Depp! So says his partner in crime, director Tim Burton, when he recently reported that Johnny is taking his newest role as the Mad Hatter to heart… or stomach, as he ate part of his costume last week.

“Nobody plays oddballs better than Johnny and he’s loving playing this one,” Tim said. “He actually ate his hat the other day. No word of a lie, he just bit into the brim and chewed.”

He may be weird - but it’s definitely part of his charm, hm?

Johnny was seen briefly in LA on October 14th, ducking into an office building. He’s in LA to work on filming Alice in Wonderland, with director Tim Burton.

Not digging the hat, so much, but well, we can’t expect perfection all the time, right?

Right.

THIS hat, is much more like it…

Tim Burton spent some time on the phone the other day with Hero Complex writer Geoff Boucher, and gave them the scoop on upcoming projects, including Alice in Wonderland, Johnny and more. Hero Complex put forth the idea that Johnny tends to approach roles like a kid gleefully rummages through a trunk of dress-up clothes, and with a laugh, Burton had to agree. “It’s true. We have a big dress-up trunk here, we take it with us wherever we go!”

When talking about Alice in Wonderland, we’re warned and promised that this version will be different then Disney’s take on weird characters who just sort of wander around. “The goal is to try and make it an engaging movie where you get some of the psychology and kind of bring a freshness, but also keep to the classic nature of ‘Alice’.” He added that he’s excited about this new version, but it will have some of the elements that we expect.

How hard was it to get Johnny Depp to play the Mad Hatter,another enigmatic oddball? Not very! “He loves doing that. That’s NEVER a problem. He doesn’t like to be the same way twice.” Burton added that it’s good, and always keeps it fresh. “[Depp] likes the material we have here, and he gets it. It’s nice to have people involved that are fans of the material.”

As for Dark Shadows - that’s still in the planning stages. Burton said he’s just taking projects one at a time - he’s interested, but he’s shooting Alice first. Boucher hopes to get a visit to the set soon, and I’m sure he’ll tell us all about it when he does - stay tuned!

We knew it! It was only a matter of time until the third member of the Holy Trinity Of Wacked Out Movies joined the cast of Alice in Wonderland! Sleeping with the director has it’s perks, after all! It’s finally been announced that Helena Bonham Carter WILL be joining hubby director Tim Burton and our beloved pretend husband Johnny Depp in Alice In Wonderland - filming now.

Helena will be taking on the role of the Red Queen for the film. That’s not the Queen of Hearts, for those purists, but a different character all together from the sequel. Seems that, like many adaptations, Burton is taking bits and pieces from both works to place into a single film.

Now that we know Helena is on board to play the Red Queen - who is the White Queen? None other then the always elegant Princess herself, Anne Hathaway! Anne has already done well with royalty roles, such as from the Princess Diaries, and we think she is perfect to play the benevolent monarch to be deposed and banished by Bonham-Carter’s Red Queen. The White Queen needs Alice (played by Mia Wasikowska) to slay a creature known as the Bandersnatch.

The movie, filming now in LA, will use a combination of performance-capture imagery, (like the oh so sexy Angelina Jolie et. al. in “Beowulf”) with live-action footage to create a uniquely awesome rendition of the classic tale.

It will TOO be awesome! I declare it so! How could it not be with the always creatively different Holy Trinity of Wackiness involved? I wonder if Anne knows what she’s gotten herself into…

Like we didn’t already KNOW this, but it’s finally official - Johnny Depp WILL be the Mad Hatter for the upcoming Alice in Wonderland, working once again side by side with Tim Burton. Not only that, but according to the Hollywood Reporter, Johnny Depp will also be playing Tonto in a new movie version of The Lone Ranger.

…wait, what?!

Apparently there was a daylong preview of upcoming Disney Movies and projects today at the Kdak Theatre which ended with a surprise Johnny sighting - outfitted as Jack Sparrow, but with “The William Tell Overture” which every one knows is the Lone Ranger theme. Naturally, I have not located any photos of this - anyone? Video would be even better!

Now the question is - will Helena Bonham Carter play the Queen of Hearts?

And who is the Lone Ranger to Depp’s Tonto? And is there ANYTHING else in the works that doesn’t make sense? I mean, Tonto? TONTO? I don’t know if I can quite believe that one, or wrap my head around it at all. But if Disney said it, it’s true, right? Of course, I only remember the old school Lone Ranger, so maybe that’s why it’s not working for me.

But in the end, I’ll have to trust Disney - after all, they’ve given us Pirates, and have a fourth one in development now! No word on if Johnny will return for that, but can it really be Pirates of the Caribbean without Depp’s Jack Sparrow? I don’t think so. (Update: Johnny is DEFINITELY in for Pirates 4. )

No word yet on when Depp will start filming for Alice in Wonderland - though we know that they have started filming other parts of the movie at the Antony House in the UK.

Here’s a random smattering of news about Johnny that’s surfaced lately!

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Oopsy, Oshkosh!

In Oshkosh, Wisconsin, a business group had to pay a hefty fee of $12,000 due to an add they produced using a photograph of Johnny Depp without the permission of Universal Studios. The photo was taken while Depp was filming Public Enemies, though they forgot to ask the studio for permission to use Depp’s image in an ad in Experimental Aircraft Association guides.

The Downtown Oshkosh Business Improvement District then reimbursed the newspaper and buyers guide the $12k because they had to reprint. That’s an expensive oops!

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Johnny was awarded the Russian George Milies Award for the fourth time in a row - this time for Simply the Best (for life). His bandmate accepted the award fr him, and gave it to him at the Sheila Witkin Concert.

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Johnny Depp and Tim Burton, the dastardly duo, have been declared and verified by Guinness that they are the most lucrative movie partnership in history!

I know, tell us something we DON’T know! Next they’re gonna declare Johnny Sexy. Because, you know, we might not be sure about it until it’s official and all…

Anyway, their five films together have netted $570.6 million in earnings world wide, which earned them the record and the Guinness mention.

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Speaking of Depp/Burton, filming has started at the Antony house for the upcoming Alice in Wonderland, but alas, Johnny fans have been disappointed. Though it’s still said that Johnny will be in the film, he won’t be fliming at Antony, in Plymouth, or anywhere in the UK. Disney still hasn’t confirmed he’s even IN the film!

But hey, with them being the best Movie Making Duo Ever, is there really any doubt? The only question is if he’s real, or Memorex CGI. Either way, he won’t be in the UK.

Rumors have been swirling about a version of 3D Alice in Wonderland to begin filming with Tim Burton at the helm. More importantly were the rumors that Johnny Depp will play the Mad Hatter. Those rumors have been confirmed, according to IGN.

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp are totally BFFs and have worked together so often it’s harder to name a production that didn’t include the two of them. Not to mention, Burton’s Wife, Helena Bonham Carter has partnered Depp as his love interest in many films as well. (probably not Alice, but you never know!)

This version of Alice in Wonderland will be live action/performance-capture of the Lewis Carroll Classic. It was reported by Hollywood Insider that Alice will be live action until Alice (Mia Wasikowska) jumps down the rabbit hole. No one is letting the real cat out of the bag yet, though - does Depp don the Hatter Costume, or merely lend his voice? Time will tell!

EW.com(Entertainment Weekly) is giving us a real treat-an interview with Johnny all about Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street! Johnny talks all about the making of the movie, working with Tim Burton again, his impressions of Stephen Sondheim, and a few other things as well! Here’s a brief excerpt from the interview. Be sure you go to the above link to read the entire interview. It’s fantastic!

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ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: This Sweeney dude — he is messed up! You are going to freak out a lot of pre-pubescent girls with this character.
JOHNNY DEPP: Ah, finally! It’s a radical left turn, that’s for sure. The difficulty and the challenge [was] taking a character like that and attempting to make people feel for him, at the same time that he’s slashing people up. Not easy. But I certainly hope it came across that way.

Musical lovers and Stephen Sondheim fanatics know Sweeney Todd really well. What about the general public?
Somebody sent me this thing from online. Somebody said, after they saw the trailer, ”I don’t understand why in the middle of that trailer Depp broke into a song.” Like, ”Whoa — What is he doing?”

Singers say Sondheim’s melodies can be incredibly tough. Why?
It’s real obtuse stuff. When you start to take those pieces apart, melody line by melody line, it’s a lot of half-steps, which is not real easy to do. Kind of go G to A-flat to A to B-flat. It’s super, ultra complicated, these notes that shouldn’t work together at times. But he made them so.

Did Sondheim have any good advice for you?
He said to me early on, it was much more about the acting work than the singing. He felt the singing was secondary to hitting the notes emotionally. I didn’t believe him. [Laughs] I think he was probably saying that to make me feel better about what I was about to attempt.

And what did that feel like?
Frightening. Really frightening! When Tim asked if I’d be into it, he said, ”Do you think you can sing?” And I said, ”Honestly, I don’t know.” I’m not tone deaf, so I knew I could stay in key to some degree. But I didn’t know if I could sustain a note, or belt one out.

You were in a number of rock and roll bands before you became an actor. Didn’t you do any singing in those?
Virtually none. Just backup.

And yet Sondheim approved you without an audition.
Sondheim, bless him, had barely heard me talk. So when he said, ”He’ll be fine,” it was a real shock.

What did Tim Burton say to you after he finally heard your singing voice?
He couldn’t have been sweeter about it. He was really supportive, and said he really liked it. It was the reaction I was praying for.
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Some lucky fans have finally gotten to see a sneak peek of Sweeney Todd! Here’s an excerpt from a review by Steve Biodrowsky over at Cinefantastique.

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Got a sneak peak at SWEENEY TODD on Tuesday, and it is absolutely fantastic - one of the best things Tim Burton has ever directed! The movie is pretty much your dream of what it would be, when you first heard that Burton and Johnny Depp would be turning the Stephen Sondheim musical into a movie: it’s a dark, brooding horror-musical-comedy that hits all the right notes.

Depp casts aside the over-the-top antics of Jack Sparrow for a much more self-contained performance as the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, in which the emotions (primarily a lust for revenge) ooze up to the surface in controlled bursts; without ever blunting the character’s razor-sharp edge, the actor demands that we sympathize and root for Sweeney as he slashes his way through half the throats in London. Alan Rickman is wonderful as the hypocritical Judge Turpin, whose machinations drove Sweeney to madness. Sacha Baron Cohen shines in a small role - you don’t have to be a Borat fan to enjoy his work here. A special mention must go out for Timothy Spall as Beadle Bamford, Turpin’s right-hand man - a perfectly wrought performance of a slimy character who mistakenly believes himself to be slick and smart. Hopefully, the Oscar academy will not overlook him next year even though his role is not of the showy, melodramatic kind that usually draws attention.

If there is a flaw in the movie, it is that the cinematic storytelling occasionally short circuits the musical nature of the source material. The acting performances, through close-up camera angles and cutting, convey the point of some scenes long before the songs wrap up, as when Anthony (Jamie Campbell Bower) first lays eyes on and falls in love with Sweeney’s daughter Johanna (Jayne Wisener), who is kept a virtual prisoner in Turpin’s mansion. Judging from the reaction and comments after the screening, fans of the musical will be pleased that the film is faithful to Sondheim, but SWEENEY TODD might have been even better if it had jettisoned more of the stage version, which on a few occasions feels like dead weight slowing the movie down.

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I don’t know about you, but it’s nice to finally have my impressions of the movie confirmed by someone who has actually seen it! I can hardly wait for December! I’ll share more reviews as I find them.

More movie news at Movie Review Report

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Here’s the second trailer for Sweeney Todd! The more I see about this movie, the more excited I am to see it!

There’s none of Johnny’s singing in this trailer. The blogosphere is really buzzing about Johnny’s singing (or lack thereof) in these trailers. Does it mean he can’t sing? Is his voice awful? Can’t he carry a tune? There’s been a lot of pointing out that his singing was dubbed in John Waters’ film, Crybaby. And also a lot of pointing out that Waters had his reasons for not letting Johnny sing that had nothing to do with his voice.

Tom O’Neil over at theL.A. Times is comparing Depp and Sweeney to Rex Harrison in the 1964 George Cukor film My Fair Lady. He quotes Julie Andrews, Harrison’s stage co-star with saying He couldn’t sing, but he had an innate musicality which enabled him to kind of do a sing-speak sound, which was great and exactly right because it blended straight out of dialogue into song.”

He then goes on to say that, even if Johnny can’t sing, he may be able to pull of the same “sing-speak” thing that Rex Harrison did. But then, O’Neil is not known to be a fan of Johnny Depp. Personally, I don’t think we have anything to worry about.

Not only because this is Johnny Depp we’re talking about, but because composer Stephen Sondheim had final say over the stars. Both Johnny and Helena Bonham Carter had to audition for him. Also, Sondheim has seen the film and he says it’s great. And Sondheim is not known for being diplomatic if he has issues!

In a recent interview, Sondheim said of the movie, “It’s not the Broadway show. It’s only an hour and 45 minutes. A lot of the score has been cut. They’ve made it its own thing. You have to go in knowing that. But what they’ve done is great.” If the composer thinks it’s great, what else can you say?

Personally, I’m going on the belief that Johnny Depp and Tim Burton together can do no wrong!

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With Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street set for limited release in December and wide release in January, I thought I’d take the opportunity to give you some more information on Johnny’s favorite director and friend, Tim Burton.

Finally!!! Here’s our first look at Johnny as Sweeney Todd (other than still photos and movie posters)! It’s the 2:29 trailer of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and it was worth the wait!

The first seconds of the trailer show us Benjaming Barker (the man who became Sweeney Todd), happy with his wife and daughter, then immediately cut to a courtroom scene, where Judge Turpin (played by the always wonderful Alan Rickman) is solemnly and evilly pronouncing, “May the Lord have mercy on your soul.”

From there we are treated to scenes of Benjamin Barker’s transformation to Sweeney Todd, with scenes featuring Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen. Along with our first few seconds of Johnny singing! It’s not enough to gauge his entire performance, but he sounds as though, vocally, he’s handling it well. Of course, I would expect no less of him. Johnny’s the type of actor who would not take on a role if he didn’t think he was up to the challenge.

There’s some interesting background to Johnny and Helena’s roles. Seems composer Stephen Sondheim retained veto power over casting the lead roles. Both Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter had to personally audition for Sondheim, and he almost rejected Johnny, considering his vocals “too rock oriented.” Now, that would have been a shame!

As far as acting, well-do we really even need to bring that up? Johnny’s always stellar in that arena. He embodies a character to perfection, and makes it look so easy. I can always actually forget that I’m watching Johnny Depp! Once again, I can’t wait for this movie!

Johnny Depp, Depp, Sweeney Todd, Tim Burton, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Sacha Baron Cohen, Sweeney Todd trailer

The trailer for Sweeney Todd will be available for viewing this weekend, at the movie, Heartbreak Kid. Josh Tyler over at Cinema Blend has gotten a sneak preview. Here’s his take on the trailer:

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The first trailer for Tim Burton and Johnny Depp’s next movie Sweeney Todd is due to hit theaters for the first time this weekend attached to prints of The Heartbreak Kid. No word on when it will be online, but I saw it tonight at a Heartbreak Kid press screening. It’s good. Weird, but good.

When you’re talking Sweeney Todd you expect weird, after all this is a movie about a barber who murders his customers and has them baked into pies while singing about it. Musicals are by definition weird, and Sweeney Todd is weirder than most. And the trailer is good, really good. Or it is until Johnny Depp gets singing. Then it gets even weirder than you’d expect. It’s not that his voice is bad, it’s just that watching Johnny Depp belting out a tune in Tim Burtin’s typically dark, dank, world simply feels incredibly wrong.

The trailer, which runs a bit more than two minutes, seems to be trying to de-emphasize the musical aspect of the film. That may be why Depp’s singing scene seems odd, since so little of the trailer is devoted to advertising the film as a musical. Or it could be that getting used to Depp doing the singing thing is simply going to take some getting used to. Either way, you’re in for a treat this weekend when the first trailer for Sweeney Todd debuts.
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I’ll be seeing it myself later this weekend. Can’t wait!

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