A Gritty Johnny Depp Movie Is Leaving Netflix Soon
Johnny Depp's cocaine trafficker crime thriller, Blow, is leaving Netflix on December 31st.
The hit 2001 crime drama Blow, starring Johnny Depp is set to leave Netflix on December 31st. The film, which is based on a true story, follows the rise and fall of real life drug trafficker George Jung, portrayed expertly by Johnny Depp, as he becomes a lynchpin for the Pablo Escobar crime family. The classic film is available to stream for a few more days before its scheduled removal from Netflix, so be sure to close out your year right by catching it before it’s too late!
Blow is based off the true events catalogued in Bruce Porter’s 1993 biography of Jung’s life, titled Blow: How a Small Town Boy Made $100 Million with the Medellín Cocaine Cartel and Lost It All. Johnny Depp leads the film alongside an all star cast of A-list actors such as Penélope Cruz, Emma Roberts, stand up comedian Bobcat Goldthwait, and Goodfellas star Ray Liotta. Despite underperforming at the box office initially, the film has become a cultural staple, often referenced in pop culture works, most notably for Depp’s performance.
Blow follows George Jung’s rise from a small town high school football star out of Weymouth Massachusetts to a toll gate operator of an international drug trafficking and sales ring, alongside some of the biggest names on the FBI’s most wanted list. Johnny Depp was given the reigns to improvise much of his performance, crafting an iconic protagonist who, despite his many flaws, comes off cool and likable throughout the film, until his eventual downfall when he is finally put in jail for his many drug trafficking violations. In preparation for the film, Depp actually visited the real George Jung in prison and interviewed him for authenticity.
Despite high audience scores and the films massive popularity throughout the years, critics often cite the biggest flaw of Blow is centering the story of George Jung, rather than focussing on a bigger figure in the cartel, or someone more deeply effected by the negative impacts of the drug trade within the community. These critiques seem to miss the point the film is making, however, as the underlying theme of Blow is that anyone, even Johnny Depp’s smooth talking hometown hero, could fall in with the wrong crowd and wind up suffering the consequences. The film’s director, Ted Demme would go on to die of a cocaine-induced heart attack less than a year after the films release.
The film was produced by long time Ted Demme collaborator Dennis Leary, who worked with the director to craft many of his stand up comedy specials, as well as a series of films throughout the mid-to-late 90’s. Johnny Depp was already a leading man when Blow was released, but saw one of the biggest financial propulsions of his career shortly after the film’s debut, appearing as Captain Jack Sparrow in the hit Disney film series Pirates Of The Caribbean beginning in 2003.
It appears as though Blow is just one of many Johnny Depp films set to depart the streaming service on the 31st of December, as well as another Depp led crime thriller Donnie Brasco and the 2000 romantic comedy film Chocolat. So if you and the family are looking to start a New Years Eve tradition of a Johnny Depp film festival in your very living room, this may be the year to try it out!
