Johnny Depp No Longer Canceled, Will Star As Controversial Historical Figure In New Movie
Johnny Depp is finally back to work!
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Johnny Depp is gearing up for his next role and it looks like it’s going to be a period piece. Under the pressure of recent controversies and the very public legal battle involving his ex-wife Amber Heard, we’ve certainly seen less of Depp over the past few years. According to Variety, he’ll be starring in a new film by French director Maiwenn where he’ll be playing the controversial Louis XV.
It should be a pretty interesting role for Johnny Depp. Louis XV was also known as Louis the Beloved and was the King of France from 1715 to 1774. He took the throne at age five and ruled for 59 years, until his death. Though he was loved by his subjects and seen as a national hero throughout much of his reign, near the end of his tenure he became controversial due to accusations of corruption and indulging in hedonistic pleasures.
As of now, Johnny Depp doesn’t seem to have any new movies scheduled for 2022, unless the Louis XV film or his upcoming TV mini-series Puffins is released. The third film in the Fantastic Beasts franchise is scheduled to come out this year, which Depp would have originally been a part of if it wasn’t for the accusations leveled against him. Depp has been replaced in that film by Mads Mikkelson, who will be playing the antagonist Gellert Grindelwald instead.
Johnny Depp sued ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation in 2019. That case is also scheduled to go to court in 2022, so Depp might not have the time to take on a ton of roles. It would also be understandable for him to avoid the spotlight after dealing with the stress of the accusations and lawsuits.
As for Johnny Depp’s upcoming Louis XV film, it looks like it’s shaping up to be an interesting project. As mentioned, French director Maiwenn will be leading the charge. Maiwenn will actually have a starring role in the film as well, as Jeanne du Barry, a countess and mistress of Louis XV. Maiwenn was started as an actor and has seamlessly made the transition to the director’s chair. Her previous films Polisse, Mon Roi, and DNA have all made waves at Cannes impressing critics and audiences alike. What’s especially interesting is the fact that Maiwenn’s films have all been French-language films. Meaning she’s either making her first movie in English or Johnny Depp will be speaking French throughout the film.
Though Johnny Depp has lived in France before and likely knows the language fairly well, he’ll probably still need to do some work to nail the accent. Johnny Depp is also known for his dedication to his roles, so he might even be training to get the period-accurate accent right. There are also regional dialects to consider. Whether or not they get this granular with the accent details remains to be seen, but Depp almost always delivers a great performance, so we can probably count on that at least. A title and release date for the film has yet to be unveiled, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated on the latest acting effort from Johnny Depp.
