Johnny Depp shined brightly in his comeback role after years of battling for his reputation with his ex-wife Amber Heard.
The actor gave an interview after his comeback and talked about his feelings.
Depp held back tears during a 7-minute standing ovation. Meanwhile, his fans were shocked to see his “literally rotten” teeth.
Johnny Depp was in the middle of controversy for a long time due to the legal battle he had with his ex-wife Amber Heard.
In the highly publicized defamation trial, Heard accused Depp of abuse, but the jury sided in the actor’s favor.
The actor made a comeback from battling for his reputation after he was recognized for his role in a film at the premiere of the Cannes Film Festival.
Depp’s attendance at the festival was his first public appearance since his legal battle with Heard was completed in 2022.
Depp received a 7-minute standing ovation during the opening of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in Paris, France.
The actor had featured in the biological drama “Jeanne Du Bary,” where he played King Louis XV. As the people gave him a standing ovation, Depp looked surprised by the gesture and held back tears, but he waved to the audience on the balcony.
The “Black Mass” star also received a warm reception when he arrived in Cannes. Thousands of supportive fans, who had carried signs outside the Palais, attempted to touch their idol.
Many fans got the opportunity to touch Depp, who spent five minutes outside before gracing the red carpet.
“Jeanne Du Bary” is the film that gave Depp his first high-profile acting role since he concluded the legal battle against Heard.
Depp has remained on the sidelines in Hollywood since Heard accused him of abuse as much as the jury ruled in his favor.
In this latest film, Maïwenn stars as Jeanne Vaubernier. Maïwenn is also the director and producer of the film. Vaubernier was a working-class woman in the 18th century who rose in social ranks to become King Louis XV’s lover.
Vaubernier’s working-class roots made her a social pariah even though she was the king’s lover. She became unwanted in the king’s court. Other actors starring in the film include Pascal Greggory, Benjamin Lavernhe, Melvil Poupaud, and Pierre Richard.
Depp also gave an interview at the Cannes Film Festival, where he said he would not allow the high-profile legal battle he had with Heard to define him.
As much as Depp received positive reception at the festival, friends of Heard bashed those in charge of the event for inviting him.
Heard’s friend, journalist Eve Barlow said those in charge of the event have a “history of supporting (…) and abusers.”
However, the festival director Thierry Fremaux said he doesn’t know anything about the image of Depp in the U.S. Fremaux said he was only following the law:
“It’s the freedom of thinking, and the freedom of speech and acting within a legal framework. If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned, we wouldn’t be here talking about it.”
Fremaux pointed out that the person who should be questioned was Maïwenn, as she was the one who chose Depp for the film. He added that he was in no position to debate Depp’s legal battle with Heard:
“If there’s one person in this world who didn’t find the least interest in this very publicized trial, it’s me. I don’t know what it’s about. I also care about Johnny Depp as an actor.”
Apart from the warm reception and backlash from Heard’s friends, Depp was also at the center of online talks due to his physical appearance.
Fans who saw Depp’s picture of the festival online were repulsed by his teeth and noted that they were “literally rotting.” One fan exclaimed, “oh dear lord,” when she saw images of Depp’s rotting teeth.
This is not the first time fans have commented on Depp’s physical appearance as a fan once said the actor looked “homeless.”
This time at the festival, the actor looked dashing on the red carpet, but fans focused on his teeth as one person commented:
“Johnny Depp’s new movie, #JeanneDuBarry, debuts with a Metacritic score of 51, an F rating. The score is currently as yellow as his teeth. Congratulations!”
The images of the teeth disturbed users, with one person saying he didn’t want to see Depp’s teeth as he had seen every image against his will. Another fan said Depp’s teeth looked like someone had grabbed and painted them black.
An online user came to the actor’s defense when he said, “He has too much money to have teeth like that. Maybe he’s shooting another pirates movie, lol.” Another user said Depp’s teeth looked like the ones printed on cigarette packs. An individual commented:
“Yeah, he smokes tobacco/hash spliffs 24/7 been doin so for like 10 years. That’s when I read the rolling stone article, at least [sic].”
Another person noted that just seeing the pictures of the actor’s teeth was enough to ruin their mood. More users said Depp’s teeth made the actor ugly:
“If u post a pic of johnny depp i will block u because that man is so ugly. i deadass get chills just thinking of his face [sic].”
Online users suggested that they should start a petition to petition the actor to get his teeth looked at by a dentist. “He better book his appointment for them veneers the way his teeth looking,” one person added.
However, some people suggested that Depp’s teeth looked like they were rotting because the actor was allegedly preparing for his “new jack sparrow role.”
More people defended Depp and said that actors were human beings and should be allowed to look unappealing because that was part of being realistic and engaging in real life.
Depp also gave an interview at the Cannes Film Festival, where he said he would not allow the high-profile legal battle he had with Heard to define him.
The “City of Lies” actor asked people not to judge him over the legal battles. The legal battle with Heard had a great impact on the actor’s career as he lost roles, including losing his part in the “Fantastic Beats” franchise.
However, the actor’s movie career seems not to be in jeopardy as he has already featured in a high-profile movie. He noted:
“Comeback is a weird thing because… I didn’t go anywhere. People may have made sure that I was not looked at favorably – powerful press, powerful media, for whatever reasons.”
The 60-year-old also told people who are judging him to focus on their families and take one day off work to judge the people close to them.
He told people to look way back and judge their fathers, uncles, and brother to see if they have always been wonderful people:
“Look around you first before you start passing judgment on someone that you have no idea what that person has been through, who they are.”
Depp, who had disappeared from the public’s eye for a while, seemed happy at the Cannes Film Festival as he engaged with fans, took selfies with them, and signed their autographs.