Never mind the whiff of April Fool’s Day about it (given reports that surfaced in 2017 that Depp spent $30,000 a month on wine,that title has a certain fruity bouquet),the project was reported by industry journalist Jeff Sneider in his on the weekend.
“Don’t call it a comeback,”,but really,if it was true,how could you call it anything else?
Sydney Sweeney,star of Anyone But You.Brendon Thorne
Here was a 60-year-old whose most prominent recent roles have been in a couple of sordid real-life courtroom dramas teaming up with one of the industry’s most bankable talents,the 26-year-old star ofEuphoria,The White Lotus,smash-hit rom-comAnyone But You and ecclesiastical horror filmImmaculate.
In other words,a guy who is so off-the-boil he could barely catch a cold is allegedly set to make a movie with a woman who is so hot right now (IMDB starmeter ranking 3;Instagram followers 19.3 million) that everything she touches (including the multiple brands with which she has commercial arrangements) turns to gold.
True or not,though,Sweeney’s fans did not approve.
“You call yourself a feminist and now you’re gonna work with Depp,” wrote one incensed Instagram follower,before referring to text messages in 2013 between Depp and the actor Paul Betttany about the former’s then-wife,Amber Heard,which were aired during Depp’s defamation trial brought againstTheSun newspaper in London in 2020.
“Sister PLEASE pull out of the Johnny Depp movie,” wrote another. “DON’T DO IT.”
But was the story true?
After her camp refused to confirm or deny the report,on Sunday (US time),Sweeney tweeted a response that was ambiguous enough to fuel a thousand stories.
“Anyways,go see @ImmaculateMovie in theatres this weekend!”
That single word “rumours” was enough to have some outlets rushing to assert that Sweeney had “denied” the story.
“Sydney Sweeney shuts down reports that she will star in a new movie with Johnny Depp,”.
“Sydney Sweeney isn’t starring in Johnny Depp’sDay Drinker,” claimedVulture.
Johnny Depp at the premiere of Jeanne du Barry in Cannes last May.John Phillips
“Sydney Sweeney and co debunk Johnny Depp movie team-up rumour,” claimed TMZ.
Did she,though?
While,claiming the denials were simply sour grapes because he had taken the heat out of a planned announcement at the Cannes film festival next month,the only thing that was clear about the rumour,and the “rumour” response,was that it had struck a nerve.
As the strategic last year suggested,Sweeney isn’t afraid of a little internet baiting if it helps raise her profile,her bankability,and public interest in seeing her latest movie (one in which,as a producer,she has more than a passing pecuniary interest).
And it worked:despite middling reviews,the romantic comedy has taken more than $US216 million globally,and spent nine weeks in the top 10 at the US box office;in Australia it has taken almost $23 million since its release on Boxing Day,and has outperformed every movie this year barDune:Part Two.
As for Depp,any hint of a resurrection for his career would surely come as a very welcome miracle,at Easter or any other time of the year.
French historical dramaJeanne du Barry,which debuted at Cannes last May,will soon have a limited release in Australian cinemas. But whilePirates of the Caribbeanis to set sail again,there’s no guarantee Captain Jack Sparrow will be aboard the sixth voyage of the franchise that made Depp one of the best-paid actors on the planet.
Speaking last week,producer Jerry Bruckheimer said:“We’re gonna rebootPirates so that it is easier to put together because you don’t have to wait for certain actors.”
Unless Sneider’sDay Drinker report turns out to be true after all,it seems a second coming for Depp might have to wait.
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