Actor Johnny Depp has said that he never watched the first movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, which made him an internationally renowned star. The 58-year-old was talking about his initial days as an actor while testifying in his $50 million defamation case against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
Depp played the role of Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in 2003. He reprised his role in sequels Dead Man's Chest, At World's End, On Stranger Tides, and Dead Men Tell No Tales.
“I didn't see it ... But the film did pretty well, apparently. And they wanted to keep going, making more. And I was fine to do that,” he said in the court today.
Depp then described how his life changed after the release of the first film in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
“Pirates was the thing. It all turned around. It just went weird. You would have people trying to climb the gates to see Captain Jack Sparrow. You have people trying to bust in the gates dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow. Or follow you, follow you and your family,” the actor said
Depp added that he came to acting by accident. “I was no means to be an actor ... But the fact that these people were going to pay me a ludicrous amount of money ... It was $12,800 per week. I had never seen that kind of dough in my life.”
The actor has filed the defamation case against Heard “to expose the truth about his relationship” with ex-wife. Heard, 35, too has slapped a libel case against Depp, seeking $100 million.
Depp's case is based on an opinion piece written by Heard for the Washington post in December 2018 about being a survivor of domestic abuse.
The article never mentioned Depp by name, but his lawyers told reporters that it was clear Heard was referring to the leading man of Hollywood.
Depp has rubbished all the allegations and has accused Heard of ruining his career with false accusations of violence. Heard, meanwhile, accuses Depp in her lawsuit of smearing her by calling her a liar.