After what’s been a particularly rough few years, Johnny Depp is speaking out about “cancel culture” and the ways it’s affected his life. The former Fantastic Beasts franchise star is set to soon appear at the San Sebastian Film Festival to accept this year’s honorary Donostia Award. Ahead of the event, Depp appeared at a press conference where he expressed that “no one is safe” from the movement, noting that many others have been adversely affected as well.
“It can be seen as an event in history that lasted for however long it lasted, this cancel culture, this instant rush to judgment based on what essentially amounts to polluted air. It’s so far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe. Not one of you. No one out that door. No one is safe. It takes one sentence and there’s no more ground, the carpet has been pulled. It’s not just me that this has happened to, it’s happened to a lot of people. This type of thing has happened to women, men. Children have suffered from various types of unpleasantries. Sadly at a certain point they begin to think that it’s normal. Or that it’s them. When it’s not.”
Johnny Depp also appeared to refer to the libel case he lost against the British tabloid The Sun last year. The actor had sued the owner of the publication after he was referred to as a “wife-beater” in an article, stemming from allegations made by ex-wife Amber Heard. Depp’s lawyers introduced evidence that has many fans convinced of the actor’s innocence, but Depp lost the case with his appeal later denied. While this was a big blow legally, it only fueled the #JusticeForJohnnyDepp social media campaign.
“It doesn’t matter if a judgment, per se, has taken some artistic license. When there’s an injustice, whether it’s against you or someone you love, or someone you believe in – stand up, don’t sit down. ‘Cause they need you.”
Reportedly, Depp did not shy away from these difficult questions, and this is certainly the most he’s openly addressed “cancel culture” to such an extent. Even so, additional questions relating to Depp’s personal problems were nixed by the San Sebastian organizers. When another question addressed the criticism from a group of Spanish filmmakers concerning Johnny Depp’s Donostia Award, the host of the conference rejected the question and told everyone else to stick with questions about Johnny’s career.
Later, Johnny Depp admitted that he was “worried” that he “would offend people” with his presence at the festival, reiterating that he “didn’t want to offend anyone.” For what it’s worth, his fans have been greeting him with very welcoming receptions during his recent public appearances. One young fan dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow was even lucky enough to have the actor channel his Pirates of the Caribbean character. On another occasion, video was captured of fans telling Depp, “We believe you.”
Depp’s separate libel lawsuit against Amber Heard directly is scheduled to be heard in 2022. Johnny’s legal team has already scored a few wins ahead of the case, with Heard’s attempts to have the suit tossed rejected. Meanwhile, Depp’s acting career has seen some hiccups in recent years, but Sauvage has continued to stand by him. This news comes to us from Deadline.