Is Johnny Depp Still Johnny Depp?

Johnny, Johnny, Johnny. What’s been going on? Don’t get us wrong, we’re big fans and always will be, but something’s gone a little awry of late. Well, for quite a while actually. Depp’s latest film Transcendence is inarguably a total box office flop. Taking just $11.5 million in its opening week was hugely disappointing, but from the sound of things it never even stood a chance. The critics have been pretty scathing, particularly of Depp. Antonia Quirke of the Financial Times remarked, “The only part of [Depp] still genuinely dynamic is his hair. I’m worried.” Yikes.

Depp fans feel that he has 'lost it' - whatever 'it' was

If it was just one flop it would have been easier to ignore, but sadly Depp has suffered from several over the past few years. His 2013 Disney film The Lone Ranger absolutely bombed at the box office, while Dark Shadows, The Rum Diary, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and The Tourist have all failed to win over critics and audiences. In fact, since 2010 Depp’s only real success was computer animated comedy Rango. Although, Rango is pretty fantastic, so that’s got to count for something.

So what on earth has happened? When did Depp, King of Quirk, Master of the Offbeat, Lord of the Idiosyncratic, become box office poison? For so long he could do no wrong. He owned the 90s with his string of actress and supermodel girlfriends, occasional profound mumbles and looks that put even the prettiest of Hollywood starlets to shame. In the decade when grunge reigned supreme Depp was the unparalleled heartthrob of a generation.

Unlike Brad Pitt, who with age just seems to get better, more sophisticated and more appealing, Depp seems to have lost something that once made up entirely who he was. While Depp’s recent split from actress Vanessa Paradis clearly has no connection to his string of failed films, there is something quite poignant to note. During the Paradis years, Depp was holed away in the French countryside, living the sort of nomadic bohemian lifestyle that fans had come to expect of him. He maintained his air of 90s aloofness so could be forgiven the odd deviation from what we had come to expect.

Depp is now engaged to actress Amber Heard, who he met on the set of The Rum Diaries

Since 2012 Depp has been involved with 28 year old Alpha Dog actress Amber Heard. The high-profile relationship has had an interesting effect on how fans see him. He’s become more accessible, less unusual, he talks more than ever (which is often a mistake…the whole ‘chick’s ring’ thing was just too much) and has released a string of mainstream flops. He just seems to have lost that edge of cool that for so long he managed to maintain.  While his personal clearly has no sway on his professional successes, something about Johnny Depp just isn't, well, Johnny Depp anymore.  We can only hope that this is a temporary blip, like John Travolta's interim between Grease and Pulp Fiction.   

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Watch the trailer for Johnny Depp's film Transcendence