Fees for Johnny Depp’s 2017 films topped $30 million but the star hasn’t signed a Hollywood studio deal since an op-ed by his ex-wife, Amber Heard, accusing him of domestic abuse , detailed his agent on Monday. Jack Whigham, who has represented the star since October 2016, testified by video in a court in suburban Washington, where a high-profile trial between the former spouses has been held for three weeks. In December 2018, at the height of the #MeToo movement, the actress had published an editorial in the washington postin which she described herself as a victim of domestic violence without, however, citing her former husband.
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Johnny Depp, who denies ever raising a hand on a woman, sued her for defamation. Accusing him of having ruined his reputation and his career, he claims 50 million dollars in damages. She counter-attacked and claims 100 million dollars. These staggering sums are up to the old stamps of the hero of Edward Scissorhands. According to his agent, the actor received $8 million for the film City of Lies, 10 million for Murder on the Orient Express and 13.5 million for the second part of the Fantastic Beasts in 2017.
In 2018 he has “wanted to take some time for him”and only turned “that” two independent films in the fall: The Professor for 3.5 million and Waiting for the Barbarians for a million, added Jack Whigham. But “an agreement had been reached” to reprise the role of Jack Sparrow in the sixth installment of Pirates of the Caribbean for $22.5 million. According to Jack Whigham, Amber Heard’s accusations were “catastrophic” for Johnny Depp. “After the editorial, it became impossible to get a contract with a studio”he assured.
As for the shooting of the film Minamataplanned for early 2019, “It was very hard to maintain it: the budget had to be cut, especially Johnny’s fee”which did not touch “that” three million, the agent said. It was his last film, because, in 2019, the Disney studios have “took another direction” for the Pirates of the Caribbean saga. Despite contacts with producers, “I couldn’t save” this role very “lucrative”, said his agent. Questioned by the lawyers of Amber Heard, he however conceded that the agreement “was in bad shape” in the fall of 2018, i.e. before the publication of the editorial. In April, the British tabloid The Sun had previously accused Johnny Depp of being “a violent husband”. The actor sued his publishers and lost in a lawsuit that exposed his drug and alcohol abuse.