Johnny Depp

Source: Saudi Film Confex

Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp reflected on his fraught relationship with Disney when making Pirates Of The Caribbean at a masterclass session on acting craft at Saudi Film Confex in Riyadh today (October 22).

Discussing how he approached his performances, Depp recalled Disney was not happy with the way he interpreted the role of the eccentric character Captain Jack Sparrow.

“They hated me so much. Disney despised me and were convinced that I was ruining the movie,” Depp said of the role that he famously modelled in part on Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.

Depp went on to speak of the importance for an actor of trusting their instincts and being supported by a director.

“Between an actor and director, there has to be trust on both sides. There’s a balance. There [has to be] compromise in cinema, but just not to extreme measures, where some accountant is telling you how to do your character.”

He said the characters he had created throughout his career had been drawn from parts of his personality and emotional experience and added that it was important for actors to look “just below the words” of a script and understand the subtext of the dialogue.

Depp said that audiences have been “condescended” to for years by Hollywood. “Audiences want to think, they want to be believed and be surprised, and to feel for themselves.”

He said he can ”barely acknowledge” himself as an actor, and for years didn’t watch any of the films he starred in. “I don’t think that I’ve ever arrived with full satisfaction [in a role]. You always feel there’s something more that you can add.” 

“I hate watching myself,” said Depp.

The actor was speaking on the opening day of the third edition of the film business event Saudi Film Confex, which runs until October 25.

Depp has become a familiar figure at events within Saudi Arabia in recent years. The Red Sea Film Foundation backed Depp’s recent directorial effort, Modi, the biopic about the life of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani, which played at the San Sebastian Film Festival last year.

The Red Sea Film Festival earlier provided post-production financing for period drama Jeanne du Barry which starred Depp and opened the Cannes Film Festival in 2023.

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