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Johnny Depp

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Biography

Initially known as a teen idol thanks to his role on 21 Jump Street and tortured pretty-boy looks, Johnny Depp survived the perils of adolescent heartthrob status to earn a reputation as a respected adult actor. His numerous collaborations with director Tim Burton, as well as solid performances in a number of critically acclaimed films have allowed Depp to carve a niche for himself as a serious, if idiosyncratic performer, a real-life role that has continuously surprised critics intent on writing him off as just another photogenic Tiger Beat casualty.

Born in Kentucky and raised in Florida, Depp had the kind of upbringing that would readily lend itself to his future portrayals of brooding lost boys: after his parents divorced when he was 16, he dropped out of school a year later in the hopes of making his way through the world as a musician. Depp fronted a series of garage bands; the most successful of these, The Kids, was once the opening act for Iggy Pop. During slack times in the music business, Depp sold pens by phone. He got into acting after a visit to LA with his former wife, who introduced him to actor Nicolas Cage. Cage encouraged Depp to give thesping a try, and the young actor made his film debut in 1984's A Nightmare on Elm Street; years after attaining stardom, Depp sentimentally played a cameo in the last of the Elm Street series. His climb to fame was accelerated in 1987, when he replaced Jeff Yagher in the role of undercover cop Tommy Hanson in the Canadian-filmed TV series 21 Jump Street. Biding his time in "teen heartthrob" roles, Depp was first given a chance to exhibit his exhausting versatility in the title role of Tim Burton's fantasy Edward Scissorhands (1990).
Following the success of Edward Scissorhands, the actor made a conscious and successful effort never to repeat himself in his subsequent characterizations. He continued to gain critical acclaim and increasing popularity for his work, most notably in Benny & Joon (1993), in which he played a troubled young man who fancies himself the reincarnation of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton; and What's Eating Gilbert Grape, (1993) which cast him as its title character, a young man dissatisfied with the confines of his small-town life. Following Gilbert Grape, Depp outdid himself in Burton's Ed Wood (1994), with his outrageous but lovable portrayal of the angora-sweater-worshipping World's Worst Film Director. The same year, he further exercised his versatility playing a 19th-century accountant in Dead Man, Jim Jarmusch's otherworldly western.
With his excellent portrayal of the titular undercover FBI agent in Mike Newell's 1997 Donnie Brasco, Depp continued to ascend the Hollywood ranks. After a starring turn as Hunter S. Thompson's alter ego in Terry Gilliam's trippy adaptation of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Depp tried his hand at sci-fi horror with The Astronaut's Wife in 1999. The same year, he again collaborated with Burton on Sleepy Hollow, starring as a prim, driven Ichabod Crane in the remake of Washington Irving's classic tale of gothic terror. Appearing the following year in the small but popular romantic drama Chocolat, Depp jumped back into the big time with his role as real-life cocaine kingpin George Jung in Blow (2001) before gearing up for roles in the Jack the Ripper /thriller From Hell (2001) and Robert Rodriguez's Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2002).
In addition to his acting, Depp has also gained a certain dose of fame for his romantic involvements with several female celebrities, including Winona Ryder, Sherilyn Fenn, and Kate Moss; in 1999 he fathered a daughter with French singer/actress Vanessa Paradis. He was also the owner of the Viper Room, a popular LA nightspot which gained notoriety when actor River Phoenix died of a drug overdose on its doorstep in 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmography

Nailed Right In (2003)
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) .... CIA Agent Sands
... aka Desperado II: Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) (USA)
Neverland (2003) .... James Barrie
Pirates of the Caribbean, The (2003) .... Captain Jack Sparrow
Lost In La Mancha (2002) .... Himself
From Hell (2001) .... Fred Abberline
Blow (2001) .... George Jung
In Bad Taste (2000) .... Himself
Sleepy Hollow: Behind the Legend (2000) (V) .... Himself/Constable Ichabod Crane
Chocolat (2000) .... Roux
Before Night Falls (2000) .... Bon Bon/Lieutenant Victor
... aka Antes que anochezca (2000) (USA: Spanish title)
Man Who Cried, The (2000) .... Cesar
... aka The man who cried - Les larmes d'un homme (2001) (France)
Sleepy Hollow (1999) .... Constable Ichabod Crane
Astronaut's Wife, The (1999) .... Commander Spencer Armacost
Ninth Gate, The (1999) .... Dean Corso
... aka Neuvième porte, La (1999) (France)
... aka Novena puerta, La (1999) (Spain)
Source, The (1999) (TV) .... Jack Kerouac
L.A. Without a Map (1998) (uncredited) .... Himself
... aka I Love L.A. (1999) (France)
... aka Los Angeles Without a Map (1998)
Where It's At: The Rolling Stone State of the Union (1998) (TV) .... Himself
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) .... Raoul Duke (Hunter S. Thompson)
Town Meeting with Diane Sawyer: Celebrities vs. the Press (1997) (TV) .... Himself
Brave, The (1997) .... Raphael
Donnie Brasco (1997) .... Joseph D. Pistone/Donnie Brasco
Cannes Man (1996) .... Himself
... aka Canne$ Man (2002) (USA: video box title)
"United States of Poetry" (1995) TV Series
Nick of Time (1995) .... Gene Watson
Dead Man (1995) .... William 'Bill' Blake
... aka Dead Man (1995) (Germany)
... aka Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man (1996) (USA)
Don Juan DeMarco (1995) .... Don Juan
Ed Wood (1994) .... Edward D. Wood, Jr.
What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) .... Gilbert Grape
Benny & Joon (1993) .... Sam
Arizona Dream (1993) .... Axel Blackmar
... aka Arizona Dream (1993) (France)
... aka Arrowtooth Waltz, The (1993)
Idols (1991) (TV) .... Himself
Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991) (as Oprah Noodlemantra) .... Teen on TV
... aka Nightmare On Elm Street 6, A (1991)
Edward Scissorhands (1990) .... Edward Scissorhands
Cry-Baby (1990) .... Wade 'Cry-Baby' Walker
"21 Jump Street" (1987) TV Series .... Off. Tom Hanson (1987-1990)
Slow Burn (1986) (TV) .... Donnie Fleischer
Platoon (1986) .... Lerner
Private Resort (1985) .... Jack
Nightmare On Elm Street, A (1984) .... Glen Lantz

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USA