Johnny Depp said he feels he is being boycotted by Hollywood, as his latest film “Minamata” has yet to score a U.S. release.
In a new interview with The Sunday Times, Depp — whose ex-wife Amber Heard accused him of domestic violence — called his fall from Hollywood’s good graces an “absurdity of media mathematics.”
Directed by Andrew Levitas, “Minamata” stars Depp as W Eugene Smith, an American photojournalist who helped expose the tragic effects of mercury poisoning on Japanese coastal communities in the 1970s.
Last year, Depp lost a libel case against British tabloid The Sun, which referred to the actor as a “wife beater” in an article about him and Heard. The court ruled that the paper proved the content of its article to be “substantially true,” and the judge found that 12 of the 14 alleged incidents of domestic violence had occurred.
MGM then reportedly switched the U.S. release of “Minamata” from February 2021 to TBA, and Depp exited his leading role in Warner Bros.’ “Fantastic Beasts” franchise. MGM did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
“Some films touch people and this affects those in ‘Minamata’ and people who experience similar things,” Depp said. “And for anything … for Hollywood’s boycott of me? One man, one actor in an unpleasant and messy situation, over the last number of years?”
He added that he is “moving towards where I need to go to make all that… to bring things to light.”
This week, the San Sebastian Film Festival stood by its decision to honor Depp with their top prize, the Donostia Award. Despite condemnation from a group of Spanish filmmakers, the San Sebastian Film Festival said the actor has not been convicted “of any form of violence against women.” Depp is also being honored at this year’s Karlovy Vary Festival in the Czech Republic.