CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 17: Johnny Depp attends the "Jeanne du Barry" photocall at the 76th annual ... [+]
Johnny Depp is returning to the big screen four years after the release of his last film.
Vertical Entertainment announced Monday that Depp’s Jeanne du Barry will open in theaters on May 2. Starring alongside Depp in Jeanne du Barry is French film star Maïwenn, who is also directing the film.
In a press release, Vertical Entertainment revealed the synopsis of the period drama:
“Jeanne du Barry follows Jeanne Vaubernier (Maïwenn), a working-class woman determined to climb the social ladder, using her charms to escape her impoverished life. Her lover, the Comte du Barry (Melvil Poupaud), wishes to present her to King Louis XV (Johnny Depp) and orchestrates a meeting through the influential Duke of Richelieu (Pierre Richard).
“The encounter goes far beyond his expectations for it was love at first sight for the King and Jeanne. Through this ravishing courtesan, the king rediscovers his appetite for life and feels he can no longer live without her. Making Jeanne his last official mistress, scandal erupts as no one at Court will accept a girl from the streets into their rarified world.”
Jeanne du Barry made its debut as an Official Selection of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in May 2023. At a press conference promoting the film (via The Times and Sunday Times), Depp addressed his absence from films in the past few years and the how the controversies surrounding him affected it.
“I keep wondering about the word ‘comeback’ because I didn’t go anywhere. Matter of fact, I live about 45 minutes away,” Depp told reporters in the South of France. “So maybe people stopped calling out of whatever their fear was at the time, but no I didn’t go nowhere. I’ve been sitting around. So, comeback? [It’s] almost like I’m going to come out and do a tap dance or some sort of spectacular [dance] here on the table and, you know, dance my best for you guys and hope that you approve.”
In addition, Depp said that he doesn’t feel boycotted by Hollywood because he doesn’t think about it.
“I don’t have much further need for Hollywood myself. I don’t know how you guys feel,” Depp told reporters. “But I feel it’s a very strange, funny time where everybody would love to be able to be themselves but they can’t because they must fall in line with the person in front of them. [If] you want to live that kind of life, I wish you the best.”
Depp’s Last Film Role Was In 2020’s Indie Release ‘Minamata’
Johnny Depp — whose acting career had been sidelined in the last few years amid civil defamation proceedings with his ex-wife Amber Heard — last appeared in the 2020 indie drama Minamata. In the film, Depp played real-life war photojournalist W. Eugene Smith.
Depp has found other creative outlets between films, including concert tours with his rock band Hollywood Vampires, which he co-founded in 2012 with rock legends Alice Cooper and Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry. In addition to playing live gigs, the band has released two studio albums — Hollywood Vampires in 2015 and Rise in 2019 — as well as a concert album Live in Rio in 2023.
The Hollywood Vampires’ debut album in 2012 included covers of such hard rock classics as Whole Lotta Love, My Generation and School’s Out/Another Brick in the Wall. In addition, several legendary musicians guest appearances on the album including Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Slash, Robbie Krieger and Dave Grohl.
While Depp has taken a break from movies, he has done voice acting work for the small screen in the past few years. Depp voiced Johnny Puff in Puffins — a series of animated shorts — from 2020-2021 and reprised the role for the series Puffins Impossible from 2021-2022. Depp’s character also appears in the 2024 animated feature Johnny Puff: Secret Mission, but the movie is still awaiting a U.S. release date.
