Actor Johnny Depp says he was boycotted by Hollywood

Hollywood actor Johnny Depp feels that the past 5 years of his life have been “surreal” and that Hollywood has boycotted him. In his first public interview after losing a libel suit against the publisher of Britain’s The Sun newspaper, the actor spoke to The Sunday Times about his movie “Minamata.”

The actor, also one of the producers of the film, portrays real-life photographer W. Eugene Smith, who documented the mercury poisoning of Japanese villagers in the early 1970s in collaboration with Life magazine.

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Johnny Depp had only recently filed a suit against The Sun after they labelled him a “wife-beater” in an article over his now ex-wife Amber Heard’s claims of abuse, that he has denied.

Juxtapositioning his life to those who got infected by COVID-19 and the poisoned Japanese villagers, he said, “That’s like getting scratched by a kitten…Comparatively.”

He further opened up about the film not being released in the US as it did in the UK, blaming it on his personal life amid the controversy involving him and his ex-wife Amber Heard. He claimed that they had promised the villagers that they would not be exploitative.

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“We looked these people in the eyeballs and promised we would not be exploitative…That the film would be respectful,” Depp said. “I believe that we’ve kept our end of the bargain, but those who came in later should also maintain theirs.”

He also referred to “Hollywood’s boycott of, erm, me.”

“One man, one actor in an unpleasant and messy situation, over the last number of years?” he said “But, you know, I’m moving towards where I need to go to make all that . . .To bring things to light.”

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard tied the knot in 2015, eventually splitting in 2016 in what became a months-long breakup with allegations of domestic abuse and violence by both sides before their divorce was finally settled. The actor has, however, denied the allegations.