I was as low as I believe I could have gotten: Johnny Depp on bankruptcy, divorce

Depp opens up about legal troubles, financial woes and a tumultuous, shrouded personal life

MUMBAI: Hollywood star Johnny Depp, whose life has been marred by several problems and issues including legal troubles, financial woes and a tumultuous, shrouded personal life, says there was a point when he was as low as he could have gotten.

“I was as low as I believe I could have gotten. The next step was, ‘You’re going to arrive somewhere with your eyes open and you are going to leave with your eyes closed’. I couldn’t take the pain every day,” Depp told Rolling Stone, recalling his emotional state in the midst of his failed marriage and his simultaneously collapsing financial situation.

PHOTO: MARIE CLAIRE

Depp had a highly publicised divorce from starlet Amber Heard, which was finalised in August 2016, following a legal battle. After Heard’s allegations of spousal abuse, which Depp has vehemently denied - his legal troubles continued to spiral.

Heard's name was front and center that night in London because JK Rowling had released a statement – in the wake of the #MeToo movement – explaining why she hadn't fired Depp from Fantastic Beasts.

"When Johnny Depp was cast as Grindelwald, I thought he'd be wonderful in the role," Rowling said. "However, around the time of filming his cameo in the first movie, stories had appeared in the press that deeply concerned me and everyone most closely involved in the franchise. However, the agreements that have been put in place to protect the privacy of two people, both of whom have expressed a desire to get on with their lives, must be respected."

Depp, 49, will also play in Disney's "The Lone Ranger" scheduled for release next summer. PHOTO: REUTERS/ FILE

The famous author further added, "Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but are genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies."

"I poured myself a vodka in the morning and started writing until the tears filled my eyes and I couldn't see the page anymore," Depp said of coping with his turmoil. "I kept trying to figure out what I'd done to deserve this. I'd tried being kind to everyone, helping everyone, being truthful to everyone." He pauses for a moment. "The truth is most important to me. And all this still happened."

File photo of actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. PHOTO: AFP

In January 2017, Depp sued his former business managers, Joel and Robert Mandel of The Management Group (TMG), claiming they mishandled his money and cost him millions.

The pair subsequently countersued and claimed Depp was the one who spent all his own money on extravagances. In their countersuit, TMG claimed that Depp spent $30,000 a month on just wine, and even had a sound engineer on his payroll to feed him lines while shooting his films, so he wouldn’t have to learn them.

Johnny Depp’s quirky action-caper Mortdecai was placed 10th based on box office rankings. PHOTO: REUTERS

Depp claims it isn’t because he doesn’t want to memorise a script. Rather, it’s the engineer’s job to play him specific sounds to allow his to convey emotions with his eyes. “I’ve got bagpipes, a baby crying and bombs going off. It creates a truth. Some of my biggest heroes were in silent film... It had to be behind the eyes. And my feeling is, that if there’s no truth behind the eyes, doesn’t matter what the f**king words are,” he said.

On his wine budget, Depp said, “It’s insulting to say I spent $30,000 on wine. Because it was far more,” he said.

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