Editing Johnny Depp (section)

=== 1990s: Diversification ===
Disillusioned by his experiences as a teen idol in ''21 Jump Street'', Depp began taking roles he found more interesting, rather than those he thought would succeed at the box office.<ref name="reuters" /><ref name="moviesonline" /> His first film release in 1990 was [[John Waters]]'s ''[[Cry-Baby]]'', a musical comedy set in the 1950s. Although not a box-office success upon its release,<ref name="mojo">{{mojo title|cry-baby|Cry-Baby}}</ref> over the years it has gained [[cult film|cult classic]] status.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.denverpost.com/2010/09/16/cry-baby-depp-makes-the-girls-swoon/|title="Cry-Baby" Depp makes the girls swoon|work=[[The Denver Post]]|first=Michael|last=Booth|date=September 16, 2010|access-date=June 26, 2018|archive-date=June 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180627062323/https://www.denverpost.com/2010/09/16/cry-baby-depp-makes-the-girls-swoon/|url-status=live}}</ref> Also in 1990, Depp played the title character in [[Tim Burton]]'s romantic fantasy film ''[[Edward Scissorhands]]'' opposite [[Dianne Wiest]] and [[Winona Ryder]]. The film was a commercial and critical success with a domestic gross of $53 million.<ref>{{AFI film|id=58487|title=Edward Scissorhands}}</ref> In preparation for the role, Depp watched many [[Charlie Chaplin]] films to study how to create sympathy without dialogue.<ref>{{cite magazine | title = Tim Burton's latest film | magazine = [[Entertainment Weekly]] | date = December 14, 1990 | url = https://ew.com/article/1990/12/14/tim-burtons-latest-film/ | access-date = March 25, 2021 | archive-date = February 27, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210227183210/https://ew.com/article/1990/12/14/tim-burtons-latest-film/ | url-status = live }}</ref> [[Peter Travers]] of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' praised Depp's performance, writing that he "artfully expresses the fierce longing in gentle Edward; it's a terrific performance",<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Edward Scissorhands|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/edward-scissorhands-19901214|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=December 14, 1990|access-date=March 9, 2021|archive-date=May 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120516020611/http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/edward-scissorhands-19901214|url-status=live}}</ref> while Rita Kempley of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' wrote that he "brings the eloquence of the silent era to this part of few words, saying it all through bright black eyes and the tremulous care with which he holds his horror-movie hands".<ref>{{cite web|title='Edward Scissorhands'|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/edwardscissorhandspg13kempley_a0a0bf.htm|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=December 14, 1990|access-date=March 9, 2021|archive-date=October 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171008151527/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/edwardscissorhandspg13kempley_a0a0bf.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Depp earned his first [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy|Golden Globe]] nomination for the film. Owing to this role, a species of extinct [[arthropod]] with prominent claws was named after Depp as ''[[Kootenichela deppi]]'' (''chela'' is Latin for claws or scissors).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-05-16 |title=Actor Johnny Depp immortalised in ancient fossil find {{!}} Imperial News {{!}} Imperial College London |url=https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/122626/actor-johnny-depp-immortalised-ancient-fossil/ |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=Imperial News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Actor Johnny Depp immortalized in name of fossilized creature with 'scissor hand' claws |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130516063842.htm |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=ScienceDaily |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Johnny Depp Cannes nineties.jpg|thumb|upright|Depp at the [[1992 Cannes Film Festival]]]]

Depp had no film releases in the next two years, except a brief cameo in ''[[Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare]]'' (1991), the sixth installment in the ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street (franchise)|A Nightmare on Elm Street]]'' franchise. He appeared in three films in 1993. In the romantic comedy ''[[Benny and Joon]]'', he played an eccentric and illiterate silent film fan who befriends a mentally ill woman and her brother; it became a [[sleeper hit]]. [[Janet Maslin]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote that Depp "may look nothing like [[Buster Keaton]], but there are times when he genuinely seems to become the Great Stone Face, bringing Keaton's mannerisms sweetly and magically to life".<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/16/movies/review-film-he-s-his-sister-s-keeper-and-what-a-job-that-is.html | title=He's His Sister's Keeper, and What a Job That Is | work=[[The New York Times]] | author-link=Janet Maslin | first=Janet | last=Maslin | date=April 16, 1993 | access-date=September 29, 2011 | archive-date=May 26, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526091905/http://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/16/movies/review-film-he-s-his-sister-s-keeper-and-what-a-job-that-is.html | url-status=live }}</ref> Depp received a second Golden Globe nomination for the performance. His second film of 1993 was [[Lasse Hallström]]'s ''[[What's Eating Gilbert Grape]]'', a drama about a dysfunctional family co-starring [[Leonardo DiCaprio]] and [[Juliette Lewis]]. It did not perform well commercially, but received positive notices from critics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=gilbertgrape.htm|title=What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)|publisher=Box Office Mojo|access-date=December 30, 2008|archive-date=September 2, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090902053547/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=gilbertgrape.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Although most of the reviews focused on DiCaprio, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance, Todd McCarthy of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' wrote that "Depp manages to command center screen with a greatly affable, appealing characterization".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117902133.html?categoryid=31&cs=1|title=What's Eating Gilbert Grape Review|last=McCarthy|first=Todd|date=December 6, 1993|work=Variety|access-date=December 30, 2008|archive-date=June 18, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080618164434/http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117902133.html?categoryid=31&cs=1|url-status=live}}</ref> Depp's last 1993 release was [[Emir Kusturica]]'s [[surrealist]] comedy-drama ''[[Arizona Dream]]'', which opened to positive reviews and won the [[Silver Bear]] at the Berlin Film Festival.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Arizona Dream {{!}} film by Kusturica [1993] {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arizona-Dream |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Awards |url=https://www.berlinale.de/en/archive/awards-juries/awards.html/s=%22arizona%20dream%22/o=desc/p=1/rp=40 |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=www.berlinale.de |language=en}}</ref>

In 1994, Depp reunited with Burton, playing the title role in ''[[Ed Wood (film)|Ed Wood]]'', a biographical film about one of history's most inept film directors. Depp later said that he was depressed about films and filmmaking at the time, but that "within 10 minutes of hearing about the project, I was committed".<ref name="Arnold, Gary">{{cite news |last=Arnold |first=Gary |title=Depp sees promise in cult filmmaker Ed Wood's story |work=The Washington Times |date=October 2, 1994}}</ref> He found that the role gave him a "chance to stretch out and have some fun" and that working with [[Martin Landau]], who played [[Bela Lugosi]], "rejuvenated my love for acting".<ref name="Arnold, Gary" /> Although it did not earn back its production costs, ''Ed Wood'' received a positive reception from critics, with Maslin writing that Depp had "proved himself as an established, certified great actor" and "captured all the can-do optimism that kept Ed Wood going, thanks to an extremely funny ability to look at the silver lining of any cloud".<ref>{{cite news |first = Janet |last = Maslin |author-link = Janet Maslin |title = Film Festival Review; Ode to a Director Who Dared to Be Dreadful |newspaper = [[The New York Times]] |date = September 23, 1994}}</ref> Depp was nominated for a third time for a Best Musical or Comedy Actor [[Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe]] for his performance.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Boyar |first=Michelle |date=2023-05-22 |title=Johnny Depp's Best Movie Secretly Saved His Career |url=https://screenrant.com/johnny-depp-best-movie-ed-wood-saved-career/ |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=ScreenRant |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Johnny Depp |url=https://goldenglobes.com/person/johnny-depp/ |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=Golden Globes |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Johnny Depp Jim Jarmusch Cannes 1995.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Depp with director [[Jim Jarmusch]] at the [[1995 Cannes Film Festival]]]]

The next year, Depp starred in three films. He played opposite [[Marlon Brando]] in the box-office hit ''[[Don Juan DeMarco]]'', as a man who believes he is [[Don Juan]], the world's greatest lover. He starred in [[Jim Jarmusch]]'s ''[[Dead Man]]'', a [[Western (genre)|Western]] shot entirely in black-and-white; it was not a commercial success and had mixed critical reviews. And in the financial and critical failure ''[[Nick of Time (film)|Nick of Time]]'', Depp played an accountant who is told to kill a politician to save his kidnapped daughter.

In 1997, Depp and [[Al Pacino]] starred in the crime drama ''[[Donnie Brasco (film)|Donnie Brasco]]'', directed by [[Mike Newell (director)|Mike Newell]]. Depp played [[Joseph D. Pistone]], an undercover FBI agent who assumes the name Donnie Brasco to infiltrate [[American Mafia|the Mafia]] in New York City. To prepare, Depp spent time with Pistone, on whose memoirs the film was based. ''Donnie Brasco'' was a commercial and critical success, and is considered one of Depp's finest performances.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2012/06/the-essentials-the-5-best-johnny-depp-performances-109702/|title=The Essentials: The 5 Best Johnny Depp Performances|last=Lyttelton|first=Oliver|date=June 9, 2012|work=IndieWire|access-date=December 12, 2020|archive-date=December 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203044708/https://www.indiewire.com/2012/06/the-essentials-the-5-best-johnny-depp-performances-109702/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-lists/15-best-and-worst-johnny-depp-roles-from-scissorhands-to-sparrow-56536/best-donnie-brasco-1997-70735/|title=15 Best and Worst Johnny Depp Roles: From Scissorhands to Sparrow|last=Ehrlich|first=David|date=September 16, 2015|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=December 12, 2020|archive-date=May 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520080329/https://videoevents.outbrain.com/events/recordjp?json=%7B%22eventType%22%3A%22VIDGET_VIEWABILITY%22%2C%22abTestVal%22%3A%228838-27421%22%2C%22adBlocker%22%3Afalse%2C%22configuredNative%22%3A%22never%22%2C%22configuredProvidersCount%22%3A3%2C%22configuredReloadCount%22%3A8%2C%22consentData%22%3A%22%22%2C%22currentReload%22%3A1%2C%22description%22%3A%22viewability%20percentage%20threshold%3A%2050%22%2C%22docId%22%3A2017830342%2C%22externalCampaignId%22%3Anull%2C%22featureFlag%22%3A%22GA%22%2C%22gdpr%22%3A0%2C%22iframe%22%3Afalse%2C%22isNative%22%3Afalse%2C%22localTime%22%3A%22Thu%20May%2020%202021%2008%3A03%3A27%20GMT%2B0000%20(GMT)%22%2C%22mediaOrientation%22%3Anull%2C%22obRecsAbtestAndVars%22%3A%22784-2488%2C833-2565%2C386-1123%2C852-2628%2C822-2522%2C902-2790%2C792-2661%2C841-2598%2C859-2649%2C699-2184%2C811-2474%22%2C%22orientation%22%3A%22PORTRAIT%22%2C%22partner%22%3A%225dfa1d8b775faf0004d55434%22%2C%22placementType%22%3A%22footer%22%2C%22playerLocation%22%3A%22inWidget%22%2C%22pauseOutOfView%22%3Anull%2C%22playMode%22%3A%22AUTO_PLAY%22%2C%22playingType%22%3A%22OUTSTREAM%22%2C%22prebid%22%3Atrue%2C%22provider%22%3A%22VIDAZOO%22%2C%22providerIndex%22%3A1%2C%22publisherId%22%3A28377%2C%22runningWidgetIdx%22%3A%220%22%2C%22screenResolution%22%3A%221000x1600%22%2C%22sessionId%22%3A%2290708a6e-79e7-95c3-0213-054ba478c338%22%2C%22sourceDocUrl%22%3A%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rollingstone.com%2Fmovies%2Fmovie-lists%2F15-best-and-worst-johnny-depp-roles-from-scissorhands-to-sparrow-56536%2F%22%2C%22sourceId%22%3A5854137%2C%22sourcePvId%22%3A%22a222bd8e5fcb14a2f9ac06412edbf18b%22%2C%22sourceRequestId%22%3A%22a222bd8e5fcb14a2f9ac06412edbf18b%22%2C%22sourceSubWidgetId%22%3Anull%2C%22sourceWidgetId%22%3A%22AR_1%22%2C%22sticky%22%3A%22none%22%2C%22subPlatform%22%3Anull%2C%22timeSinceFirstEvent%22%3A27281%2C%22timeSincePreviousEvent%22%3A27281%2C%22trafficType%22%3A7%2C%22version%22%3A%22v5.63.0%22%2C%22videoBitRate%22%3Anull%2C%22videoClickUrl%22%3Anull%2C%22videoDuration%22%3A5.217%2C%22videoHeight%22%3Anull%2C%22videoMediaUrl%22%3Anull%2C%22videoPlayerId%22%3A%22Vidazoo%22%2C%22videoProgress%22%3A0%2C%22videoVastUrl%22%3Anull%2C%22videoViewablePixels%22%3A0%2C%22videoWidth%22%3A550%2C%22viewability%22%3A100%2C%22waterfall%22%3A%22Vidazoo%2COPA%2CAniview%22%2C%22widgetIdx%22%3A0%7D&callback=OB_VidgetAuditCallback|url-status=live}}</ref> Also in 1997, Depp debuted as a director and screenwriter with ''[[The Brave (film)|The Brave]]''. He starred in it as a poor Native American man who accepts a proposal from a wealthy man, played by Marlon Brando, to appear in a [[snuff film]] in exchange for money for his family. It premiered at the [[1997 Cannes Film Festival]] to generally negative reviews.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Brave (1997) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10001126-brave |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=March 9, 2021 |archive-date=October 7, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007052936/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10001126-brave |url-status=live }}</ref> ''Variety'' called it "a turgid and unbelievable neo-western",<ref>{{cite web |last=Cheshire |first=Godfrey |title=The Brave |url=https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/the-brave-1117329721/ |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=May 25, 1997 |access-date=March 9, 2021 |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114072629/https://variety.com/1997/film/reviews/the-brave-1117329721/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]] wrote that "besides the implausibilities, the direction has two fatal flaws: it's both tediously slow and hugely narcissistic as the camera focuses repeatedly on Depp's bandana'd head and rippling torso".<ref>{{cite web |date=February 9, 2006 |title=The Brave |url=https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-brave |website=[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]] |access-date=March 9, 2021 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225142338/https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-brave |url-status=live }}</ref> Due to the reviews, Depp did not release ''The Brave'' in the U.S.<ref name="filmink">{{cite web |last=Free |first=Erin |title=Movies You Might Not Have Seen: The Brave (1997) |url=https://www.filmink.com.au/movies-you-might-not-have-seen-the-brave-1997/ |website=filmink.com.au |date=May 27, 2016 |access-date=February 6, 2019 |archive-date=February 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207072300/https://www.filmink.com.au/movies-you-might-not-have-seen-the-brave-1997/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="latimes">{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-05-19-ca-60345-story.html |title=The Sad, Strange Journey of Johnny Depp's 'The Brave' |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=May 19, 1997 |access-date=February 6, 2019 |archive-date=October 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181012025124/http://articles.latimes.com/1997-05-19/entertainment/ca-60345_1_johnny-depp |url-status=live }}</ref>

Depp was a fan and friend of writer [[Hunter S. Thompson]], and played his alter ego [[Raoul Duke]] in ''[[Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (film)|Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas]]'' (1998), [[Terry Gilliam]]'s film adaptation of Thompson's pseudo-biographical [[Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas|novel of the same name]].{{efn| Depp accompanied Thompson as his road manager on one of the author's last book tours.<ref name="contactmusic">{{cite web |work=ContactMusic |title=Depp was ray for thompson book tour |url=http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/depp%20was%20ray%20for%20thompson%20book%20tour_1001455 |access-date=July 3, 2006 |date=July 3, 2006 |archive-date=March 15, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090315173941/http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/depp%20was%20ray%20for%20thompson%20book%20tour_1001455 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2006, he contributed a foreword to ''Gonzo: Photographs by Hunter S. Thompson'', a posthumous collection of photographs of and by Thompson, and in 2008 narrated the documentary film ''[[Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson]]''. Following Thompson's suicide in 2005, Depp paid for most of his memorial event in his hometown of [[Aspen, Colorado]]. Following Thompson's wishes, fireworks were set off and his ashes were shot from a cannon.<ref name="BBC News">{{cite news |publisher=BBC News Entertainment |title=Thompson's ashes fired into sky |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4168266.stm |access-date=June 22, 2007 |date=August 21, 2005 |archive-date=October 10, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101010020116/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4168266.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>}} It was a box-office failure<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fearandloathinginlasvegas.htm|title=''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas''|work=Box Office Mojo|access-date=January 24, 2008|archive-date=October 1, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071001044030/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=fearandloathinginlasvegas.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> and polarized critics.<ref>{{rotten-tomatoes|fear_and_loathing_in_las_vegas|Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas}}</ref> Later that year, Depp made a brief cameo in [[Mika Kaurismäki]]'s ''[[L.A. Without a Map]]'' (1998).{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Depp appeared in three films in 1999. The first was the sci-fi thriller ''[[The Astronaut's Wife]]'', co-starring [[Charlize Theron]], which was not a commercial or critical success. The second, [[Roman Polanski]]'s ''[[The Ninth Gate]]'', starred Depp as a seller of old books who becomes entangled in a mystery. It was moderately more successful with audiences but received mixed reviews. The third was Burton's [[Sleepy Hollow (film)|adaptation]] of ''[[The Legend of Sleepy Hollow]]'', where Depp played [[Ichabod Crane]] opposite [[Christina Ricci]] and [[Christopher Walken]]. For his performance, Depp took inspiration from [[Angela Lansbury]], [[Roddy McDowall]] and [[Basil Rathbone]], saying he "always thought of Ichabod as a very delicate, fragile person who was maybe a little too in touch with his feminine side, like a frightened little girl".{{sfn|Burton|Salisbury|2006|pp=177–178}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Johnny Depp on playing Ichabod Crane in ''Sleepy Hollow'' |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=May 2007 |url=https://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20039648,00.html#20056052 |access-date=December 25, 2007 |archive-date=July 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090704025641/http://www.ew.com/ew/gallery/0,,20039648,00.html#20056052 |url-status=live }}</ref> ''Sleepy Hollow'' was a commercial and critical success.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hamman |first=Cody |date=2023-10-03 |title=Sleepy Hollow (1999) – WTF Happened to This Horror Movie? |url=https://www.joblo.com/sleepy-hollow-1999-wtf/ |access-date=2025-04-22 |website=JoBlo |language=en-US}}</ref>