He commands in excess of Dh72 million a movie, but as one of Hollywood's most popular leading men, fans never seemed to mind their idol Johnny Depp raking in more dough than they would see in a lifetime, and which has seen him able to splash out on his very own private island in the Bahamas. Thanks to the quirky nature of many of his films, the oh-so ‘Johnny style' he rocks on the red carpet, and his bohemian lifestyle, which saw him quit the US to settle in France with his partner, Vanessa Paradis, 48-year-old Johnny had won a place in our hearts as ‘one of us', appearing to have avoided the ego pitfalls that come with the trappings of fame and money.
But worryingly, one of the industry's most down-to-earth stars has recently been lifting the lid on his new outlook on life, boasting about the "stupid money" Hollywood throws at him, and appearing outraged that, after almost a decade spent living in France, he quit the country after the French authorities wanted him to start paying tax there.
And after he recently took a dig at the American audiences, who pay to go and see his Pirates of the Caribbean movies, claiming that they won't ‘get' his most recent offering, The Rum Diary, started delving into the comments that - gasp! - are making us fall out of love with Johnny Depp…
‘I don't care how my films do'
As only the really rich can afford to do, Johnny has recently been pretty vocal about his relaxed attitude to money - specifically whether or not his most recent movie, The Rum Diary makes any.
Declaring, "If you have [money] in your head while you're making a movie the process would become something very different," Johnny added of his carefree attitude, "I believe in this film, regardless of what it makes in, you know, Wichita, Kansas, this week - which is probably about $13 (Dh47) - it doesn't make any difference." Having been happy to take the big pay cheques - and his salary for the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie topped out at over Dh200 million - in an industry that's all about making money, Johnny's assertion that he doesn't care what his films make, is being seen by some Hollywood-watchers as a case of the actor biting the hand that feeds him.
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