Johnny Depp is King Louis XV in new promo images for actor’s comeback film
Johnny Depp appears as King Louis XV in new promotional images for his highly anticipated film, Jeanne du Barry, which comes after his libel trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
In promotional images released Tuesday, Depp looked regal as the French monarch alongside co-star and director Maiwenn Le Besco, who plays King Louis’ mistress Jeanne du Barry.
Instead of his signature brunette locks, Depp sports silver hair and King Louis’ famous 18th-century tricorne hats and elaborate royal regalia.
Regal: Johnny Depp appears as King Louis XV in new promotional images for his highly anticipated film, Jeanne du Barry, which comes after his libel trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard
The period piece was shot over the summer and will be released this year. said a source PEOPLE that Jeanne du Barry could premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in May.
As well as being his career comeback, this also marks Depp’s first film in French.
Director Le Besco has had success before, directing critically acclaimed films like ‘Polisse’ and ‘Mon Roi’.
The film will also star: Pierre Richard, Benjamin Lavernhe, Noémie Lvovsky, Melvil Poupaud, Pascal Greggory and India Hair.
While the budget for the film is still unclear, Depp reportedly has an initial upfront fee of $20 million for any role. Depp’s involvement with Jeanne du Barry was first teased in July and is his first film in three years.
In 2016, Heard, 36, accused the actor, 59, of domestic violence, leading to Depp being blacklisted by much of Hollywood, resulting in him losing out on movie roles.
A jury found Heard’s claims, which were published in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed, against Depp to be defamatory and ordered the actor to pay $15 million in damages.
The same courtroom ordered Depp to pay Heard $2 million after Heard filed a counterclaim for defamation.
Heard filed an appeal in early December, but the former couple recently reached an agreement that Heard would pay $1 million to settle the case rather than go to a third trial.
In promotional images released Tuesday, Depp looked regal as the French monarch alongside co-star and director Maiwenn Le Besco, who plays King Louis’ mistress Jeanne du Barry.
The period piece was filmed over the summer and will be released this year. In addition to being the comeback of his career, this also marks Depp’s first film in French.
Depp’s lawyers, Benjamin Chew and Camille Vasquez, said the actor is glad the “painful chapter” is over and confirmed he would donate the money to charity.
In an Instagram statement, Heard confirmed the deal, but refused to accept blame, stating that her life had been “destroyed” by the jury’s decision.
In 2020, a British court ruled that 12 of the 14 incidents of violence claimed by Heard were “substantially true” and Depp was subsequently forced to step down from the “Fantastic Beasts” franchise at the request of Warner Bros.
But, after her 2022 defamation suit against Heard, the star has regained Hollywood’s attention.
Depp’s first on-camera role will be playing King Louis XV in the French period piece due for release in 2023. Maiwenn will star opposite Depp as Jeanne du Barry, King Louis’ mistress.
The film will be directed by Maiwenn Le Besco; seen in february
Depp is reportedly in talks to star in another ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movie and reprise his role as Captain Jack Sparrow after a $301 million offer from Disney.
Depp reportedly joked that he wouldn’t return to the ‘Pirates’ franchise even if he was offered $300 million, prompting Disney to offer him $1 million more than that.
In December, producer Jerry Bruckheimer expressed that he would “love” Johnny Depp to return to the franchise.
His latest film ‘Minimata’, about war photographer W. Eugene Smith, was released in 2020.
The film flopped, grossing a mere $1.7 million worldwide on a budget in the $11-13 million range. Depp was paid $3 million for his role after “financing became shaky,” according to his agent.
Allegations: In 2016, Heard, 36, accused the actor, 59, of domestic violence, leading to Depp being blacklisted by much of Hollywood, resulting in him losing movie roles .
Vindicated: A jury found Heard’s claims, which were published in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed, against Depp to be defamatory and the actor was ordered to pay $15 million in damages; Depp seen in July
The announcement comes as Netflix’s subscriber base and value have plummeted this year.
Netflix recently agreed with French film guilds to invest around $40 million in French films in an attempt to regain interest in their productions.
Depp has a 23-year-old daughter with French singer Vanessa Paradis. Lily-Rose Depp, who is also an actress, was born in the exclusive Parisian suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine.
Lily-Rose was also featured on the Netflix home page. The young actress starred opposite Timothee Chalamet in the 2019 Netflix film The King.
The streaming giant has admitted it expects to lose millions of subscribers this year, and its share value has fallen more than 70% since the start of the year.
Heard and Depp spotted in 2016
Settled: Heard filed an appeal in early December, but the former couple recently reached an agreement that Heard would pay $1 million to settle the case rather than head to a third trial; Depp appears in May
In January, Netflix shares were worth more than $600 a share, but that price has fallen substantially, and shares were trading at around $180 in June.
The loss of value and revenue has forced Netflix to cut costs, leading to its decision to lay off hundreds of employees and employees.
Many believe that an obvious solution to some of Netflix’s recent problems would be to adopt an advertising model to increase revenue, but co-CEO Ted Sarandos dismissed the idea.
“For us, it was about the simplicity of a product, a price point,” he said, adding, “I think it can now handle some complexity,” Sarandos told the New York Times In May.
‘We make decisions based on the best information we have at the time. They’re not always going to be right, but the way it helps navigate the results and the urgency it brings is what gets people through the storm. And the storms will come.
‘Destroyed’: In an Instagram statement, Heard confirmed the deal, but refused to accept blame, stating that her life had been ‘destroyed’ by the jury’s decision; ear seen in may