It’s been five years since Johnny Depp was last seen in a major Hollywood blockbuster — 2018’s Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald to be precise. Flash-forward to 2023 and the controversial actor is receiving his biggest stage since that creatively and commercially ill-fated Harry Potter prequel. Depp stars in the historical epic, Jeanne du Barry, which served as the opening night film of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday. His return to the big screen via such a prominent platform has already stirred up controversy — here’s what you need to know about the debate over Depp’s appearance at Cannes.
Depp hasn’t exactly been missing in action in between The Crimes of Grindelwald and Jeanne du Barry. Last year, he starred in one of the most closely-watched celebrity trials ever when he and his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard, faced off in a Virginia courtroom for six weeks. Depp had sued the Aquaman star for defamation over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which Heard stated she was the victim of sexual and physical violence. Both stars took the stand during the bruising trial, and their dueling testimonies were picked apart by the lawyers in the courtroom, experts in the media and fans on social media.
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