(Image credit: Photo by Barry King/WireImage)

Actor Johnny Depp has had a long and wildly successful career as a character actor. Depp and Amber Heard’s relationship has made countless headlines over the past few years, he’s got plenty of acclaimed film roles on his resume. That includes John Waters’ 1990 musical Cry-Baby, which some consider one of the greatest Johnny Depp roles. And that prolific filmmaker recently remembered Depp hating being a teen heartthrob the first time he got really famous.

Cry-Baby is a musical romantic comedy that is full of John Waters’ unique sensibility and sense of humor. Johnny Depp plays the title character in the film, a delinquent youth in the 1950s. The Hairspray filmmaker spoke to IndieWire about his memories from that movie, including the mega fame that Depp was already experiencing (and hating). In his words:

Johnny Depp was at the height of his career on 21 Jump Street, he was on the cover of every teen magazine, he was Justin Bieber… and he hated it! So I always said to him, ‘Why do you hate it? That’s the point, to get so famous that you can never leave the house!’ And he couldn’t then. He could not go out. When we were shooting the movie outside, hundreds of girls would be running and falling backward and crying. They tried to buy his sewage underneath his trailer from the Teamsters!

There you have it. Sounds like Depp wasn’t exactly happy with the lack of privacy that came with his 21 Jump Street fame. Of course, this was just the tip of the iceberg regarding the downside of fame, especially once Depp and Heard’s defamation trial began. John Waters’ comments help to peel back the curtain on what Johnny Depp was like decades ago. Despite everything that has changed since that time, it does sound like the 61 year-old actor has been consistent about not loving megafame. After the defamation trial ended, Depp moved to Europe to have some privacy.

Later in that same interview, Waters spoke about how Depp was a heartthrob at the time, and how taking strange roles like Cry-Baby and Tim Burton’s movies helped him shed that image. in his words:

He wanted to change all that by making fun of it, in a good way. And I think he did make the right decision. We did help him change that. Then Tim Burton came in and everything changed. But I must admit, I’m the one who finally got to show Johnny ‘Edward Penishands’ for the first time.

Edward Penishands was a porn parody of Tim Burton’s movie, which is still one of Johnny Depp’s most iconic roles. And taking on more strange roles ultimately resulted in the actor having the career he did.

It should be interesting to see if/when Depp finally takes on another major Hollywood film project. He’s been dipping his toes back in the industry, but hasn’t booked any major roles since the defamation verdict was revealed. In the meantime, check the 2025 movie release dates.