Johnny Depp might be one of the nicest and uncomplicated actors to work with in Hollywood. He has been lauded for being selfless, with one notable example being when he joined hands with Colin Farrell and Jude Law to donate their salaries to the bereaved daughter of The Dark Knight star, Heath Ledger.

Various actors in Hollywood have spoken about what it is like to work or be friends with Depp. His co-star in The Tourist, Angelina Jolie said, “He’s just such a nice guy. He’s so funny and so fun to hang out with. He’s just that friend you’re so happy to come to work and do scenes with. Plus, he’s such a brilliant actor.”

Winona Ryder has called him ‘a really good man’ and said that she felt ‘so very, very safe with him.’ Depp and Ryder were engaged for a period of time, after working together in the 1990 film, Edward Scissorhands.

This good and cool side of Depp was evident when he was asked to make a sentimental cameo in Jonah Hill’s action comedy of 2012, 21 Jump Street. Depp was a good sport and agreed to feature, but he had one unique condition for the producers to fulfil first.

A Social Consciousness Production

In 2008, news broke out that Sony Pictures were negotiating with Jonah Hill to develop a big screen adaptation of the hit police procedural drama series called 21 Jump Street from the late ’80s and early ’90s. The show had aired on Fox, and starred Holly Robinson, Peter DeLuise and Depp in the three leading roles.

The series synopsis on Rotten Tomatoes reads, “Crime in school is bad, so to combat it, LAPD higher-ups decide to send four young-looking officers to high school to pose as students. Cops Tom Hanson (Depp), Doug Penhall (DeLuise), Judy Hoffs (Robinson) and Harry Truman Ioki (Dustin Nguyen) are the ‘lucky’ ones chosen to experience the part of their lives they hoped they’d left behind forever.”

The original show was a social consciousness production, and often addressed prevailing issues of the time, such as drug addiction, homophobia, child abuse and the AIDS pandemic. As such, it took on a serious tone in the storytelling. Being so relatable, it was one of the shows that helped to establish a then newly-formed Fox network.

Breakthrough On-Screen Performance

The film adaptation was written so it could take a more comedic approach. Hill reworked a script that had been previously written by Joe Gazzam. He was however quick to shut down any ideas that their picture would simply be a parody of the show. “[Sony execs said] they were gonna let me make my kind of movie—an R-rated, insane, Bad Boys-meets-John Hughes-type movie—and I told them the second they don’t, I’m not gonna be involved anymore.”

It was not clear from the onset whether Hill, who was just coming off the back of his breakthrough on-screen performance in Superbad (2007), would star in the film. In the end, it was confirmed that he would indeed be taking on a role. He was joined by Channing Tatum, who had just started out in the industry himself, with roles in Coach Carter (2005) and Step Up (2006).

The premise of the story of course meant that age would not permit any of the leading actors from the show to be recast in similar roles for the film.

An Uncredited Cameo

With the lineup for the film finalized and plans underway for filming to begin, Depp was approached to make what would be an uncredited cameo. Then at the height of his Pirates of the Caribbean success, Depp agreed to humor the execs, but only one condition. For him to agree to feature in the film, the actor insisted that DeLuise, his co-star from the show, also be included.

The studio obliged and the pair appeared, as their original characters – Hanson and Penhall. Their other former co-star, since married and now known as Holly Robinson Peete, also reprised her role as Judy Hoffs.

21 Jump Street the movie turned out to be a resounding commercial and critical success. From a budget of about $50 million, the film quadrupled that amount at the box office, as it raked in upward of $200 million. This success was rewarded with the gift of a sequel, which was titled 22 Jump Street and released in 2014.

The sequel was equally successful, which consequently bore talk of a third installment, featuring a female lead. Those plans are nonetheless yet to be realized.