Has Johnny Depp overplayed the weird card? Here are the best and worst of his quirkiest roles
After seeing Johnny Depp's latest role in Mortdecai, we couldn't help but notice that he's played the oddball just a few too many times.
Sure, quirky roles have been his thing since the success of Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood in the '90s. But for every well-played bizarre role, Johnny has also played some doozies. Do we need to mention the awkwardness of his parts in The Lone Ranger and Dark Shadows?
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Mortdecai, we couldn't help but notice that he's played the oddball just a few too many times.
Sure, quirky roles have been his thing since the success of Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood in the '90s. But for every well-played bizarre role, Johnny has also played some doozies. Do we need to mention the awkwardness of his parts in The Lone Ranger and Dark Shadows?
Scroll through to check out the star's most bizarre hit or miss roles…
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Somehow Johnny Depp managed to make an already unsettling wolf-in-men's-clothing into something even more terrifying. He almost looks like a sleazy pimp or '70s gangster gone wrong.
Weird factor: 8.5/10 (half a point for the creepy hat)
The Big Bad Wolf in Into the Woods (2015)
Johnny Depp's character of the Native American sidekick Tonto in The Lone Ranger couldn't have been more forced if he tried.
Us Weekly critic Mara Reinstein nailed it in her review: "Depp has done the kooky, costumed character shtick so many times, it's no longer surprising to see him bury his index finger into the desert sand, then lick it."
Weird factor: 9/10
Tonto in The Lone Ranger (2013)
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The Lone Ranger couldn't have been more forced if he tried.
Us Weekly critic Mara Reinstein nailed it in her review: " depp="" has="" done="" the="" kooky,="" costumed="" character="" shtick="" so="" many="" times,="" it's="" no="" longer="" surprising="" to="" see="" him="" bury="" his="" index="" finger="" into="" the="" desert="" sand,="" then="" lick="">
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Sometimes Johnny just gets it so right that he spawns thousands of fancy dress copycats. Seriously, who hasn't had a Johnny-Depp-as-Jack-Sparrow at their fancy dress party?
Weird factor: 6/10
Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean
...or a Johnny-Depp-as-the-Mad-Hatter for that matter.
Weird factor: 8/10
Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland (2014)
Look, if you're going to have a vampire sex scene with Eva Green, then make it count...and make it sexy. Hello, she's the hottest genre actor in Hollywood!
Instead, the romp-fest was actually totally comical because director Tim Burton overplayed the quirk factor way too much.
Weird factor: 7/10
Barnabas Collins in Dark Shadows (2012)
Johnny's portrayal of the eerie chocolate factory owner was much closer to Roald Dahl's source material than the original Willy, played by Gene Wilder.
But really, it's meant to be a kids' film, not a horror show. The similarities to Michael Jackson's mannerisms were also just too much for us.
Weird factor: 9/10
Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
Back in the days when Johnny Depp's quirkiness landed him Golden Globe nominations, his performance as an eccentric drifter was perfection.
Weird factor: 7/10 (And we loved every single bit of it)
Benny and Joon (1993)
Playing the angora-sweater-obsessed cross-dresser responsible for some of the most hilariously bad sci-fi flicks of the '50s had to be played with the right level of sensitivity and humour.
So who else but the King of Quirk to take the reins?!
Weird factor: 7/10
Ed Wood (1994)
In arguably one of Tim Burton's best films to date, Johnny Depp is Edward Scissorhands, a Frankenstein-esque creation with scissors instead of hands.
This is quintessential quirky Johnny Depp at his best.
Weird factor: 10/10
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
