chatterbox » Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell Help Heath’s Daughter

Kristen Seymour — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:38:57 +0000

This is the kind of story that restores one’s faith in humanity, not to mention Hollywood. Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell all stepped in to complete Heath Ledger’s role in his final film, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, and not only did they honor the late actor by giving great performances, but they also gave their paychecks to Heath’s two-year-old daughter, Matilda.

You might have heard that Heath had not updated his will since the birth of his daughter, and when he died, everything went to his father. And while Heath’s father has assured everyone that he will be sure to provide for Matilda, other members of the Ledger family have their doubts about his ability to manage finances.

It’s not like Matilda would be hurting for cash — her mom and Heath’s ex, Michelle Williams, is getting plenty of movie work. However, the idea that three A-list actors would check their egos at the door and provide for the little girl of a man they all respected gets me a little misty-eyed.

Photo courtesy of askmen.com

Johnny Depp Gives One Heck of a Wake-up Call

Kristen Seymour — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:00:25 +0000

Johnny Depp is lending his voice to a good cause — helping coma patients. He recorded a series of physical commands (in the voice he used for his Pirates of the Caribbean character, Captain Jack Sparrow) for Sophie, a 17-year-old British girl who has been in a coma since last November and is now starting to respond to people and sounds.

Apparently, her response to famous voices has been remarkable — so much so that her family is working to make famous voices available to other families with loved ones in a coma.

It’s important for coma patients to be exposed to a variety of possible “keys” — one never knows what might get through to them and help bring them out of the coma. It could be a smell or a sound, even a voice. In this instance, the family knew Sophie was a huge Johnny Depp fan, so they got a recording of his voice, which proved to be extremely beneficial. They then realized how useful it would be to have a bank of celebrity voices, so no matter who a patient’s favorite star is, their family could play commands in that voice.

A number of other celebrities are signing on to help out, and Sophie’s family is doing even more — they’ll be holding a charity gala ball in June to raise funds for their project. For more information, go to the Sofie’s Gift website.

Photo courtesy of jacksparrow.moonfruit.com

Sweeny Todd Might Be Creepy, But Johnny Depp Is a Fantastic Guy

Kristen Seymour — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:00:10 +0000

The film roles I think of Johnny Depp playing are Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean, Benjamin Barker in Sweeny Todd, and the title character in Ed Wood — and none of these characters are guys I would particularly like to have over for dinner. However, lest the eccentric roles and red carpet outfits he chooses steer you wrong, let me tell you why Johnny Depp is a stand-up guy.

Last year, his daughter experienced kidney failure and faced a life and death battle within the walls of London’s Great Ormond Street Hospital. The ordeal left Depp shaken and saying, “To say it was the darkest moment, that’s nothing … It doesn’t come close to describing it. Words are so small.”

Fortunately 8-year-old Lily Rose has recovered, but Depp hasn’t forgotten what the hospital did for her, and to thank them he has donated 1 million pounds. It should also be noted that he made the donation himself, with no press and no publicity.

This probably didn’t surprise the hospital too much, since last year Depp spent several hours visiting patients in the children’s ward, reading stories and chatting. He also invited several of the doctors and nurses of that hospital to the Sweeny Todd premiere.

Quite a few of Depp’s peers could learn from his selfless generosity, though I hope it doesn’t take an event like a seriously ill child for them to realize the impact they can make on causes dear to their hearts.

Photo courtesy of JohnnyDeppFan.com