Few actors have seen their stock plummet as much in the last year as Johnny Depp. Despite a long career and many memorable roles, Depp’s narrow comfort zone as an actor  —  and the domestic abuse revelations that came out during Amber Heard’s divorce proceedings  —  have forced audiences to think twice before getting excited for any upcoming projects. We can barely keep track of all the talented actors and actresses out there; why waste time with one who doesn’t deserve our admiration?

So when it was revealed that Depp would be playing a major part of the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them quadrol… quadrilo…. five movie series, it raised a few eyebrows. Would a key role in the Fantastic Beasts universe be buried under vocal affectations and bizarre costume choices? With this in mind, Collider spoke with producer David Heyman about the addition of Depp to the franchise, and he had this to say:

He is dangerous in that way. We were looking for someone who was seductive and could be charming and could be original, who was iconic, who was a great actor; and that’s what Johnny Depp is. He can be irresistible. He’s powerful. He’s created some iconic characters, and not made the obvious choices when doing so. The unpredictability of the choices he makes is part of what makes him so extraordinary and that was very exciting for us. He was the perfect choice for Grindelwald.

It may not be the smartest thing in the world to describe Johnny Depp as ‘dangerous’ right now  —  not until he’s made amends for some of the offscreen stuff  —  but it seems like the people behind Fantastic Beasts feel they’ve found the right man for the role. Time will tell if audiences are ready to forgive Depp the actor and Depp the celebrity, but count me doubtful that this is the last time someone will express some skepticism about his fit in this franchise.

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