9 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Johnny Depp
Who knew Disney almost fired him?!
John Christopher Depp II has had something of an up and down sort of career. He's played a lot of roles over the course of the last 33 years, winning plaudits as far back as in What's Eating Gilbert Grape and positioning himself as one of the most interesting character actors in Hollywood. For a long time, his star was as mystical as it was defiant of expectations.
Sadly, though, for every Captain Jack Sparrow diamond, there's a turd of a Mortdecai lurking to sully his reputation (as well as those real-world relationship revelations that seem to have turned a swathe of public sentiment against him more recently).
Often hailed as a genius, Depp is one of the most complete performers around and boasts more than acting credits, numerous appearances with world-class musical talents and several producing, directing and writing credits. His is quite the CV.
The question here is: what don't we know about Johnny Depp? Is this enigma of a man really as bonkers as he comes across on screen, or in interviews? Are we looking at a genius or a madman... or both?
9. He's A Kentucky Kid AND He's Related To Royalty
Depp was born on June 9th 1963 to Betty Sue Palmer and John Christopher Depp (senior) in Owensboro, Kentucky. He's the youngest of four children and is mostly of English descent according to his family tree. His genealogy is a little bit convoluted, as it happens, with links to France and sub-Saharan Africa also contributing to his bloodline.
Despite his mixed ancestry, Johnny Depp is very weakly related to Elizabeth II; the current Queen of England (if you weren't sure). Johnny and HRH are 20th cousins - this does mean that you'd need to look back 500 years before you found a shared relative but the link is there nevertheless.
Should the current Royals suffer some mass mortality crisis at any point, Depp could actually be considered for the throne. Granted, there would need to be a LOT of people either dying or passing up the opportunity but it's the thought that counts with gifts like that.
You can just picture it: His Royal Highness King Jack Sparrow...