10 Remarkable Movie Performances By The Last Actor You'd Expect

9. Johnny Depp In Edward Scissorhands

21 Jump Street Channing Tatum
20th Century Fox

Believe it or not, Johnny Depp wasn't always a more famous version of the guy you keep seeing hanging around that really dodgy back alley.

Johnny Depp rose to fame in the 80's on the TV show 21 Jump Street as a young police officer who posed as a teenager and worked with a weirdly specific precinct to solve teen crimes (although, it was actually a morality laden drama, not a comedy like the way more popular movies). Depp's role on the show led to him becoming a teen idol, the crush of teenage girls all across America.

That's why he seemed like an odd choice to play the lead in Tim Burton's weird fantasy drama Edward Scissorhands. The conventionally handsome Depp seemed miles away from the pale and awkward Edward, and yet he pulled it off and the film is beloved as one of Burton's best.

It wasn't just a great performance for Depp though, it was a move that started a long and successful partnership between him and Burton and defined him as the go to guy for oddball weirdos such as Captain Jack Sparrow, Hunter S. Thompson and, of course, Modern Day Johnny Depp.

Edward Scissorhands changed his career so much that now, the weirdest part of this is actually the idea that Johnny Depp was ever considered a normal actor.

Contributor

I was just a mild-mannered NCTJ accredited journalist until one day I found out the truth... that I could share my nerdy ramblings with people on the internet! It's just like mumbling to myself on the train, but without all the strange looks.