How many times have you watched a film starring Johnny Depp but not recognize him at all? Known for his colourful characters and unrecognizable transformations, sometimes it’s hard to pin down what he actually looks like! Today, we’ll be taking a look at the 7 craziest transformations he’s done for his movie roles!
Mad Hatter, Alice in Wonderland
This transformation involved lots of makeup, prosthetics and a bunch of CGI! In an interview with New York Post, makeup artist Patty York stated that there were 6 colours used in the Mad Hatter’s eyes. “His character suffers from mercury poisoning — on one eye I used lavenders and purples, and on the other I used turquoise and light blue and dark blue, and there’s a little touch of green in there”, stated York.
Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Carribean
We can’t forget about one of the most memorable characters in Johnny Depp’s career! His heavy khol-lined eyes, stained teeth, braided beard and long wig (which was said to be incredibly uncomfortable to wear) allowed him to perfectly embody the appearance of an 18th century pirate who sailed the humid Caribbean sea!
Edward Scissorhands
This Oscar nominated transformation certainly gave Johnny Depp an entirely new persona that shook audiences. They used prosthetics and skin-tight suits to quite literally get Johnny Depp into the character’s skin!
Barnabas Collins, Dark Shadows
When the movie is directed by Tim Burton, you know it’s gonna involve some fantastical character design! To transform into the gothic vampire look, Depp was drenched in white make-up to recreate the pale, undead look. Prosthetics were also used to create his pointy ears, nose bridge (nose job hack!) and fingers!
Willy Wonka, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Until this day, many people still can’t believe that Willy Wonka was played by Johnny Depp, and we agree! He wore a bob, had white powder on his face, lavender contact lenses in his eyes, and he even got fake teeth, which added to the creepiness of the character!
Big Bad Wolf, Into the woods
Admittedly, compared to the other transformations, this had a more Halloween costume feel to it. But, it was understandable why they made that choice. Director Rob Marshall stated that the character’s dress was designed like the “late 30s kind of fairy tale illustrations.” Hence, the less menacing look for the ‘Big Bad Wolf’, it’s Disney, after all!
Whitey Bulger, Black Mass
One of Depp’s most incredible makeovers, this required 45 forehead prosthetics, and each of them needed a whopping 22 hours for the hair strands to be fixed. It took 2 hours to turn Johnny Depp into Whitey Bulger, and he was covered entirely in prosthetics from the middle of his face up!
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