Johnny Depp has opened up about his forced exit from the Fantastic Beasts franchise, claiming Warner Bros. pressured him to “retire” following his high-profile libel case in 2020.
In a recent interview with The Telegraph, the Pirates of the Caribbean star discussed his new directorial project, Modi: Three Days on the Wing of Madness. During the conversation, he reflected on his role as Gellert Grindelwald in the Fantastic Beasts series, revealing that his time on the set was abruptly cut short.
Depp recalled the moment in fall 2020, saying, “It literally stopped in a millisecond, like, while I was doing the movie. They said, ‘We’d like you to resign.’ But what was really in my head was they wanted me to retire.”
The actor officially stepped down from the role in November 2020, shortly after losing his libel lawsuit against British tabloid The Sun, which had referred to him as a “wife-beater.” At the time, Depp confirmed in a public statement that he had been asked by Warner Bros. to resign and had agreed to the request.
Despite complying, Depp didn’t hold back in the recent interview, expressing his frustration with the studio’s decision. “F— you,” he said. “There’s far too many of me to kill. If you think you can hurt me more than I’ve already been hurt, you’re gravely mistaken.”
Depp first appeared as Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), a Harry Potter spinoff featuring Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander. The trilogy, which ran from 2016 to 2022, chronicled the rise of Grindelwald and Dumbledore’s (Jude Law) efforts to stop his dark ambitions during the 1920s and 1930s.
Mads Mikkelsen later replaced Depp in the role of Grindelwald for the third installment, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022).
Depp’s comments have reignited discussion around his controversial exit, shedding new light on the behind-the-scenes tension between the actor and the studio.