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In this video WatchMojo takes a look at the career of three-time Academy Award nominated actor Johnny Depp.

Transcript

He has become famous for his portrayal of strange and eccentric characters. Welcome to watchmojo.com and today, we’ll be taking a look at the career of actor Johnny Depp. Johnny Depp was born on June 9, 1963 in Owensboro, Kentucky. At only 12 years old, he developed a passion for music which would later lead him to dropout of high school and move to Hollywood. There, his dream of becoming a rock star shifted to acting. Depp made his feature film debut as a boy eaten by a killer bed in the 1994 Wes Craven horror flick “A Nightmare on Elm Street.” Depp followed this by playing the more defined role of a Vietnamese speaking private in Oliver Stone’s “Platoon.” Despite a mildly successful entry into film, Depp experienced a long period without work. This forced him to have heartedly seek out the lead role of Tom Hanson Junior on the 1987 undercover cop series “21 Jump Street.” The TV show lasted more than one season and became a phenomenon that transformed him into a Teen Idol of the late 80s. To the shock of his co-stars and fans-alike, Depp publicly showed signs that he hated his new position as a heartthrob and so, he unsuccessful tried to exit his lucrative contract. Four years later, when “21 Jump Street” finally ended its run, Depp began a career defining association with Director Tim Burton as Burton presented him with the opportunity to take on the bizarre yet isolated role of Edward Scissorhands. Throughout the 90s, Depp appeared in several other films that also benefited from his dedication to portraying isolated and misunderstood personalities. These projects included a string of successful movies such as “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?”, “Benny and June”, “Donnie Brasco” as well as his exceptionally eccentric portrayal of writer Hunter S. Thompson in 1998s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” During the 90s, Depp also took the opportunity to reteam with Tim Burton for a heartfelt tribute to the world’s worst film director Ed Wood. This project earned Depp a great amount of critical acclaim as well as a Golden Globe nomination and in 1999, Burton pleaded with the studios to allow Depp to play police constable Ichabod Crane in his high profile project Sleepy Hallow. Yet despite Depp’s previous collaborations with Tim Burton, the film role that made him an undisputed Hollywood heavyweight and brought him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Actor was that of eccentric pirate Capt. Jack Sparrow in 2003s “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl”. He would revisit that role several more times with each sequel further dominating the box office. Meanwhile, Depp would secure a second Oscar nomination for best actor for his role in the 2004 British/American semi-biograhical film, “Finding Neverland”. As Depp continued to be a Hollywood sensation throughout the 2000s, he remain close with Burton and they continue to produce several offbeat films together such as “Corpse Bride”, “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and his Academy Award nominated role in the 2007 horror musical “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.” In 2010, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp yet again paired up to create the dark, highly stylized masterpiece “Alice in Wonderland.” This time with Depp in the leading role of the Mad Hatter.