What in the Heck Is Going on With Johnny Depp in “Dark Shadows?”
Say what you will about Johnny Depp, but we don't think anyone can deny that the guy isn't willing to go the extra mile. Colin Farrell plays a vampire by putting on some powder and wearing a T-shirt. Robert Pattinson plays a vampire by throwing on some fake fangs and growing his hair. Johnny Depp? He plays a vampire by turning himself into Michael Jackson.
That's the only thing we can come up with after seeing early images of Depp on the set of "Dark Shadows," his upcoming film with director Tim Burton. The film, which is an "updating" of the '70s ABC soap opera (Depp's character, Barnabas Collins, was originally played by Jonathan Frid), is the seventh collaboration between Depp and Burton. By our count, it's the second time in a row in a Burton film that Depp has played Michael Jackson.
In case you don't know, Barnabas Collins is a vampire, which would explain the paleness. Though the original version wasn't that pale. Even though he's a vampire, Collins is a good guy. (Here's a complete synopsis of the series.) The film is coming out next May and co-stars Chloe Moretz, Helena Bonham Carter and Michelle Pfeiffer.
It's worth noting that it's possible Depp is painted up like that to help digital animators put in special effects in postproduction. Entertainment Weekly's Anthony Breznican, who has seen footage of the film, says he looks a lot different onscreen. We do hope so.
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New Dark Shadows Photos Reveal Johnny Depp as Barnabas CollinsNo, Michael Jackson hasn’t come back, but it would be easy to assume that because the latest photos from the set of Dark Shadows show that Johnny Depp’s Barnabas Collins looks more like a reclusive popstar than a centuries-old vampire.
I think Johnny Depp is one of the most talented and craziest people making movies these days, and Tim Burton has shown that he can match that level of crazy from the director’s chair. Still, the newest photos make me wonder if the two are the best combo for Dark Shadows.
It’s probably just my initial gut reaction, and there’s a chance the look will eventually grow on me, but I have one serious problem with the look of Barnabas Collins. It’s not the pasty-white skin; the complexion makes sense when you consider how long the vampire has been locked away in the dark. I don’t have any issues with the wardrobe; again, considering Barnabas’ need to stay out of the sun, it makes perfect sense. It’s that stupid little sideburn-looking thing that looks like it’s been painted on. Get if off!!! It just looks weird.
Aside from that, and the creepy resemblance to Michael Jackson, Depp’s Barnabas Collins doesn’t look too bad, I guess.
Dark Shadows, which also stars Chloe Moretz, Helena Bonham Carter, Eva Green, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Lee and Jackie Earle Haley, is expected to arrive in theaters on
May 11th, 2012.
If you’re a Dark Shadows newbie, you can hit the official synopsis below.
Official Film Synopsis:
In the year 1752, Joshua and Naomi Collins, with young son Barnabas, set sail from Liverpool, England to start a new life in America. But even an ocean was not enough to escape the mysterious curse that has plagued their family. Two decades pass and Barnabas (Johnny Depp) has the world at his feet—or at least the town of Collinsport, Maine. The master of Collinwood Manor, Barnabas is rich, powerful and an inveterate playboy…until he makes the grave mistake of breaking the heart of Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green). A witch, in every sense of the word, Angelique dooms him to a fate worse than death: turning him into a vampire, and then burying him alive.
Two centuries later, Barnabas is inadvertently freed from his tomb and emerges into the very changed world of 1972. He returns to Collinwood Manor to find that his once-grand estate has fallen into ruin. The dysfunctional remnants of the Collins family have fared little better, each harboring their own dark secrets. Matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer) has called upon live-in psychiatrist, Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter), to help with her family troubles.
Also residing in the manor is Elizabeth’s ne’er-do-well brother, Roger Collins, (Jonny Lee Miller); her rebellious teenage daughter Carolyn Stoddard (Chloe Moretz); and Roger’s precocious 10-year-old son, David Collins (Gulliver McGrath). The mystery extends beyond the family, to caretaker Willie Loomis, played by Jackie Earle Haley, and David’s new nanny, Victoria Winters, played by Bella Heathcote.
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