Johnny Depp: Cancel Culture

Learn English with Johnny Depp’s Speech. During a press conference before receiving the Donostia Award at the San Sebastian Film Festival, Depp was expected to answer questions about his career. Nevertheless, in response to a journalist’s bold attempt to parse the actor’s thoughts on the so-called “cancel culture” and how social media can affect public figures, Depp did not back down. Depp called it a “complex situation” and described it as “this instant rush to judgment based on essentially what amounts to polluted air that is exhaled.”

Download Full Transcript and Audio Here!

English Speeches creates these files FREE & downloadable, so you can learn English and improve your vocabulary!

Johnny Depp “Quote”

“People cry not because they’re weak, it’s because they’ve been strong for too long.” Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp | FULL TRANSCRIPT:

Johnny Depp: When there’s an injustice, whether it’s against you or someone you love or someone you believe in. Stand up. Don’t sit down. Don’t sit down on them, you know. Because they need you.

Interviewer: I think that invited guest doesn’t need to be presented. Mr. Johnny Depp, who will receive this evening the award. And it’s a pleasure to have him here with us. As of last year, he visited us with a film, but this year he will be treated with the award.

Johnny Depp: I mean, I will later.

Interviewer: Hi. Good afternoon. Congratulations, Johnny. More than deserved this award you’re going to receive. The question is about whether you see that artists like you are a bit unprotected in this, in this time of cancellations, for example, judgments carried out via the social media. And this has directly affected a lot of artists without really knowing the truth of the facts because people believe that they are legitimized by to talk about the private life of an artist because they believe they know them on the social media, you as an actor, and as a person with an enormous dimension in career, how do you see this situation?

Johnny Depp: It’s a complex. It’s very complex. It’s a very complex situation because. It can be seen as. An event in history that lasted for, however long it lasted for. This cancel culture or this instant rush to judgment based on. Essentially what amounts to polluted air. That’s exhaled. Do I feel safe myself? Yeah, I do. I do now. Because it’s important when you’re faced with something as mind bogglingly, bewildering. That sort of thing hits you from many, many angles. First, first, first is, what? What? So, because maybe, you know. Quite a while back now. Prior to the various movements that came out. A couple with, I’m sure the best of intentions, however… It’s… It’s so far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe. Not one of you. Not one of you. Not anyone out that door. No one is safe as long as someone is willing to say one sentence. It takes one sentence and, and then… There is no more ground. Carpet’s been pulled. But it’s not just me, you know that this has happened to, it’s happened to, well, a lot of people. This type of thing has happened to women, men, children who have suffered from various types of unpleasantries. That, sadly at a certain point they begin to think that it’s normal or that it’s them. When it’s not. Nobody out there… We don’t know what anyone’s thinking at any moment. But I believe that… Yeah, no one’s safe. But I believe that if you are armed with the truth, then, that’s, that’s all you need. Doesn’t matter if a judgment, per se has taken some artistic license. No! When there’s an injustice, whether it’s against you or someone you love or someone you believe in. Stand up. Don’t sit down. Don’t sit down on them, you know. Because they need you. Thanks.

Interviewer: We have another question here. Hi, Johnny. Congratulations for this award. I would like to ask you, how do you see your artistic future as an actor? We will see you on the big screen after the photograph of Minamata. After Minamata. And if you are offered now, for example, to portray Captain Jack Sparrow, how would you take the role with illusion or with a bit of fear, or how would you feel about portraying Jack Sparrow again?

Johnny Depp: Well, here’s the… I suppose this is the positive side of having, in a strange way, given life to those characters like Captain Jack or whatever character that I was lucky enough to locate and bring to life. The beauty of Captain Jack Sparrow, for me, is that… I can, I can travel with Captain Jack in a box. Literally Captain Jack in a box. And when the opportunity is right I’m able to go and visit people, places where the smiles and the laughs and the things that are important. The most important things in the world are on the line. So I still travel with Captain Jack. And if I have the opportunity, whenever I do, I will go to these places. I’ll go to somebody’s house, man. I’ll perform at your kid’s birthday party at this point. But for that, I’m able to experience. I know, I know what is a harsh proposition that people are… Sometimes there are children in hospitals and you see such courage in their eyes and you can make them dive out of… They can leave that for three, four, five, or seven minutes and laugh and giggle and have a great time. And the parents who were normally standing there dying themselves because of their inability to help their child. If you can make them smile a little, laugh a little, forget a little, even if it’s for 30 seconds. That’s… That for me is what Captain Jack Sparrow is all about. So if they came to me, let’s not even think that. If… I think that the people who are… I think that the people who understand or know or get or touched or, you know, he’s so ignorant that he makes you laugh if they’re moved by a Captain Jack Sparrow in any way; I don’t need a company to do that. I can just do that myself and nobody can take that away. So that’s the greatest pleasure of Jack Sparrow as far as the cinema, as far as the films. We did what we did, you know. It was a kind of a strange, abrupt halt, but… These are strange, abrupt times. But so yeah, again, he’s never going to leave me, and he’s always going to be ready to go and say stupid stuff to make people laugh. To make them forget about the nastiness at times in life.

Johnny Depp