‘Cancelled’ star Johnny Depp is making a big Hollywood comeback

On the other hand, supporters of Depp believe he was himself wronged – and that, as the actor put it in a 2025 interview, he was made “a crash test dummy for #MeToo” by Heard’s accusations. Besides, on top of winning that trial, it helped Depp that he has long presented himself as a rock’n’roll buccaneer, so the dissolute picture of him that emerged from the court cases wasn’t too different from the “very distinct personality and brand” he already had, says Mark Borkowski, a PR expert and the author of The Fame Formula. Anyway, adds Borkowski, legal verdicts don’t necessarily make or break a star’s status. “It’s actually about how audiences feel about you, how you make them feel. It’s alchemy, to a certain extent.”