World premiere of THE LIBERTINE in Los Angeles on November 11th!

Johnny Depp’s long-awaited performance as the decadent Restoration poet and playwright John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester,will cap the festivities at the American Film Institute’s tribute to Johnny on November 11, 2005 as THE LIBERTINE receives its world premiere at AFIFest. The film will screen at 10 p.m. at ArcLight Theater 10. Notes Lane Kneedler on the AFI Fest’s official site, “First time filmmaker Laurence Dunmore crafts a deliciously dark portrait of London in the 1600s. Plague, rats and syphilis are as much a part of the landscape as the fog and the theatre. It is of course the characters that make up the heart of this story, though, and none is more roguishly charming than Depp’s Earl of Rochester.”

Notes Harvey Weinstein, whose Weinstein Company is distributing THE LIBERTINE in the U.S., “Johnny’s character in THE LIBERTINE is multifaceted and he conveys the complexities with brilliance. […] He is a true master and his performance in this film is outstanding.” The film’s director, Laurence Dunmore, agrees: “Johnny is a brilliant and truly unique actor, whose remarkable career has been defined by its diversity and veracity. The originality of both the characters he has portrayed, and the films he has made, further emphasize his integrity and passion.” After its world premiere, THE LIBERTINE will open in New York and Los Angeles on November 23rd, and later will expand to other cities.

Meanwhile, THE LIBERTINE’s UK release date has been advanced one week to Friday, November 18th, according to the BBC and the movie’s distributor. Thanks very much to emma for all THE LIBERTINE news! You can read all the details on the News & Views forum.