JohnnyDepp-Zone.com

“He’s a great character actor who happens to also be a leading man”–that’s Geoffrey Rush’s assessment of his co-star Johnny Depp, offered to host Peter Guber on AMC’s SUNDAY MORNING SHOOTOUT. Mr. Rush, witty and eloquent as always, was the guest on Sunday’s edition (June 10th)–the program repeats today, Wednesday June 13th, at 7 am Eastern, and is highly recommended. The Oscar-winning actor discusses the filming of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD’S END, in which he plays the scheming Captain Hector Barbossa; he spends a significant portion of the interview discussing Johnny Depp and Johnny’s approach to film acting.

Geoffrey Rush calls Johnny “the best there is;” as proof, he points not only to the excellence of Johnny’s performances but also the range of his roles. “It’s very hard-pressed throughout all of Hollywood history to find someone of that diversity,” Mr. Rush tells Peter Guber. “It’s the kind of diversity you expect, let’s say, in the old days from the great knights of the theater, where Olivier would be Richard III and then he’d be the dentist in MARATHON MAN. Pretty impressive stuff!”

You can see a brief clip of Geoffrey’s interview on the AMC website here: http://tinyurl.com/ynnpqg Many thanks to FANtasticJD for sharing the news! –Part-Time Poet

Deppheads who are eagerly awaiting the release of Tim Burton’s film of the Stephen Sondheim musical SWEENEY TODD, starring Johnny Depp as the demon barber of Fleet Street, may wish to register for updates at the official movie website here: http://www.sweeneytoddmovie.com/ Currently the site shows a simple movie poster, but it promises more “Coming Soon.” We can’t wait! Thanks to Kimmie for the site news . . . .

Hollywood columnist Army Archerd reports that Warner Bros. producer Richard Zanuck has returned from London now that SWEENEY TODD has finished shooting . . . and despite some rumblings in the press about “production delays,” Archerd hears from Mr. Zanuck that SWEENEY TODD was “completed and brought in for an economical (these days) $50 million” and was “directed by Tim Burton in 50 days.” A remarkable achievement–hats off to Tim and everyone who worked on the film! Adds Archerd, “Zanuck enthused about the terrif changes for both Johnny Depp and [Sacha Baron] Cohen in their roles with music.” SWEENEY TODD will have an Oscar-qualifying run in the U. S. in the final week of 2007, and then goes into wide release next January. Thanks to emma for the Archerd article; you can read the full story on the Zone’s News & Views forum. –Part-Time Poet