Johnny Depp: Master of the Supporting Role

While Johnny Depp is best known for his captivating lead roles in films like Edward Scissorhands, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, he has also delivered some truly unforgettable performances in supporting characters. Often playing eccentric or unconventional parts, Depp brings nuance, complexity and intensity to roles that could have easily been one-dimensional. Though not always the central focus of the films, his supporting turns have been standouts and career highlights in their own right. Here is a closer look at a few of Depp’s most memorable supporting performances.

Private Lerner in Platoon (1986)

This was actually Depp’s first credited film role. At just 23 years old, he landed a part in Oliver Stone’s harrowing Vietnam War drama Platoon. Though a relatively small role as Private Lerner, it gave Depp the opportunity to work with a visionary director and showcase his dramatic talents early in his career.

In the film, Depp plays a young soldier who joins Charlie Sheen’s Chris Taylor’s platoon in Vietnam in 1967. Private Lerner is one of the new recruits and gets his first real exposure to the horrors of war. In one particularly impactful scene, Lerner’s innocence is shattered as he witnesses a Viet Cong prisoner being executed. The brief but intense performance left an impression and proved Depp had genuine acting abilities beyond just good looks and charm.

While Platoon helped launch his career, Depp has said that making the film was also traumatic for him. The gritty realism and depiction of the psychological toll of combat stayed with him long after filming wrapped. It established that even in a small role, Depp was willing to immerse himself fully in a character and bring emotional truth to every scene. For a first major role, it set the bar high for his dedication to his craft.

Gilbert Grape in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

This 1993 drama saw Depp give one of his most memorable supporting performances to date. He played Gilbert Grape, the intellectually disabled younger brother of Leonardo DiCaprio’s title character. Director Lasse Hallström’s film focused on Gilbert and his family living in a small, dying Iowa town.

To inhabit the role of Gilbert, Depp brought tremendous sensitivity, empathy and nuance. He captured both the childlike innocence and frustration of a man trapped in a body and mind not fully his own. Reviews at the time praised Depp for avoiding stereotypes and clichés in his portrayal. He found the humanity in Gilbert beyond just his disability.

The role was also a departure from the “pretty boy” parts Depp had taken on previously. Shedding his good looks under prosthetics and weight gain, it showed his dedication to transformation. Depp’s soulful and lived-in performance stopped just short of becoming mawkish or manipulative. He walked the line with grace and truth.

It came as no surprise when Depp received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for What’s Eating Gilbert Grape. While he didn’t take home the Oscar, the recognition established Depp as a serious actor capable of depth and nuance beyond just leading men roles. It remains one of his most celebrated and acclaimed performances.

Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Tim Burton’s gothic fantasy thriller Sleepy Hollow saw Depp team up with the director for the second time, following 1990’s Edward Scissorhands. In the film, Depp played Ichabod Crane, a New York constable sent to investigate a series of bizarre murders in a small Dutch settlement in the late 18th century. With his signature quirky and eccentric flair, Depp imbued the role with loads of charming oddness and dark humor.

As with many Burton films, Depp brought an offbeat sense of style and movement to Crane. From his gangly limbs and nervous tics to his bookish intellect, Depp found ways to make the character endearingly peculiar. But he also brought genuine scares as Crane delves deeper into the supernatural mysteries of Sleepy Hollow. Depp balanced comedy and horror deftly, keeping the audience entertained but on edge.

Christina Ricci, who starred alongside Depp, said working with him was “effortless” and that he has an ability to “find nuance in things that could be one-dimensional.” The quirky supporting role allowed Depp’s natural weirdness and flair for physical comedy to shine through. It remains one of his most purely fun and entertaining performances outside of blockbuster fare. Sleepy Hollow was also a commercial success that cemented Depp and Burton’s collaborative magic.

Gellert Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)

In the second installment of the Fantastic Beasts prequel series set in the Harry Potter world, Depp took on the pivotal role of the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald. While he was later replaced in the role amid controversy, his single appearance as the character in The Crimes of Grindelwald was a powerful one.

In the film, Grindelwald has gradually been gaining power and followers in his pursuit of wizarding domination and pure-blood supremacy. When we first meet Depp’s Grindelwald, he is imprisoned but continues scheming. Depp brought an electrifying intensity and magnetism to the villain, making his megalomaniacal plans and manipulation of others both chilling and captivating.

Physically, Depp was nearly unrecognizable, having lost weight and appearing gaunt and pale behind stringy blonde locks. But it was his silky charisma and blue-eyed stare that made Grindelwald truly compelling. Like Tom Felton brought new dimensions to Draco Malfoy, Depp ensured Grindelwald would be remembered as one of the most formidable dark wizards in the Potterverse.

While the role was later recast under different circumstances, Depp left an indelible mark with his singular performance. Bringing nuance and complexity even to villains is a testament to his abilities beyond just leading men. For fans of the Fantastic Beasts franchise, Depp will likely remain the definitive big bad of the series for years to come.

Conclusion

Throughout his career, Johnny Depp has proven himself a master chameleon, disappearing into a wide array of eccentric, quirky and unconventional characters both leading and supporting. But it is in supporting roles where he has often shone brightest, bringing layers of nuance to parts that could have easily been one-note.

Whether dramatic turns in Platoon and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, comedic gems like Sleepy Hollow, or villainous standouts like Grindelwald, Depp infuses every performance with empathy, complexity and raw magnetism. He makes the memorable supporting man as much of a cinematic event as the protagonist. Even in smaller doses, Depp leaves an indelible mark and gives audiences characters they will not soon forget. As his career enters a third decade, Depp continues to surprise and delight as one of cinema’s most gifted chameleons.