Johnny Depp has never liked the Academy Awards. When the ceremonies are mentioned in interviews, Depp usually takes the opportunity to express his disdain for them. Presenting on stage at the Oscars at one point did not endear Depp to the elite Hollywood gathering. It might have made him feel worse about the awards ceremony.
Johnny Depp’s experience at the Oscars was so bad that he left the ceremony early, just after stealing Harrison Ford’s limo.
Why Johnny Depp once said that he never wanted to win an Oscar
Despite his nominations and critical accolades as an actor, Depp has long opposed receiving the Golden Globe. One of the reasons he never wanted to win one was that The Rum Diary star did not want to speak on stage.
“I don’t want to win one of those things ever, you know,” Depp once told BBC’s Newsbeat. “I don’t want to have to talk.”
Johnny Depp has stated that he dislikes the idea of the Oscars in general. This is because it pits him against his other actors.
“The idea of winning means that you’re in competition with someone and I’m not in competition with anybody,” Depp said. “I just stick to my guns and do what I want to do. Sometimes people don’t like it but that’s alright.”
Being nominated for the award numerous times was enough for Depp.
Johnny Depp once stole Harrison Ford’s limo after having an awful time at the Oscars.
Johnny Depp admitted to Movieline in March 2001 that he thought the awards ceremony was “really, really weird” even back then. At the same time, Depp did give the Oscars a chance by attending the ceremony despite his reservations.
“I was really uncomfortable with the idea. I’m not very good at public speaking and I didn’t want to make a complete fool of myself. But somehow I agreed because I was going to be introducing [Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young singer]Neil Young,” he said.
His instincts were true since when he went to the Oscars, he immediately felt uneasy. Depp had reservations about presenting Neil Young when the moment came.
“It was so weird. And then they wanted me to read this endless speech about the importance of music in film, and I thought, they don’t want to hear this s*** from me. They’re waiting for Neil Young to sing his song. So I told them, ‘I’ll do this but I’m not gonna say all that stuff. I can’t even read the Teleprompter; it’s too far away. And I may pass out from nerves.’ So I just said two sentences, and then I said, ‘Please welcome Neil Young.’ Then I left immediately,” he said.
Following his experience, Depp had a “nicotine seizure” and wanted to get as far away from the ceremony as possible. However, Depp and his agent ran into another snag when they lost their limo.
“Then we couldn’t find our driver—he was drunk somewhere. So we actually stole Harrison Ford’s limousine! We told his driver, ‘Listen, there’s still another hour and a half left to this thing. Just take us to the hotel and then you can come back. He’ll still be here.’ All in all, it was an awful experience,” he explained.
How many Oscar nominations does Johnny Depp have?
According to IMDb, Johnny Depp has received three Oscar nominations in his lengthy career. In 2004, he was nominated for best actor for his performance in Pirates of the Caribbean. Finding Neverland, a film about Peter Pan creator J.M. Barrie, earned him his second-best actor nomination in 2005. Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street earned him his final best actor nomination.
