Happy Birthday Johnny Depp

Image: deppimpact.com

One of my favourite actors turns 51 today! (I can't quite believe he is in the over 50 category now). Yes, it is Mr. Johnny Depp's birthday and to celebrate the occasion, I have picked my top five favourite Depp character costumes. 

Arguably one of the best character actors, Depp has worn many iconic costumes. Wardrobe, hair and make up are vitally important for an actor. Putting on any garment - whether it be a fancy hat or a restrictive suit -literally places the actor into the shoes of their character. They can start to feel the way their character moves and fully get into the mind set of their role. That is probably a key reason why Depp is notorious for keeping all his costumes after films have wrapped.

Check out my favourite designs below, but are there any I have missed? 

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1. Captain Jack Sparrow 

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Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

I was very lucky to see two of the costumes on the list at the V&A Hollywood Costume exhibition last year, and this is one of them. Probably on par with no. 2 as the most iconic of Depp's costumes, Captain Jack Sparrow's outfit oozes sex appeal whilst maintaining the classic pirate attire. Penny Rose who designed the costume worked collaboratively with Depp to achieve Captain Jack's 'rock 'n' roll' pirate look. 

'I must give 98% of the credit for this costume to Johnny Depp. It's the walk, the mannerisms, the asides - he created it, I just helped him a bit. Of course, I know what works shape-wise and whether we're getting the look of a character, but he arrived with Jack Sparrow in his head already as he does with all his characters. ...The hat is very special. I had six styles of hat made by Peroni in Rome. He came in, took a look, and picked up that leather tricorn hat, which I had made on a whim - you rarely see a tricorn in leather. 

I've never been able to prize it off him since.' Speaking in The Times, 'Meet Hollywood's Costume Gurus'. Oct. 2012

Left: Johnny Depp in Captain Jack Sparrow's costume. Right: The full costume display at the V&A Costume exhibition, 2012-2013.

2. Edward Scissorhands 

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Edward Scissorhands (1990)

The second most iconic costume from the first ever film Tim Burton and Johnny Depp worked on together. As you will see from the rest of the list, the duo have created some fantastical and distinctive character looks with the enormous help from designer, Colleen Atwood. Atwood's combination of Victorian elements and punk style hair, along with Depp's ghostly white face, creates a quirky mix of danger and innocence. This proves how important costume is to informing our understanding of a character. As despite the threatening exterior of his sharp hands and dark metallic suit, Edward is a gentle and innocent soul which you can see in his eyes. 

Left: Tim Burton's original design of Edward. Right: Depp in the Scissorhands costume. Not far different from the original concept.

3. The Mad Hatter 

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Alice in Wonderland (2010)

Colleen Atwood's design for The Mad Hatter costume is colourfully crazy. The bow tie had a mechanism that Depp could use to droop down when the Hatter was sad and perk up when he was happy. There are various layers and hidden components to his costume which are explained by Atwood in the video below:

The entire look is based on real hatters who went mad by their use of poisonous mercury in the trade. Atwood states that the mercury 'caused the hair to turn a very fried red colour and their skin to get very pale'. 

You can clearly see this result in the final picture below. 

Left: Burton's original drawing. Centre: Atwood's design. Right: Depp in the end result, complete with hare. 

4. Sweeney Todd 

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Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

This is the second Johnny Depp costume I saw at the V&A. What I particularly love about the costume is how the hair and make up completes the menacing look. The music inspired Atwood for all the costumes in the film. 'It's the starting point of all of it. It's a moody piece, so I wanted a lot of texture in the costumes. I wanted you to be able to feel them on screen.' Atwood speaking in USA Today. 

Here is another costume design video from Coleen on the set of Todd:

Left: Atwood's Sweeney Todd design. Right: Depp in full costume

5. Willy Wonka 

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

The final choice was created by designer Gabriella Pescucci. Johnny Depp's Willy Wonka may be nothing on Gene Wilder's, but the costume certainly takes inspiration from him - with the top hat, cane and brightly coloured coat. The bob haircut also adds comedic value to the look. I saw this costume back in 2009 when I went to the Warner Bros. VIP Studio Tour in LA. They have a museum full of costumes from Harry Potter to the Batman series. Well worth the visit if you get the chance.

Left: The full Wonka costume. Right: The costume on display at Warner Bros. Museum in LA.

What are your favourite Johnny Depp costumes?

Who is his best character?

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