Johnny Depp’s “Transcendence” bombed last night as expected, taking in just $11.5 million. That’s a disaster for a $150 million movie.
This is Depp’s second major flop at the box office, following the catastrophic “Lone Ranger.” And now this poses an important question: can Depp open a movie that isn’t “Pirates of the Caribbean”? The answer is No. He’s made zillions from the Disney adventure movies.
But Depp has so limited himself as Jack Sparrow that he’s not known for anything else. His last real movie that was a hit and brought him some critical acclaim was “Finding Neverland” some ten years ago.
Other than that his resume is a list of “almosts”– “Public Enemies” and “Sweeney Todd” fit that bill. His work with Tim Burton is spotty– “Alice in Wonderland” was a big hit, but not just because of Depp. “Dark Shadows” was awful.
He (and Leonardo DiCaprio) are among a small group of very precious leading men who don’t do romantic comedies. When he did try to do something in that vein, Depp failed miserably with “The Tourist.”
Depp’s other big outing this year will be in the fall when he plays the Wolf in Rob Marshall’s “Into the Woods” musical film adaptation. The next time Depp is seen after that will be in 2015 as mobster Whitey Bulger in “Black Mass.”
