Johnny come quirky.

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Alexis L. Loinaz, Contributor

JOHNNY DEPP shows up at an interview wearing the gold teeth caps he used for his role as a pirate. That's par for the course for an actor who has been anything but conventional or predictable. And that career approach has turned out to be, well, golden.

Since he burst into the scene in 1987 as an undercover cop on the hit TV show "21 Jump Street," Depp has made his mark playing oddball characters that downplayed his chiseled, matinee-idol good looks. His performances in such films as "Cry-Baby," "Edward Scissorhands," and "Ed Wood" cemented his reputation as a Hollywood maverick who had no intention of giving Tom Cruise a run for his toothy (white) grin.

Five years ago, Depp moved to the most un-Hollywood of places, France, where he lives with his wife, singer Vanessa Paradis, and their two children.

Now, with a starring role in "Pirates of the Caribbean," Depp has done something so unpredictably Depp-ish you have to marvel at the irony of it all: He's done a big, commercial blockbuster, based on a Disney theme-park ride, of all things. The film was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer of "Armageddon" and "Pearl Harbor" fame (or infamy, depending on who you ask).

If anything, the move has proven to be shrewd. "Pirates" is now the biggest hit of Depp's career. Since it opened in the US last month, the movie has grossed more than $240 million and is well on its way to becoming one of 2003's top grossers.