It was “lights, camera, action” once again for Johnny Depp as he hit the red carpet Sunday at the Deauville Film Festival amid his legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard.
Depp, 58, attended a screening in northwestern France of his film “City of Lies,” in which he plays a retired detective who is convinced the Los Angeles Police Department played a part in the 1997 murder of The Notorious B.I.G. The film also addresses the 1996 death of Biggie’s rap rival Tupac Shakur.
The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star wore a navy suit and a matching fedora as he strolled the red carpet, stopping several times to take photos and sign autographs for fans in attendance.
“City of Lies” first premiered in December 2018 out of competition at the Noir in Festival in Italy. It was initially intended to be released in the US in September 2018 before being hit with several delays, which were extended even further due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The crime flick has since been made available on various streaming platforms and can be seen on Hulu in the US.
Depp’s rare red carpet appearance comes weeks after a Virginia judge ruled the “Dark Shadows” star could proceed with pressing libel charges against Heard over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed that the “Aquaman” star, 35, penned claiming she had been a victim of domestic violence during their marriage.
Depp has claimed that Heard’s accusations have resulted in him being “blacklisted” by Hollywood, which he believes to be the reason his latest film, “Minamata,” has yet to open in US theaters.
The Oscar nominee and Heard were married from 2015 to 2017 and were embroiled in a nasty divorce proceeding that included numerous allegations of abuse.
The exes have both denied mistreating each other, though they acknowledged in a joint statement in 2016 that their “relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile.”