Johnny Depp’s return to acting following his defamation trial against Amber Heard is not being backed by Netflix. Bloomberg reported that the Depp-starring French movie “La Favorite” is receiving “financial backing” from Netflix, but a source close to the streaming giant told Variety this reporting is not true. Netflix is not financing the movie but has licensed the film to stream in France only after it completes the country’s 15-month theatrical window. The film is not a Netflix original.
“La Favorite” is set to star Depp as French king Louis XV. “Mon Roi” filmmaker Maiwenn is directing the movie, which Variety reported earlier this year is filming this summer for three months at locations that include the Versailles Palace. Maiwenn is also starring in the movie as Jeanne du Barry, a countess who was Louis XV’s last mistress.
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The project is produced by Pascal Caucheteux and Gregoire Sorlat’s Paris-based Why Not Productions (“A Prophet”). Wild Bunch International (“Titane”) is handling world sales. “La Favorite” will mark Depp’s first major acting role since Andrew Levitas’ 2020 film “Minamata,” a film about war photographer W. Eugene Smith.
Depp won his defamation trial against Heard on June 1. The “Aquaman” actor is now ordered to pay $10.35 million in damages to Depp ($10 million in compensatory damages and $350,000 in punitive damages) after the jury ruled that she defamed Depp when she wrote a 2018 Washington Post op-ed alluding to her past claims of domestic violence.
“From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome,” Depp wrote in a statement following the verdict. “Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.”
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