A hit movie starring Johnny Depp as a legendary real-life crime figure begins streaming on Netflix this week.
Depp, of course, has played in all sorts of genres throughout his 40-year screen career, from horror (Sleepy Hollow) and action comedies (the Pirates of the Caribbean series) and musicals (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street) to fantasy (Edward Scissorhands and Alice in Wonderland), dramas (Finding Neverland) and animation (Corpse Bride and Rango).
The three-time Oscar-nominated actor has also starred in some hit crime thrillers as well in his career, including 2011’s Public Enemies—as real-life gangster John Dillinger—and Black Mass in 2015.
The latter, Black Mass—where Depp plays notorious crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger—debuts on Netflix on Thursday, September 12. While Depp’s performance at Bulger did not earn an Oscar nomination, he did earn nods for Best Actor from the Screen Actors Guild and Critics Choice Association.
The logline for Black Mass reads, “The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.”
Bulger was killed in federal prison in 2018 at age 89.
How Did Audiences And Critics Receive ‘Black Mass’?
Released on September 18, 2015, Black Mass went on to earn, per The Numbers, nearly $62.6 million domestically and $36.2 million internationally for a worldwide tally of $98.8 million against a $53 million production budget before prints and advertising.
Rotten Tomatoes critics, meanwhile, gave Black Mass a 73% “fresh” rating based on 292 reviews. The RT Critics Consensus reads, “Black Mass spins a gripping yarn out of its fact-based story — and leaves audiences with one of Johnny Depp’s most compelling performances in years.”
Black Mass also earned a 68% “fresh” Audience Score on RT based on 10,000-plus user ratings.
Directed by Scott Cooper, Black Mass also stars several high-profile actors, including Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson, Kevin Bacon, Joel Edgerton, Jesse Plemons, Peter Sarsgaard, Adam Scott, Juno Temple, Corey Stoll and David Harbour.
Depp transformed his looks to play James “Whitey” Bulger via makeup prosthetics. When he discussed the process with Variety in a 2015 interview, he said any worries he has about whether audiences will accept the look of his characters end once the filming is completed.
“I wasn’t worried at all only because what’s done is done. But I want an audience to lose themselves,” Depp told Variety. “When they’re seeing what they know to be this guy called Johnny Depp and all his baggage and all his movies, I want them to forget me. That’s the great test.
“If I can get them within three to five minutes, we’re going to be okay,” Depp added. “But if they immediately go, ‘I’m watching some guy in makeup,’ then I’m screwed.”
Rated R, Black Mass begins streaming on Netflix on Thursday.
Read the full article here