Depp forges ‘bromance’ with Saudi prince
Business partnership with Mohammed bin Salman develops as actor spends weeks in royal palaces
‘They made a genuine connection ... It’s a shock to many of the people who know him’
JOHNNY DEPP has formed an unlikely friendship with the powerful ruler of Saudi Arabia that is so strong observers have characterised it as a “bromance”. The Hollywood actor and star of the
Pirates of the Caribbean films was introduced to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as a business partner two years ago. Since then Depp, 60, has developed a real friendship with Bin Salman, 38. “They made a genuine connection,” a friend of Depp told Vanity Fair. “It’s a shock to many of the people who know him, but it’s what happened.”
Over the past year, Depp has reportedly spent more than seven weeks in Saudi Arabia staying in royal palaces and camps. He has travelled by yacht and helicopter while there and even flew to London and back to attend the Jeff Beck Memorial Concert at the Royal Albert Hall on Bin Salman’s personal 747 and reportedly gave the prince a painting he had created.
The pair have become so close that the actor, known for his role as Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, is considering a seven-figure annual contract to promote Saudi Arabia’s cultural renaissance, insiders told the magazine.
Both men share the experience of having faced a reckoning in public perceptions of their carefully crafted images in recent years.
Once a sought- after star in Hollywood, De pp lost a 2020 libel case after
The Sun published claims by his ex-wife, Amber Heard, that he beat her. The judge said its publisher, News Group
Newspapers, had proved the claims to be “substantially true”.
Two years later, a series of accusations, including sexual abuse, were made public after he also sued Heard for libel in the US.
He won that case and was awarded $10 million for damages to his reputation. For his part, Bin Salman was hailed as a reformer by Western leaders when he came to power in 2015 but his i mage was shattered when US intelligence said he sanctioned the br ut a l murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist. Khashoggi was murdered and dismembered by a hit squad in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate in December 2018.
The genesis of the pair’s friendship lies in the production of Depp’s 2022 film, Jeanne du Barry, which was struggling financially.
Sina Taleb, described by Vanity Fair as “a French wheeler- dealer whose famous friends i nclude Leonardo Dicaprio and Tobey Maguire”, introduced Depp to Prince Badr bin Farhan Al Saud, Saudi Arabia’s culture minister and cousin of MBS who, in 2017, was the front man for MBS’S purchase of the world’s most expensive painting, Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, for $450 million.
After meeting Depp, Prince Badr and the film’s producers arranged for Saudi Arabia to invest millions to cover budget overruns and some additional expenditures for Jeanne du Barry.
The investment formed part of MBS’S Vision 2030 plan, which involves Saudi Arabia ploughing hundreds of billions of dollars i nto potential revenue streams that could, ultimately, provide an alternative to oil income, such as sport, tourism, mining and entertainment, including film production.
Prince Badr hopes to secure Depp’s help to raise Saudi Arabia’s profile in the film world and talks are progressing over an annual seven-figure deal for him to attend events and shoot films in the country. In December, he attended the Red Sea Film Festival for the regional premiere of Jeanne du Barry.
The Saudi government’s Red Sea Film Foundation has also announced an investment in Depp’s next directorial film production about Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani – Modi.
Depp told Vanity Fair: “Though I admit I was somewhat naive at first to what was transpiring in the region, I’ve since experienced first hand the cultural revolution that is happening there – from emerging young storytellers radiating fresh ideas and works of art, to a blossoming film infrastructure and a newfound curiosity for innovation.”
According to Vanity Fair, Depp’s friends were alarmed by the friendship but were won round by how refreshed he seemed after spending time away from his hard-drinking friends. Alcohol is prohibited in Saudi Arabia.
“The trips to Saudi are actually healthy for him,” said a friend.