Johnny Depp declares ‘no one is safe’ from cancel culture

Johnny Depp declared that “no one is safe” from cancel culture during a press conference at the San Sebastian Film Festival on Wednesday.

The 58-year-old, who has fallen from grace in recent years, spoke to reporters at the Spanish film festival ahead of him controversially receiving their highest accolade, the Donostia Award.

“It can be seen as an event in history that lasted for however long it lasted, this cancel culture, this instant rush to judgment based on what essentially amounts to polluted air,” Depp said, according to Deadline.

“It’s so far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe,” the actor continued. “Not one of you. No one out that door. No one is safe… It takes one sentence and there’s no more ground, the carpet has been pulled… It’s not just me that this has happened to, it’s happened to a lot of people.

“It doesn’t matter if a judgement, per se, has taken some artistic license. When there’s an injustice, whether it’s against you or someone you love, or someone you believe in – stand up, don’t sit down. ‘Cause they need you.”

This is not the first time the Pirates of the Caribbean actor has spoken out. In an August interview with The Sunday Times, Depp claimed he was being “boycotted” by Hollywood after being accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife Amber Heard.

Last year, the star lost a libel case against The Sun after the tabloid referred to him as a “wife beater” due to Heard’s accusations, as the judge ruled the domestic violence allegations were “substantially true”. His defamation lawsuit against Heard in the U.S. is still ongoing.

Later in the press conference, the Hollywood actor admitted he was concerned about his presence at the festival as he “didn’t want to offend anyone” and praised festival director Jose Luis Rebordinos and the mayor of San Sebastian for their “undying support” and for “not buying what has been, for far too long, some notion of me that doesn’t exist.”