Photo by nicogenin
Did you realise you probably know Johnny Depp’s films better than he does?
That’s if we can take this interview at face value, where he claims not to have seen his latest movie Public Enemies.
Incredulous, the interviewer asks him why not. Here’s Johnny’s answer:
I’ve always kind of tried to avoid them as much as possible… I just prefer the experience. I like the experience, I like the process, I like doing the work. But then, you know if I’ve got to see myself – I don’t like to see the thing become the product, I suppose. Once they say “You’re wrapped” on the film, it really is none of your business. The director is going to take that performance or whatever options you gave him and the editor, and they’re going to do with it what they want.
From the outside, this might sound hard to believe. After all, for anyone who has dreamt of being a film star, surely watching the end product of your labours, seeing yourself up there on the big screen, is central to the fantasy?
Not for Johnny.
According to him, the exciting part is doing the work, immersing himself in the character and putting everything into his performance. After that, the film is “none of his business” – it belongs to the director.
Johnny is interested in the process, not the product.
Those of us who are actively involved in creative work will know in our hearts what he’s talking about. The minute you take your eye off the ball, forget the work in front of you and start daydreaming about money, fame and other rewards, you’re risking mediocrity.
And as we saw in my e-book about motivation and creativity, there’s a lot of research evidence to back up Johnny’s position. Harvard Business School Professor Theresa Amabile has demonstrated through her research that intrinsic motivation is strongly linked to creative excellence:
People will be most creative when they feel motivated primarily the the interest, satisfaction, and challenge of the work itself – not by external pressures.
(Theresa Amabile, ‘How to Kill Creativity’, Harvard Business Review, September – October 1998)
Extrinsic motivations such as money, fame and critical acclaim constitute rewards for creative work. While it’s nice to enjoy these things after the fact, Amabile’s research shows that focusing on them too much is a creativity killer.
Does Johnny Take It Too Far?
Johnny’s solution to the problem of creative motivation is brutally simple – he focuses exclusively on intrinsic motivation, and does his best to ignore the external rewards. I’m sure he remembers to collect his pay cheque, but by avoiding watching the movie, he minimises his investment in his screen persona and the finished artefact.
Now, many people might say this is a bit extreme, and it wouldn’t do Johnny any harm to watch his films at the cinema, and have the DVDs on heavy rotation at home. But then many people haven’t achieved a fraction of what Johnny has, creatively. So it sounds like his approach works just fine for him.
You could also argue that Johnny is in the fortunate position of having someone else to worry about marketing and shipping the ‘product’. I’m sure there are plenty of people reading this who would love to be able to focus on their creative process all day long, and hand over the messy business of business to someone else.
But listening to Johnny’s interview, and watching mesmerising performances such as Joe Pistone in Donnie Brascoe and the debauched Earl of Rochester in The Libertine, it’s hard to escape the thought that his uncompromising attitude has been critical to his success.
While millions dream of being a famous actor, Johnny Depp concentrates on acting.
Is it a coincidence that he’s the one who made it?
What Do You Think?
What do you make of Johnny Depp’s claim that he avoids watching his own films?
When working on a creative project, do you find the potential rewards motivating or a distraction?
Do you think it’s a good idea for an artist to focus on the creative work, to the exclusion of everything else?
About the Author: Mark McGuinness is a poet and creative coach.
View Comments (47)
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« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next »Depp isn't the only actor to do this. I'm thinking Walken, but I may be wrong. Multiple actors believe in this. It's apparently common amongst celebrities. Watching your own movies is like a bad luck kinda deal, so whatever reason to not do it is a good enough reason. I also don't see why this is news worthy.
@ Ichigo :-)
@ Games - Look closely and you'll see this isn't a news blog.
Too often in this world now a days we have become indulged in our own selves. I for one will take a picture with family and friends, but I try to completely avoid looking at it. Its no where near the scale Johnny Depp deals with, but I can see his point of view. He has chosen Acting as his craft, not movie star, that just happened one day, and so be it, but it's not him, acting is, that's why he often chooses roles that are interesting and multi-layered rather that one sided and no story. Good for him, that world thinks he bigger than life, but he's probably just like us. He hasn't let his star power go to his head. The world needs more people like him who, which have passion and love to create rather that wait for money and could care less.
I do the same thing in regards to my metal artwork. I never keep my pieces, I always give them away to friends or family. I enjoy the creation process more than actually keeping the product.
i always like Johny.Love his passion and for him,always being one of a kind.Lol.But i don't get him this time..How can he judge his performance as whether he has been doing up to expectation or not ...
This is true, the only thing is that Mr. Depp always wanted to be a musician, not an actor. He got into acting to pay the bills. Isn't this business? His passion lies in music. That's where the true creativity remains
I have to try this out because I often find my self living to long in the celebration and losing precious time that could be better spent on other projects.
As a professional musician, I can somewhat relate to Depp. I really enjoy the process of recording, moreso than hearing myself on the final record. Although I have listened to several of the projects after completion, it's primarily to critique myself so that I can make adjustments in the future. And there are several more recordings of mine out there that I've never heard since walking out of the studio.
Great post, Mark!
can someone answer my question "When johnny depp is working on a creative project, does he find the potential rewarding motivating or a distracting?
I think only Mr Depp could answer that! But to judge from the interview, he realises that it could be a distraction and does his best to ignore it. I'm sure he takes it into account before deciding whether to do the project!
I love Johnny Depp--but only because he is a truly fabulous actor. He's very good at diving into his role and BECOMING that person whereas other actors remain the same character actors regardless of what role they play. With Mr. Depp, you identify who he is in the beginning of the film and then he changes to become that role--with others, you always identify them as Bruce Willis, Tom Cruise, Agent Smith... ;)
I'm not sure that being completely detached from the end product is necessarily that great of an idea and I sincerely would doubt that he's never watched ANY of his movies.
You can't NOT have an eye to the finished work because, even if you don't have any idea of where you're going, you have to, at least, pay attention to the direction you're going in.
Mr. Depp has the advantage of having his roles already created for him as well as the situation to not have to focus on what the end result will look like. The direction is (generally) already decided. It's for him to be the character he was cast to be. In the end, he's repeating lines created by someone else--and convincing us that they are solely his. That's utterly brilliant if done correctly. He also has a multitude of people around him who are determined to make the end result a movie worth seeing.
I'm writing a book. I can solely focus on the sheer creativity--the actual writing--of the book until the first draft is finished. After that, I have to take on the roles of director and the post-production crew to work that first draft into something that I am pleased with, that I am proud of.
I think, for us sole creators, we have to pay attention to it all, but at different times. Write the book with the door shut--edit the book with the door wide open. :)