Who is Johnny Depp's Favorite Comic Book Superhero?

Geoff Boucher from Hero Complex recently interviewed Johnny Depp over the phone and had a very interesting conversation.

We all know that Johnny has always been interested in conflicted antiheroes and his love of this one fits right in; here's a few quotes from Hero Complex interview,

Just got off the phone with Johnny Depp and although there was plenty to chat about — with “Rango,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” “Dark Shadows” and “The Lone Ranger” at various stages in the pipeline — I had to sneak in a comic-book question. When he was growing up in South Florida, did he have a stack of favorite comic books in a corner of his bedroom?

“Oh yeah. I was a rock ‘n’ roll kid, mainly, but prior to age 12, when the rock ‘n’ roll sort of took hold, I was a comic-book head. I liked Sgt. Rock. And I loved the Sub-Mariner. I loved Prince Namor, the Sub-Mariner.”

… There was this strange double edge to the guy. And there was also something about living underwater that I liked a lot.”

I told Depp he’s in good company when it comes to admiring Bill Everett’s imperious sea king — last year Clint Eastwood told me Namor was also his favorite.

“Really, he liked Namor? Wow. That’s cool. Namor is great. There was this strange double edge to the guy. And there was also something about living underwater that I liked a lot.”

Depp said he was no fan of Captain America. “No, not really. But I liked Spider-Man and I liked the Fantastic Four for a bit. I really liked Sgt. Rock. But the Sub-Mariner, he was the alternative one. The alt-superhero. He was the sort of Bohemian comic book. I like that.”

As of all rumors of recent date, Depp isn't tied to any superhero film projects, but I could definitely picture Johnny donning a pair of shiny gold cuffs and a fish-scale speedo playing his childhood favorite comic book superhero "Prince Namor" from Sub-Mariner. Wow, yeah, wow is all I can say.

Comic book fans that are familiar with Sub-Mariner should easily recognize the duality Depp mentions with regard to Prince Namor – as even the most generous interpretations of the character usually depict a hero with a hot temper. Less kind, but some of the more interesting Sub-Mariner story-lines, even depict the character as a villain that enacts vengeance upon land-loving citizens for their treatment of the oceans as well as the destruction of Namor’s hometown, Atlantis.

While it’s certainly unlikely that we’ll see the Rango star super-speed swimming in his own Sub-Mariner film, the actor’s appreciation for the untapped character potential in a comic book hero indicates that Depp wouldn’t be opposed to starring in a comic book adaptation – assuming it was a good fit.

Of course, the best way to get Depp involved might be to try and get Tim Burton excited about adapting another superhero for the big screen – just so long as he doesn’t pass the reins to Joel Schumacher this time.

Would you like to see Johnny as Prince Namor?

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