Johnny Depp Says “F* You” to Warner Bros. Over Fantastic Beasts Firing: “There’s Far Too Many of Me to Kill”

Johnny Depp isn’t holding back about how he really felt when Warner Bros. asked him to step down from the Fantastic Beasts franchise in 2020. In a new interview with The Telegraph, the actor revealed his blunt, visceral reaction.

“F*** you,” he said as his response to Warner Bros. “There’s far too many of me to kill. If you think you can hurt me more than I’ve already been hurt you’re gravely mistaken.”

Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts the Crimes of Grindelwald as Gellert Grindelwald – HBO Max

Depp was removed from the role of Gellert Grindelwald just one day after losing a U.K. libel trial against The Sun, which had referred to him as a “wife beater” due to allegations made by his ex wife Amber Heard. Though Depp sued for defamation, the court ruled the paper’s description was “substantially true.” Warner Bros. swiftly announced his departure in a one-line statement.

“Johnny Depp will depart the Fantastic Beasts franchise,” they said. “We thank Johnny for his work on the films to date.”

But in The Telegraph, Depp described how it actually happened.

Johnny Depp as John Dillinger in Public Enemies (2009), Universal Pictures

“It literally stopped in a millisecond, like, while I was doing the movie,” he said. “They said we’d like you to resign. But what was really in my head was they wanted me to retire.”

Depp had only filmed for one day before being recast with Mads Mikkelsen.

Warner Bros.’ Double Standard: Heard Stayed, Depp Was Dropped

The irony and hypocrisy, of course, is hard to ignore. Just two years later, in June 2022, a U.S. jury ruled that Amber Heard had defamed Johnny Depp in her 2018 Washington Post op-ed, where she implied he had abused her. The jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, though the latter was later reduced to $350,000 under Virginia law. Heard was also awarded $2 million in a separate counterclaim—not because Depp abused her, but due to a single comment made by his lawyer.

Amber Heard as Mera in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Warner Bros. Pictures

Over the course of the highly publicized six-week trial, jurors revealed they found Heard’s testimony unconvincing, with one telling Good Morning America that her tears “didn’t add up” and appeared to be “crocodile tears.” Many viewers, and at least some jurors, came away believing Heard was the aggressor in the relationship—though some media outlets have continued to frame the situation as complex and unresolved.

And yet, despite all this, Warner Bros. kept Amber Heard in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. She remained in the film as Mera, with DC Films head Walter Hamada testifying that her role was only reduced due to “lack of chemistry” with co-star Jason Momoa—not because of the legal battle or the defamation ruling. Heard ultimately appeared in the sequel, albeit with significantly less screen time.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Warner Bros. Pictures

Meanwhile, Johnny Depp had been forced out of the Fantastic Beasts franchise in 2020. The ruling that led to Depp’s dismissal was handed down without the benefit of a jury, and before Depp had ever publicly presented his side of the story.

The contrast couldn’t be clearer: Depp was dropped based on allegations and a judge’s editorial ruling in the U.K., while Heard kept her role despite a U.S. jury finding she defamed him. One actor was publicly exiled. The other was shielded.

“I’ll Fight Until the Bitter End”

Depp told The Sunday Times last month that he never had faith the controversy would simply fade.

“Everyone was saying, ‘It’ll go away!’ But I can’t trust that,” he said. “What will go away? The fiction pawned around the f***ing globe? No it won’t. If I don’t try to represent the truth it will be like I’ve actually committed the acts I am accused of. And my kids will have to live with it.”

Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Walt Disney Studios

He added: “Look, none of this was going be easy, but I didn’t care. I thought, ‘I’ll fight until the bitter f***ing end.’ And if I end up pumping gas? That’s all right. I’ve done that before.”

Now, after years of legal battles and media scrutiny, Depp is stepping back into Hollywood. He’s set to reunite with Blow co-star Penélope Cruz in the upcoming Lionsgate action comedy Day Drinker—which began filming in April 2025 and is expected to release in 2026—potentially marking the start of his long-awaited comeback.

How do you feel about Johnny Depp’s response to Warner Bros. over the Fantastic Beasts situation? Sound off in the comments and let us know!

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