Mads Mikkelsen has praised Johnny Depp as an “amazing actor” and speculated about Depp’s possible return to the Fantastic Beasts film franchise following his legal victory against ex-wife Amber Heard.
The 56-year-old Danish actor, known for his roles in the James Bond film Casino Royale and the NBC series Hannibal, replaced Depp, 59, as Gellert Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.
Speaking at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Deadline reported, Mikkelsen described taking on Depp’s role as “very intimidating” and discussed the reason for Depp’s exit from the franchise: his defamation case against Heard.
He said: “Obviously, well, now the course has changed – he won the lawsuit, the court [case] – so let’s see if he comes back. He could
“I’m a huge fan of Johnny. I think he’s an amazing actor, I think he did a fantastic job.
“That said, I couldn’t copy him. There was no way to copy him, because he’s so much him. It would be creative suicide. So we had to get something else, something that was mine, and build a bridge between him and I. So yeah, it was intimidating.
“His followers were very, very sweet, but also very stubborn. I didn’t interact with them too much, but I could understand why they were heartbroken.”
Mads Mikkelsen as Gellert Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. Photograph: Landmark Media/Alamy
Depp won against Heard, 36, in a legal battle in Fairfax County, Virginia, earlier this year.
The Pirates of the Caribbean star sued his former partner over a 2018 article he wrote for the Washington Post about his experiences as a domestic abuse survivor, which his lawyers said falsely accused him of of being an aggressor.
The actor’s representatives said he had lost job opportunities and high-profile roles following the allegations, including being dropped from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
Jurors found in his favor after the six-week trial.
Depp is now set to direct his first feature film in 25 years. Modi will tell the story of the Italian painter and sculptor Amedeo Modigliani.
He will co-produce the film along with Al Pacino.