LONDON: American actor Johnny Depp will not be appearing in the upcoming third Fantastic Beasts movie, but he will be receiving the full eight-figure salary he was set to earn by reprising his role as the villain Grindelwald.
Entertainment magazine The Hollywood Reporter reported yesterday that Depp filmed one scene for Fantastic Beasts 3 before exiting the project.
Depp, 57, and producer Warner Bros. announced last Friday that the actor was resigning from the franchise after losing his libel case against British tabloid The Sun.
"Warner Bros. will be on the hook for Depp's full salary, even though he only had shot one scene since production began on Sept 20 in London. Like many A-list stars, Depp had a so-called pay-or-play contract, which requires that he be fully compensated whether or not the film is made and even if it is recast. As is common with stars of his level, there was no morality clause in his contract, even though it was amended with each new installment."
It is learnt that Depp's salary is US$9.9 million (RM41 million).
Depp made his Fantastic Beasts debut in a brief cameo appearance in the 2016 first film before playing the main antagonist in the 2018 sequel Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
Depp was to have equal screen time to Eddie Redmayne and Jude Law in the third Fantastic Beasts film.
Once a British judge dismissed Depp's libel case and sided in favour of The Sun, which called Depp a "wife beater," Warner Bros. asked the actor to resign from the sequel.
Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that the studio "wanted to allow due process to take its course before making a decision on" Depp's future with the Fantastic Beasts franchise.
Now that Depp has exited the franchise, Warner Bros. will recast the role of Grindelwald.
Warner Bros. said last Friday: "Johnny Depp will depart the Fantastic Beasts franchise. We thank Johnny for his work on the films to date. Fantastic Beasts 3 is currently in production, and the role of Gellert Grindelwald will be recast. The film will debut in theaters worldwide in the summer of 2022."
The studio has announced that Fantastic Beasts 3 will open in cinemas on July 15, 2022.
Depp recently lost his libel case against The Sun which claimed that he physically abused his ex-wife, Aquaman actress Amber Heard during their marriage from 2015 to 2017.
He has vowed to "continue to fight" to clear his name.