Why Johnny Depp Chose Amber Heard Over Scarlett Johansson for ‘The Rum Diary’
Johnny Depp had a couple of tough choices when it came to who would be his love interest in The Rum Diary. Ultimately, Amber Heard was picked over Scarlett Johansson, which both Heard and Depp believed was the right decision.
Amber Heard felt she was more suited for ‘The Rum Diary’ than the competition
Heard and Depp first met each other on the set of The Rum Diary. The movie was based on the novel of the same name by Hunter S. Thompson, a novelist who Depp knew personally. But before Heard, there were other actors who were eyeing the role. Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson were reportedly in the running to play Depp’s co-star. But Heard, who was still a bit of a newcomer back then, would snatch the role from both stars. To Heard, a more fitting choice couldn’t have been made.
“I auditioned and read many times, wrote letters to the producers and the director, I really had to work for this part. As an avid reader and fan of Hunter S. Thompson, I did have something to offer to the role of Chenault that came from the literature. I felt a connection to the role. In regards to Scarlett Johansson, I think she is a good actress and I respect her, and her choices and her work quite a bit,” Heard once said according to Daily Mail.
Speaking with Collider, Depp confided why he chose Heard over more well-known actors at the time.
“Bruce had met with her, and when I saw Amber, I thought, ‘She’s everything that Hunter would adore, in terms of the character.’ I also thought that she was absolutely just like seeing an old movie star. She’s like Lauren Bacall,” he said.
Amber Heard considered ‘The Rum Diary’ audition a painful process
Heard didn’t really think she’d be cast in the feature when the opportunity presented itself. But when she had a realistic chance of being in the movie, she had to endure a long and challenging screening process.
“It’s a prestigious movie and it’s got a great, talented cast, so they wanted to make sure they had the right person for the role, but it was a torturous process. It was painful. I found out that they were making this movie and my heart fluttered. I remember thinking, ‘Oh, wouldn’t that be amazing,’ but didn’t really consider it, in a real way, as a possibility. And then, six months later, I was on set. It was a weird ride,” Heard once told Collider.
The movie would have her work alongside more experienced actors like her future ex-husband Johnny Depp. She also teamed with The Dark Knight’s Aaron Eckhart. Both stars gave Heard a unique individual experience.
“Aaron and I, in real life, have a very different relationship,” she said. “Those things just transfer over, unless you’re actively trying to suppress them. Aaron and I interact with one another very differently than Johnny and I do. People work like that, I guess. Chemistries are different. I have a lot of respect for Aaron and his talent and his complexity. I very much appreciated my Aaron and Johnny sandwich. It was a good team.”
Amber Heard quipped that working with Johnny Depp was torture
The Rum Diary would be the beginning of a tumultuous relationship between Depp and Heard. But before their disastrous divorce and subsequent courtroom drama, Heard had nothing but kind words to say about working with Depp. Although she did quip that collaborating with the Edward Scissorhands star could be torturous sometimes.
“I loved Hunter S Thompson for a long time. I’ve got a soft spot for true individuals. You can say many things about him, but he was definitely an individual,” she once told Vogue. “Working with Johnny was torture. It was better than I ever imagined, which is really saying something.”
