Plunge to new Depp

With one of his handsome co-stars

Want to know how Johnny Depp's going to be spending the next few years? Working on a string of huge money-spinning flicks, is what.

First up, it was confirmed yesterday that he will reappear as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean 4 – let’s hope it's an improvement on the last few outings, although Depp is very watchable as Keith Richards with a sword.

Next up Walt Disney Studios tell us he will star as the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland – a movie perfectly twinned with twisted fairytale Gothic maestro director, Tim Burton. Should be worth a watch.

But as Empire Online tells us, the best announcement is that he's slated to be Tonto in a movie version of The Lone Ranger. Tonto, of course, is the obedient native American Indian sidekick of the silver bullet shooting do-gooder.

And so perhaps we have a new type of movie star on our hands.

There's no doubt Johnny Depp is a mega A-list star; he can open films and get all the necessary publicity. But he tends not to play the traditional starring role - Mad Hatter to Alice, Tonto to Lone Ranger and Jack Sparrow to Will Turner.

And we agree the best characters are not always centre stage, not always the obvious hero and not always the name on the film.

And he's got a fit wife. What a boy.

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