Johnny Depp poses alongside Damien Echols, one of the West Memphis Three, at ‘West of Memphis’ premiere (TIFF)

Soraya Roberts
·Blogger

Johnny Depp was doubly supportive at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival this weekend.

See also: More coverage of the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival

The "Dark Shadows" star hit the red carpet for the documentary "West of Memphis" on Saturday, stating he was there as "a friend." He posed for photos alongside Damien Echols, one of the documentary's producers and, most notably, one of the three teens who were wrongly convicted of killing three eight-year-old boys in Arkansas in 1993 and spent 18 years in prison before their release in 2011.

"I'm here to support my friends and to attain the proper definition of justice for all," Depp told USA Today.

See also: 'West of Memphis' documentary boasts A-list support

The 48-year-old actor said he felt an "instant connection" with Echols and described their first meeting at the film's press conference earlier in the day.

"To finally see Damien arrive at my house, on my doorstep, was moving and it was a celebration," he said, according to The Wrap. "We had Tator Tots and tacos. And things took their natural course and we ended up at the tattoo parlor."

But Echols, who designed one of Depp's tattoos, wasn't the only one benefiting from the actor's support. On the red carpet, Depp sported a beat-up leather jacket with a sky blue patch on the back that displayed an image of a Native American against a backdrop of the American flag. "Genocide - Poverty - Hunger ... No Thanks No Giving! What Are You Celebrating? Give Thanks Everyday," it read.

Depp has claimed part Cherokee and Creek Indian ancestry and will next be seen in "The Lone Ranger" as Tonto, the Native American sidekick to the titular hero. In May, the Oscar-nominated actor was invited to officially join New Mexico's Comanche Nation tribe, to which his character belongs, despite the outcry after the first photos emerged from the "Lone Ranger" set that showed Depp's black-and-white painted characterization of Tonto.

See also: TIFF 2012: 'Cloud Atlas' is too ambitious for its own good

"The whole reason I wanted to play Tonto is to try to [mess] around with the stereotype of the American Indian that has been laid out through history, or the history of cinema at the very least -- especially Tonto as the sidekick, the Lone Ranger's assistant," Depp told Entertainment Weekly in April. "As you'll see, it's most definitely not that."

The trailer for "The Lone Ranger" debuted at Comic-Con in July and the film is slated for release in May 2013.