Johnny Depp and Tim Burton Are Teaming Up Yet Again, Unfortunately
With the possible exception of George Lucas endlessly milking his "Star Wars" franchise for every last dollar, it's hard to think of a more frustrating destruction of a once-wonderful childhood film memory than the continued partnership between director Tim Burton and star Johnny Depp. Twenty years ago, they worked together for the first time on the magical "Edward Scissorhands." Early next year, they'll team up for the eighth time on a project that's very hard to be excited about -- just like a lot of their other recent collaborations.
After more than a year of delays, Burton's adaptation of the late-'60s gothic TV drama "Dark Shadows" will finally begin shooting in April, with Depp playing vampire Barnabas Collins. The movie's supposed to feature zombies and witches and ghouls, and in-demand writer Seth Grahame-Smith ("Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" and "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter") penned the screenplay. But all the reasons that make the film seem promising are all the reasons we're convinced these two men will screw it up.
Since the late '90s, the Burton-Depp collaborations have seemed to bring out the worst in each other. From "Sleepy Hollow" all the way to this year's "Alice in Wonderland," you've come to know what to expect from these two: campy, tongue-in-cheek performances set against a backdrop of rampant production design and indifferent storytelling. (Burton has developed an amazing ability to create wondrous realms that are so boring you'd never want to visit.) "Dark Shadows" should be an equally sumptuous and dazzling film, but it's a fair bet these lifelong buddies will let their self-satisfaction strangle the life out of it.
At a time when Martin Scorsese had moved on from Robert De Niro to Leonardo DiCaprio and even Quentin Tarantino understands that he can't cast Uma Thurman in everything, you could argue that it's somewhat inspiring that two Hollywood titans can still speak to each other after so long. Burton helped catapult Depp to stardom with "Edward Scissorhands," and his old friend has never forgotten that, finding time in his busy "Pirates of the Caribbean" schedule to keep working on new projects with him. But just like Lucas endlessly trying to recreate past magic, maybe it's time these two realized their best years as a combo are behind them. But considering how lucrative their partnership remains -- "Alice in Wonderland" was Burton's biggest hit ever and Depp's second-biggest -- it's doubtful anyone will try to break these two up any time soon. Too bad.
EXCLUSIVE: Johnny Depp To Start 'Dark Shadows' In April With Tim Burton Directin [Deadline]
