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Johnny Depp in Talks to Lead David Koepp's 'Mortdecai' Crime Comedy

by Ethan Anderton
July 10, 2013
Source: The Wrap

With two projects at Disney in his near-future, Johnny Depp is looking to take a break from the House of Mouse with a crime comedy adaptation. The Wrap has word that Depp is close to finalizing a deal to lead Mortdecai, an adaptation of Kyril Bonfiglioli's The Great Mortdecai Moustache Mystery, the author's final novel which remained unfinished until satirist and parodist Craig Brown completed it.. David Koepp, better known for his work on the page with films like Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible and Spider-Man, is directing the film, but the script for Mortdecai comes from relative newcomer Eric Aronson this time.

The official synopsis says the story follows "Hon. Charlie Mortdecai from adventure to misadventure via Jersey and Moscow to a final showdown in a Buckinghamshire bungalow of unparalleled hideousness. Tackling en route an unhealthy sprinkling of well-seasoned academics, a cryptic monk, an aristocratic Chief Constable, and more spies than you could shoehorn into a black stretch limo, Mordecai finds himself embroiled in another mission of international insecurity." Sounds like something Depp might do with Tim Burton, but thankfully that's not the case this time with Ghost Town director Koepp at the helm.

Depp is also producing the project which is now set up at Lionsgate after being put into turnaround at Warner Bros. The plan is for Depp to shoot the film after he completes the musical Into the Woods, his second big screen singing endeavor, and before Pirates of the Caribbean 5 is slated to begin production early next year. Mortdecai could begin production in October, so it'll be a tight fit for the actor. Hopefully these next few projects will prove to be better for Depp since The Lone Ranger, Dark Shadows and The Rum Diary have proven to be quite disappointing. Thankfully his amazing cameo in 21 Jump Street redeems those missteps, and Wally Pfister's Transcendence should help as well. Thoughts?

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