Johnny Depp, whose support of children’s charities and other worthy causes has gained him media attention in the past, is lending his name to a list that is getting him some mixed reviews. The actor has recently come out in support of Roman Polanski, who was arrested in Zurich in 2009 on charges relating to a 1977 statutory rape case.
The actor, who met Polanski while filming 1999’s “The Ninth Gate,” has voiced his disapproval for the way in which the judicial system has handled the director’s case. In an interview with The Independent, Depp said of the arrest, “Why now? Obviously, there is something going on somewhere. Somebody has made a deal with someone. Maybe there was a little money involved, but why now?”
He added that Polanski “is not a predator. He’s 75 or 76 years old. He has got two beautiful kids, he has got a wife that he has been with for a long, long time. He is not out on the street.”
Depp joins a long list of entertainment industry professionals who are rallying around the director, including Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, David Lynch, Monica Bellucci, and Tilda Swinton. Harvey Weinstein has spoken out on the director’s behalf, telling CNN, “We are calling every filmmaker we can to help fix this terrible situation.” Weinstein told The Independent, “Whatever you think about the so-called crime, Polanski has served his time.”
Polanski, who has been married to model/actress Emanuelle Seigner since 1989, has resided, and mostly remained in France since 1988, where he has been protected from extradition. Despite being under house arrest in his native country, California Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza ruled last week that Polanski must return to the United States for sentencing.
