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Appropriately clad in a chocolate-coloured jacket and hat, Johnny Depp attracted his fair share of attention when he arrived at the Los Angeles premiere of Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, in which he plays the weird sweet manufacturer Willie Wonka.
Alongside him on the red carpet was his co-star, 13-year-old British actor Freddie Highmore, who is Charlie Bucket in Tim Burton's adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic children's story. Johnny was keen to work with Freddie again after the youngster's poignant performance as Peter in Finding Neverland.
"I liked my character," Freddie says of his new role. "On the outside it doesn't look like he's got much. He's poor, he eats cabbage soup. But he's kind and he has a family who loves him. So, actually, he's really got a lot."
Depp fans have been eagerly waiting to see how the famously quirky 42-year-old tackles the role of child-hating Wonka, especially under the direction of Big Fish and Planet Of The Apes filmmaker Tim Burton. According to one rumour, another name that came up in the search for an actor to play Wonka was shock-rocker Marilyn Manson. "That would have been an interesting way to go," says Johnny of that possibility. "I think I'd go see it before I brought my kids, though," added the father-of-two.
There were plenty of other attractions for the stargazers at the Californian premiere. Those on celeb-watch will have been thrilled to see Britney Spears at the screening with her husband Kevin Federline. The twosome, who are expecting their first child together in the autumn, have just premiered their reality-documentary TV series, Britney And Kevin: Chaotic, in the States. Initial reactions ranged from "modern art" to "viewer abuse".
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