On Friday, October 21, Johnny Depp was the top draw in downtown Austin, Texas, bringing his new film, “The Rum Diary,” to the Paramount Theater for a special Austin Film Festival screening. Depp was scheduled to walk the red carpet, which prompted fans to line up on all sides of the Paramount Theater and across the street. But where Depp is concerned, nothing quite comes off as planned.
“The Rum Diary” is Depp’s Second Journey Into the Mind of Hunter S. Thompson
When Depp arrived minutes before the screening, eager fans broke down at least two police barriers in order to capture the actor’s image on their smartphones or exchange a few words with him. Depp entered the theater but returned a few minutes later to pose for photos and talk to fans who had waited for hours to see him.
During the ensuing pandemonium, I had approximately one minute to ask Depp about his second journey into the mind of Hunter S. Thompson, the noted American writer who is considered a pioneer in gonzo journalism. Breaking conventional reporting standards, gonzo journalism has the writer involving himself or herself in the story.
Previously, Depp starred in “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” the adaptation of Thompson’s novel of the same name. When asked about his continuing journey into Thompson’s mind, Depp said it was, as always, interesting.
“It was a matter of trying to find the Hunter Thompson that existed before he located his voice, before he found that avenue for the rage, the passion,” Depp said.
“The Rum Diary” is based on Thompson’s novel of the same name. Like the Paul Kemp character, Thompson had worked for a publication in Puerto Rico as a young man. Thompson wrote the novel in the early 1960s, but it was not published until 1998.
“With any role there is a challenge, but basically, it was trying to locate that version of Hunter, really. Not necessarily the innocent Hunter, but the Hunter of that era; the Hunter that still had that bubbling rage but didn’t have any place to spew it,” Depp said.
Bruce Robinson Behind the Camera for “The Rum Diary”
Following Depp on the red carpet that evening was Bruce Robinson, director of “The Rum Diary.” Noticeably uncomfortable with the noise and chaos surrounding the event, Robinson shared a few thoughts with me on Depp’s journey into Thompson’s world.
“‘Fear and Loathing’ was a movie and this is a completely different one. We are dealing with a Hunter when he was a complete unknown, before gonzo had been discovered. They are very dissimilar films,” Robinson said.
And when asked if “The Rum Diary” captures Thompson as a young writer, Robinson said “You have to see the movie to see if we pulled it off.”
“The Rum Diary,” rated R for language, brief drug use, and sexuality, opens in wide release on Friday, October 28.
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