Johnny Depp was awarded a Gold Medal of Merit by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić on Tuesday, Serbian Statehood Day in Belgrade, Serbia. The president said the medal was to honor the actor for his "outstanding merits in public and cultural activities, especially in the field of film art and the promotion of the Republic of Serbia in the world."
The American actor has seen his fair share of controversy in the past couple of years, and said receiving the medal was "an extremely proud moment" for him, adding. "I truly, sincerely thank you, President Vucic, and this medal of merit, if I am given the honor to walk away with this, I thank you for being kind enough to bestow it upon me.'
The award came about because Depp has been spending quite a bit of time in Serbia. His 2020 film Minimata was filmed in Belgrade, and he voices the lead role of Johnny Puff in the upcoming limited series Puffins, the first animated series produced in Serbia.
In September 2021, while attending the San Sebastian Film Festival in order to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, Depp said he was a victim of cancel culture, after he was replaced in the Fantastic Beasts franchise due to his ongoing legal struggles with ex-wife Amber Heard. He said in his acceptance speech, “It’s so far out of hand now that I can promise you that no one is safe. Not one of you. No one out that door. No one is safe. It takes one sentence and there’s no more ground, the carpet has been pulled. It’s not just me that this has happened to, it’s happened to a lot of people."
He expressed concern that his presence at the festival "would offend people," but added, “I haven’t done anything, I just make movies." ~Alexandra Heilbron
Congratulations Johnny you deserve it. Keep up the great work you still have fans out there that have your back✌
Getting an award from Serbia is like being honored by the Third Reich. What a joke Depp is, and has turned out to be, from a nation that has been tarnished and stained and responsible for attempting mass genocides.
This is the best trope of which there is not another to be classified as a trope; but, when you see it you might just agree.