Johnny Depp really disappointed me today. And, believe me, I heart Johnny Depp. In fact, I think most women and (and men) adore him. Not only is he extremely easy on the eyes and one of the greatest actors of our generation, but he has that European, laid-back, old-school romantic sensibililty about him. Which is why you can imagine how crushed I was when I heard the statements he made about Roman Polanski today. (In case you are unaware, Roman Polanski is a celebrated film director who drugged a young girl and then raped her at Jack Nicholson's house in California back in the 70's. He fled to Europe and has been hiding there ever since. He is now awaiting trial after years of eluding American police.) Here is what Johnny had to say:
"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 goes on to say:
"Roman 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 there on the street."
Now, while I may be empathetic to Roman, in the sense that he is older and in poor health, it really doesn't matter. It doesn't matter that the woman he raped when she was 12 has publically forgiven him and has moved on with her life. A girl was raped and he escaped prosecution. He fled to France and cowered in Europe for years and years. The US has been chasing him all this time, tying up our resources and money and time that we could have been using to catch violent and dangerous criminals right here in the US.
I find it really disturbing that Depp, who has children of his own, is taking this situation so lightly. Time does not heal all wounds, especially when there has been no closure on this situation. Depp fails to understand that by saying what he said, he is condoning violence against women. He is basically saying that a crime just disappears over time and that there must be this window of opportunity to catch a predator. Once this so-called window has passed, the predator is off the hook. Can you imagine if we applied that to our society? How many more crimes against women would occur if the predator knew that if he escaped judgment for a certain amount of time, that he could walk free without fear of punishment?
In the case above, Roman Polanski and the woman he raped as a young girl are only two pieces of the puzzle. Even if they have made amends and are healing from their experience, the third piece has seen no justice. That third piece is the CRIMINAL ACT. Even if a woman doesn't want to press charges against a predator, whether it be out of fear or confusion or delusion. The crime has been committed and without justice, there is no stopping men like Polanski from raping and drugging and hurting women over and over again.
I know if this situation was in Depp's personal world (and I hope it never is) he would never rest until the person that hurt his child was brought to justice. It was just a disturbing and disgusting comment from Depp. He should stick to what he knows and does well, acting, and let the justice system do what it does best, bringing criminals to trial, and let it play out there, instead of in the court of public opinion.
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While I think Polanski should be shot, are you being a little hard on Depp? It almost makes it sound as if he would rape someone too. On the surface, it does sound like Depp is being a bit heartless but perhaps there is more to his statement and perhaps was taken out of context?
The “Why now” questions may be a fair question. Not that Polanski should be given any leniency because of the passage of time. But what prompted this now?