Johnny Depp on ‘benevolent’ Bunnyman being focus of new art collection
Previously Depp used the Bunnyman as a sign of the authenticity of his work.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Johnny Depp has envisioned the Bunnyman as a “benevolent” figure in his new art collection.
The 60-year-old actor and artist believes the humanoid shape is a “shared night-time vision between father and son”, according to Castle Fine Art, which will host his work at their partner gallery in Miami, in the US, from Tuesday.
In a YouTube video promoting the work, Depp said he has had recurring dreams of the Bunnyman, which “means a lot” to him, and he “feels very close to”.
He added: “My boy, my son Jack, when he must have been about five. He always looked like me, exactly like me as a child, he was drawing constantly.
“So some character that Jack had scribbled, beautiful scribbles into that shape, that image, reminded me of a kind of recurrent dream that I had as a child, probably around Jack’s age, five, six.
“When I would walk to the door of the basement in our house in Kentucky, and when I opened the door after standing at the landing at the top of the stairs, right in front of me, was this figure with no face, he had features, like a mannequin almost, and you could see like, just various little grains of sand, they’re all moving in this guy’s body.
“He just stood there, he never made a move toward me so he didn’t scare me.
“You couldn’t quite tell what was the deal was with the guy, but you definitely felt that at the very least there was something benevolent about it, he was a benevolent creature (it was) like he was there to warn me in my dream about going into the basement.”
Previously Depp, who has two children, actress Lily-Rose Depp and John “Jack” Christopher Depp III, with French model, singer and actress Vanessa Paradis, used the Bunnyman as a sign of the authenticity of his work.
The urban legend of a man wearing a bunny costume has featured in popular culture and appeared in the slasher film Bunnyman and science fiction film Donnie Darko.
Depp’s The Bunnyman Genesis series sees a silhouetted figure stand before four different and parallel realms in the collection of mixed media prints.
The four different parts are Origins, which is a red composition that sees the Bunnyman warding off evil spirts; Cosmic, described by Depp as the figure “powerfully standing with a sword of truth”; poppy-filled Flowers; and the motif in a textured, loom-like background for Multiverse.
Castle Fine Art managing director Ian Weatherby-Blythe said: “Castle Contemporary prides itself on the quality and innovation in the art we sell.
“We started working with Johnny Depp in 2022, and The Bunnyman offers a new artistic direction for his collectors. We can’t wait to debut these works at Art Miami.”
The artworks are available at Castle Contemporary at Art Miami.
Last year Depp was awarded 10.3 million dollars (£8 million) in damages following a high-profile defamation case in the US against his ex-wife, the actress Amber Heard.
His lawyers said the Aquaman star, 37, falsely accused him of being an abuser in an article she wrote in the Washington Post in 2018.
A previous UK libel claim against News Group Newspapers (NGN), the owner of The Sun, alleged that he was violent and abusive towards Heard, to whom he was married from 2015 to 2017.
The content of the article was ruled to be “substantially true” by a high court judge.