John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for three Academy Awards and two British Academy Film Awards. His films, in which he has often played eccentric characters, have grossed over $8 billion worldwide, making him one of Hollywood's most bankable stars. Depp began his career as a musician performing in several amateur rock bands before transitioning into film. He made his feature film debut in the horror film A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and appeared in Platoon (1986), before rising to prominence as a teen idol on the television series 21 Jump Street (1987–1990). In the 1990s, Depp portrayed lead roles in Arizona Dream (1993), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Benny & Joon (1993), Dead Man (1995) and title characters Ed Wood (1994), Don Juan DeMarco (1995) and Donnie Brasco (1997). He also portrayed Hunter S. Thompson in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) and Dean Corso in Roman Polanski's The Ninth Gate (1999). In 1999, Depp received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the motion picture industry. In the early 2000s, he appeared in the romance Chocolat (2000), crime film Blow (2001), action film Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003), drama Finding Neverland (2004), and horror films From Hell (2001) and Secret Window (2004). Depp became known for his collaborations with director Tim Burton, including in Edward Scissorhands (1990), Ed Wood (1994), Sleepy Hollow (1999), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Corpse Bride (2005), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture, and Alice in Wonderland (2010). Depp gained worldwide stardom for his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, starting with The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), and reprised the role in four sequels (2006–2017). For each performance in The Curse of the Black Pearl, Finding Neverland, and Sweeney Todd, Depp was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. His other well-received films include Public Enemies (2009), Into the Woods (2014), Black Mass (2015), and Minamata (2020), among others. He portrayed Gellert Grindelwald in the Wizarding World films Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016) and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018). He has also lent his voice to numerous animated series in addition to the animated film Rango (2011). Outside acting, Depp has produced films through his company Infinitum Nihil, which he founded in 2004. He also formed the rock supergroup Hollywood Vampires with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry. He was named People's Sexiest Man Alive twice, in 2003 and in 2009. In 2022, Depp won a defamation case against his ex-wife, Amber Heard, with the jury awarding him $10.35 million and Heard $2 million in her countersuit. The highly publicized case sparked widespread debate on defamation, domestic abuse, and male victims of domestic violence, leading to a settlement in December 2022.