# Johnny Depp as BARNABAS COLLINS?!?! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 28, 2007, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486 "2007-07-28T13:40:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/1 "2007-07-28T13:40:34Z")
[http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1](http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1) I’d heard a DS film was in development, but I didn’t expect this bit of casting. Hmmmm! Of course, I was part of that generation which would hurry home from school everyday to catch the original DS, and then eagerly tuned it when it was released into syndication in the 1980s, only to exclaim “THIS IS WHAT I LOVED AS A KID?!?!” I did enjoy the NBC miniseries about 15 years ago, and I have high hopes for this. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/2 "2007-07-28T18:33:48Z")
Jonny Depp seems to like playing characters with odd personality quirks. It’ll be intertesting to see what he does with Barnabas. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/3 "2007-07-28T18:36:39Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] [http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1](http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1) I’d heard a DS film was in development, but I didn’t expect this bit of casting. Hmmmm! Of course, I was part of that generation which would hurry home from school everyday to catch the original DS, and then eagerly tuned it when it was released into syndication in the 1980s, only to exclaim “THIS IS WHAT I LOVED AS A KID?!?!” I did enjoy the NBC miniseries about 15 years ago, and I have high hopes for this. [/QUOTE] I had such a vague memory of the original show that I eagerly awaited the rerun on the Sci-Fi Channel. I’m really glad I watched it. And I still believe it to be one of the greatest TV shows ever made. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/4 "2007-07-28T18:41:06Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] [http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1](http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117969246.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1) I’d heard a DS film was in development, but I didn’t expect this bit of casting. Hmmmm! Of course, I was part of that generation which would hurry home from school everyday to catch the original DS, and then eagerly tuned it when it was released into syndication in the 1980s, only to exclaim “THIS IS WHAT I LOVED AS A KID?!?!” I did enjoy the NBC miniseries about 15 years ago, and I have high hopes for this. [/QUOTE] I was that kid! And I had the same reaction to it when they released it in the '80s. It SUCKED. HARD. And I don’t want Johnny Depp to play Barnabas, either. That’s just wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Gukumatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/5 "2007-07-28T19:12:06Z")
I’m a Depp fan, but not a US TV fan, so would anyone mind explaining who Barnabas Collins is and why Depp isn’t right? ---
**Author:** ![Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Full_Metal_Lotus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/6 "2007-07-28T20:54:17Z")
is this a movie or Television mini-series or what? Dark Shadows was only “interesting” for about 15 episodes (the vampire ones)… the rest was washed out 1900-s melodrama poorly translated into a early 70’s soap opera… regards FML ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/7 "2007-07-28T21:03:21Z")
I was a HUGE Depp fan until all that closeted fey pirate crap. I’m so over him. He’s just about achieved the Pacino level of overacting. Anyone remember Ed Wood? That was good Depp. ---
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2007, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/8 "2007-07-28T22:02:48Z")
Well, I for one think this could just be loads of fun. Depp is so talented and so fun to watch (I’m looking forward to Sweeney Todd, too). and he can play subdued as well - “Finding Neverland” is a good example. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2007, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/9 "2007-07-29T02:06:35Z")
I’m not so sure about this. I’d think Quentin, maybe, but Barnabas has that understated elegance that I’d wonder about with Johnny Depp. Plus for me, he’s just done so much lately that I’m afraid he’d pull me right out of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/10 "2007-07-29T02:13:25Z")
[QUOTE=well he’s back] Well, I for one think this could just be loads of fun. Depp is so talented and so fun to watch (I’m looking forward to Sweeney Todd, too). and he can play subdued as well - “Finding Neverland” is a good example. [/QUOTE] Me too! Actually, I’ve never seen Dark Shadows, but there is very little I think Depp couldn’t handle, and this sounds well within his remarkable range, whether they decide to go re-imagined or an impression of the old one. ETA: **thirdwarning** , have you seen _Finding Neverland_? “Understated elegance” pretty well covers it. And remember _Don Juan DeMarco_? Depp can smolder as well as camp. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2007, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/11 "2007-07-29T13:43:14Z")
Count me in the group that thinks Depp can pull this off. I will see it. ---
**Author:** ![LiveOnAPlane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@LiveOnAPlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LiveOnAPlane)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2007, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/12 "2007-07-29T21:42:17Z")
Guess I’m tellng my age here, but that was the one soap opera I actually watched in its original run and I mostly loved it. I saw it evolve from at first, an “sorta-ghost” show right into werewolves/vampires/ etc. Even got myself a Quentin Collins very-wide watch band. Could Johnny Depp pull off the original Barnabas? No way in hell, IMHO. But…could he bring a fairly faithful new interpretation of Barnabas to the screen? I have to say, Heck, Yes! It will be interesting, to say the least. …And I am SURE it will be light years better than the first Dark Shadows movie they did way back then. ---
**Author:** ![Tinkertoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f19dbf/32.png) [@Tinkertoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tinkertoy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2007, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/13 "2007-07-30T00:44:04Z")
[QUOTE=Gukumatz] I’m a Depp fan, but not a US TV fan, so would anyone mind explaining who Barnabas Collins is and why Depp isn’t right? [/QUOTE] Search “You Tube” for Barnabas Collins there are lots of film clips there. Also there is lots of info [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Shadows) and [here](http://www.collinwood.net/) . ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2007, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/14 "2007-07-30T01:27:43Z")
[QUOTE=Gukumatz] I’m a Depp fan, but not a US TV fan, so would anyone mind explaining who Barnabas Collins is and why Depp isn’t right? [/QUOTE] Years before I was born there was a strange tv show. It was like a soap opera, but it featured a vampire named Barnabas Collins. To me it had an almost un-followable plotline, but my mother was one of the kids who watched it after school every day, and still likes watching the reruns when they’re on sci fi. Personally I can’t see Depp chewing the scenery like the orginial, but hey, why not give it a shot. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2007, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/johnny-depp-as-barnabas-collins/413486/15 "2007-07-30T02:01:43Z")
Depp has played such a wide variety of characters that I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt…even though \*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory \* sucked hard.