Johnny Depp In Financial Turmoil And On The Verge Of Bankruptcy?
Johnny Depp has been on a spending frenzy in the wake of his divorce with Amber Heard. After burning through millions of dollars last year alone, the actor is reportedly on the verge of financial ruin. How did Depp spend his fortune?
Daily Mail reports that Depp spent over £21 million in 2016. Every month, the Pirates of the Caribbean star spent an outlandish £24,000 on wine, £238,600 on staff salaries, and £159,000 for his assortment of private jets.
The actor has never been shy about spending money. In the past, Depp dished out £8 million on art and expensive guitars, £14 million on a yacht, and even spent £2.4 million to shoot a friend’s ashes out of a cannon into space. He also owns several estates around the world and a fleet of luxury cars.
The excess spending was revealed in Depp’s lawsuit against former his managers. The actor is suing The Management Group (TMG) for mishandling his fortune. In response, TMG claims that Depp’s “voracious” spending is the reason he’s in financial turmoil.
According to USA Today, Depp believes TMG did not properly inform him about the state of his finances. He also claims they took out loans in his name and did not file his taxes before the deadline, which ended up costing him over £4.5 million.
“Mr. Depp is one of the most sought after and highly paid actors in the world,” Depp’s lawyer, Matthew Kanny, explained. “He is also the victim of the gross misconduct of his business managers who collected tens of millions of dollars of contingent fees, purportedly based on an oral contract, all at Mr. Depp’s expense.”
To make matters worse, Johnny Depp did not sign a prenuptial agreement with Heard. The couple announced their divorce in 2015 and later settled out of court for an undisclosed amount of money. According to The Hollywood Reporter, TMG also claims that Depp owes them £3.3 million.
“Depp lived an ultra-extravagant lifestyle that often cost more than [$2 million] (£1.6 million) per month to maintain, which he simply could not afford. His voracious spending consistently outpaced his earnings,” court documents read. “Depp and Depp alone is fully responsible for any financial turmoil he finds himself in today.”
At the same time, Deadline reports that TMG kept Depp informed of the situation and did everything in their power to help curb his spending. In the end, their efforts were not enough and Depp is currently on the brink of bankruptcy.
“For years, TMG repeatedly informed Depp and Dembrowski and personal lawyer, Jake Bloom, that Depp was living beyond his means, and urged him to spend less and to sell certain expensive but unnecessary assets to repay loans and pay his taxes and living expenses,” an official statement from TMG read.
The document also revealed that Depp took out a loan from Bank of America in 2015 in order to stay on top of his bills. He was even urged to sell some of his properties and collections to help make ends meet.
TMG’s lawyer, Michael Kump, continued, “Over 30 years, TMG has never been sued by a client,” he shared. “The only reason Depp filed this lawsuit was to interfere with TMG’s ongoing efforts to be repaid on the loan they had made to bail him out. TMG worked day and night to professionally manage Depp’s business affairs, adhering to the highest standards.”
Depp has not commented on his financial situation or his outlandish spending habits. Depp currently has a team of lawyers that are handling the case. The Los Angeles court is expected to take a harder look at the case later this year.
Tell us! Do you think Johnny Depp was living beyond his means? Let us know in the comments below.
[Featured Image by Atsushi Tomura/Getty Images]
