"I'm just a normal person," Lily-Rose Depp says about herself. Uh, it might be a bit
hard to believe. Especially when we're talking about someone who grew up playing Barbies
with her godfather Marilyn Manson, attending cozy dinners with Karl Lagerfeld, and hanging
out with Natalie Portman. Wait, we probably missed the most essential connection…
A few years ago, Lily-Rose Depp was only known as a teenage daughter of her famous parents
– Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis. Today, Lily-Rose herself is the star of the big screen
and a professional model.
Johnny indeed has a lot of reasons to be proud of his daughter! But is he proud of HIS role
in their relationship? Was he next to her when she nearly died? Did he indeed learn
about some important events in her life from social media? Keep watching the video to figure
it out, and don't forget to subscribe to Rumour Juice YouTube channel. We always have the
most exciting stories about your favourite celebrities!
Lily-Rose Depp was born in 1999. The eldest child of two Hollywood A-listers, Lily-Rose
was in the spotlight from the very beginning, even though Johnny and Vanessa did their best
to protect her from the press attention. In general, they managed to succeed in it, but
not always.
When Lily-Rose was 7, the news broke she was hospitalized with a serious illness, while
her father was (quote) "too busy filming Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street". Was
it slander? Well, kind of. Johnny indeed was spending days and nights on the set at London's
Pinewood Studios. However, he initially went to London together with Vanessa and their
two children to be able to spend more time with the family. When the actor realized his
daughter was hospitalized, he canceled all the working plans and rushed to Great Ormond
Street Hospital. It turned out that Lily-Rose's kidney shut down after she suffered food poisoning.
Depp refused to return to the set of Sweeney Todd, forcing the filming to be stopped. An
insider source said: "Everyone gasped when we were given the real reason for her illness.
It was touch and go for a while." The infection landed the young Depp in the hospital for
three weeks. Johnny and Vanessa spent days and nights by her bed. Both refused to move
until Lily-Rose began to pull through. Johnny must have been going through hell! And media
attention made this hell even worse. The actor revealed recently that back in 2007, the UK
tabloid The Sun illegally hacked his phone and extracted his private information. The
tabloid was the first media to get their hands on the details of Lily-Rose’s disease – much
earlier than her parents made any public statements. The reporters were aware of the nature of
Lily-Rose's illness and the name of the hospital where she was being treated. They also knew
that Johnny was entering the hospital through the staff entrance., and so the reporters
were waiting for him there. Depp revealed that this vulnerable period of his daughter's
life became a media circus, and it deeply affected him. It didn’t get any better when
the actor understood how exactly the information was obtained by The Sun. He didn't know how
to relieve anger and helplessness he felt at the time.
After Lily-Rose was successfully treated for the illness, Depp donated $2 million to the
Great Ormond Street Hospital. Moreover, he once appeared there dressed up like Jack The
Sparrow to cheer up the youngest patients of the hospital.
Was it the end of the darkest times for the Depp-Paradis family? Well, yeah, despite maybe
the fact that four years later, this family was history. Having never wed, Depp and Paradis
announced their breakup in June 2012, after 14 years of being together. Depp told Rolling
Stone some time later: "The last couple years have been a bit bumpy. At times, certainly
unpleasant, but that's the nature of breakups, I guess, especially when there are kiddies
involved."
He also discussed the birth of Lily-Rose in the cover story, mentioning that (quote) “this
beautiful little creature helped him to understand what it was all for.” Maybe he exaggerated
a bit? We sincerely doubt it. Obviously, watching parents break up is never a fun thing for
a child. However, Lily-Rose Depp has never publicly mentioned that Vanessa and Johnny's
split was a severe blow for her. She, on the contrary, praises her mum and dad for "keeping
her grounded." She maintained a strong relationship with both of her parents and spent her childhood
between Los Angeles and Paris, where Johnny and Vanessa resided after the breakup. In
a 2019 interview Lily-Rose emphasized, however, that she was raised in Hollywood by her father.
The actress was happy to discover both American and French cultures while growing up: "To
me, those two cultures are so deeply ingrained in who I am and how I grew up. It's two things
I feel very connected to." Before you ask: yes, she's bilingual, and she speaks both
English and French perfectly. It allows the young actress to participate in French films,
as well as in American productions. While some famous daughters use their parents' fame
to their advantage, Lily-Rose is way more humble. She works hard to make a name for
herself without relying on either of her star parents.
"My parents weren't very strict. They've always trusted me to be independent and make my own
decisions. There wasn't really ­anything to rebel against."
Lily-Rose, of course, looks up to them. When she was younger, Lily-Rose dreamed of being
a singer like her mum, but one school talent show dashed those hopes. Then her friend's
dad, Clerks director Kevin Smith, reached out and offered her a small cameo alongside
his daughter Harley Quinn in a 2014 horror Tusk.
​ "That's when I really realized: ​'Wow, I
love this.' [...] Now I know that this is what I want to do forever."
In one of the interviews, Johnny Depp mentioned that Lily-Rose becoming an actress was never
his dream or desire for her, but he still supports her decision.
"Acting is what she enjoys doing, and it's her passion and it's where she ended up. And
she's got the goods – she can certainly deliver."
We completely agree with you, Johnny! The young actress was highly acclaimed for one
of her first big projects – French film Planetarium, where she played a lead alongside
Natalie Portman. They portrayed two sisters, and for a reason: just look at them! Lily-Rose
and Portman are two peas in a pod. And they both became popular actresses while still
being teenagers! However, Lily-Rose's professional path has always had another important branch
– modeling. In 2015 she became an ambassador for fashion house Chanel. Around the same
time, the actress left a private Los Angeles school before completing her senior year.
Lily-Rose explained it as follows: "My parents both left school when they were 15, so they
can't really say anything." Young Depp decided to do so to focus on her acting career. She
also mentioned that she had never thought of university as her goal, and she had always
wanted to work and to be independent. The actress is aware of all the pros that come
with the privilege of saying, "My father is Johnny Depp," but she sees enough cons in
this situation, as well.
"Honestly, to me there's also something even a little bit harder about it, because the
expectations are so insanely high."
Lily-Rose, however, has met all the expectations so far. By the age of 20, she became a coveted
actress and a high-fashion model. While some enjoyed watching the starlet in bloom, others
raised alarm over her excessive slenderness. Fans feared their beloved actress might be
suffering from anorexia. As it turned out, they were not mistaken. Ms. Depp admitted
she used to be anorexic for a long time, adding that critical comments in social media about
her appearance depressed her. She told French Elle: "I have spent a lot of energy fighting
the disease. [...] All who are familiar with this problem, know how difficult it is to
return to a normal life." Lily-Rose also mentions she has a long list of insecurities, but,
thanks to her mother, her body has never been on that list. The actress credits Vanessa
Paradis for helping her build a positive body image from a very young age. And what about
Johnny Depp? Has he also contributed to his daughter's self-acceptance? We guess the answer
is yes.
When Lily-Rose was 16, she publicly declared herself to be sexually fluid. It caused a
sensation, as some thought she doesn't consider herself as 100 percent heterosexual. Johnny
Depp wasn't surprised by such a statement.
"She’s got thousands of followers on social media, and they were all taken completely
by surprise. But not me. I already knew because she tells me everything. We're super-tight,
and I'm very proud of our relationship."
Johnny described his daughter as one of the smartest human beings he has ever met adding
that he trusts young Depp in whichever choices she's making.
Back in 2018 Depp was photographed kissing actor Timothée Chalamet in Italy. It was
their kiss that launched a bunch of memes – and also created quite a few headlines.
Lily-Rose and Timothee met on the set of Netflix's The King. Their alleged relationship was the
subject of rumours for over a year. In April 2020, the two reportedly called it quits.
Lily-Rose never commented on that.
"I don't talk about my family, I don't talk about my friends, I don't talk about what
nail polish I have on my toes… I don't talk about anything, because nothing is anybody's
business."
Well, her truth. Anyway, we already know one crucial thing about the actress. Despite the
split, her parents raised a beautiful, talented, and smart daughter, and they turned out to
be very supportive in most of the troubles she went through.
"Being a dad has given me great strength, great perspective, a great calm. More than
anything – I love being with my family."
Okay, Johnny. Now we know that you meant it!