Johnny Depp took some time away from the set of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" to visit a children's hospital on Tuesday in Australia. One of the children at the hospital, Max Bennet, told ABC Australia, he thought Depp's costume "was pretty cool." He also said, "He tied a knot in his hair to make a beard, that was my favorite part."
Max's mom told the news outlet the actor was going around the hospital, visiting different rooms, and seeing the kids who were unable to leave their beds. Depp hugged the kids and took selfies with them, and even when people were trying to move him along, Max's mother said "he kept on coming back." The "Into the Woods" star has visited hospitals dressed in his pirate garb before, and has even admitted to traveling with his costume for that sole purpose.
This isn't the first time the famously gruff actor has done something of the sort - it's clear he has a soft spot for kids. In addition to hospitals, he's dropped in on his youngest fans at schools, and he even told E! News in 2013 that he always keeps his Jack Sparrow costume handy because the character is so recognizable and loved by kids of all ages.
Depp has generally chosen roles which he found interesting, rather than those he thought would succeed at the box office. Critics have often described Depp's characters as "iconic loners." Depp has referred to some of his less-successful films as "studio-defined failures" and "box office poison", and said that he thought the studios neither understood the films nor did a good job of marketing them. Depp has collaborated with director and close friend Tim Burton in films, beginning with Edward Scissorhands in 1990. His next role with Burton was in the 1994 film Ed Wood.