It’s just a fact: Cancel culture doesn’t really exist. Yes, sometimes celebrities are made to put out half-hearted, mealy-mouthed apologies or are sent to the “naughty” zone for a few months, but on the whole, you can sexually assault people and talk about how you’re a massive transphobe and still win major industry awards. If we’re being honest, the only two people to really be “canceled” in recent years are Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby, who both had to literally assault dozens of women before facing consequences. And, now, to prove that truism further, we’re seeing troubled star Johnny Depp being rewarded with a multi-million-dollar cologne deal, despite all of the horrific allegations against him, from multiple sources.
Depp has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons in recent months, from the horrific circus around his split with Amber Heard after a tumultuous and abusive relationship (where, despite what the internet will tell you, it seems both acted horrifically and irrationally), to his recent partnership with a country that beheads journalists who are critical of the ruling classes. But, because business executives seem incapable of understanding there’s more than one celebrity to front their products, Depp has once again landed on his feet with this new cologne deal.
Twitter users were not exactly gushing when discussing Dior’s latest move, with many discussing the credible domestic violence allegations against Depp, while others mentioned that his most recent look isn’t exactly what you’d imagine when you think of a classy fragrance. And while it isn’t great to shame someone for their physical appearance, there is something strange about a man as scruffy as Depp has been in recent months being the face of a cologne brand for one of the largest fashion houses in the world, who are notorious for having a clean-cut and “exclusive” aesthetic.
As already discussed, Depp isn’t the first, nor last, celebrity to have owned up to doing terrible things yet still have a successful career after the fact. Frankly, what most people call “cancel culture” is nothing more than people pointing out that maybe some people shouldn’t be given jobs after they’ve proven themselves to be despicable. Sometimes, it’s even just a famous person receiving criticism for publicly expressing heinous views. In fact, numerous people have gone on to have the most financially successful parts of their careers after being “canceled.” And it’s not just the entertainment business, either.
Prominent U.K. liberal critic Nick Cohen managed to continue writing for two of the most progressive papers in the U.K. (the Observer and the Guardian) for well over a decade despite a litany of credible accusations of sexual assault against him. While his columns were finally suspended last year, he still writes for numerous other U.K. outlets thanks to his friends in the industry — and the fact nobody really takes sexual assault seriously. Others have claimed his ban was actually because of an argument over trans rights, which seems pretty unlikely as the U.K. media and political class are patently and aggressively anti-trans.
Of course, it’s not all about actual crimes. Some people are allegedly canceled for their views. And, while there are plenty of robust and useful debates to be had about old social media posts and the use of language in certain contexts, the fact is that even those who undoubtedly go beyond the pale end up suffering very little, with many even using the notion of being “canceled” to further boost their careers, usually on right-wing podcasts run by free-speech grifters. Heck, even Kanye West is still getting some media appearances, and he went so far off the rails, they invented a new train for him.
While it’s always been the case that the rich and famous can get away with a lot more than the average person and still retain their wealth and status, in the age of social media, there was some hope that members of the public drawing attention to immoral behavior might mean actual consequences. However, this has been far from the case. Now, it seems, you can be as brash as you want and all that will happen is other bigots will come to your aid. Like so many parts of the internet, the worst elements of humanity seem to be winning out.
The biggest example of this is undoubtedly Harry Potter writer J.K. Rowling. Rowling has more money than some countries, so financially speaking, she was never likely to lose out, no matter how unhinged she became. However, despite her outrageous, dangerous, and often vicious attacks against trans-identifying people, her work is still being adapted for stage and screen, and merchandise with her creations’ names on it still flies off the shelves. When it comes to Harry Potter, that’s not too surprising, as the franchise is so massive, it has a life of its own. But her (not-so-well-written) Strike series is also being adapted for the small screen in the U.K., despite the latest book in the series having some overtly transphobic storylines, and the fact that her pseudonym (Robert Galbraith) was also the same name as a man who pioneered aspects of gay conversion therapy.
With that all said, there are some people whose careers at least suffer somewhat when they say and do offensive things. Gina Carano, a former fan favorite in The Mandalorian, lost her spot after some damaging and dangerous comments where she compared conservatives to holocaust victims, but she still is getting some work — albeit in terrible films. And, Ezra Miller’s erratic behavior has at least led some people at DC to consider not having them return as the Flash (although James Gunn doesn’t seem to have too much to say about all the burglary and harassment). And Jonathan Majors is likely to be recast as Kang in the MCU, although his team is trying to argue he did nothing wrong, so we’ll have to see how that plays out.
Depp, however, seems to be sitting pretty with his new deal, and it doesn’t seem like that’s going to be changing any time soon. Cancel culture, indeed.