Johnny Depp is his own man. That's for sure. You can't tell him what to do. You can't tell him that his movies are bad, and you can't make him feel sad by talking about box-office figures. Barring The Tourist, the Hollywood actor makes the movies that he wants to make.

Johnny DeppJohnny Depp [L] and Armie Hammer [R] Star in The Lone Ranger

He was keen to tell the story of his good pal Hunter S. Thompson and so made The Rum Diaries. He was a big fan of Dark Shadows and so made a big-screen adaptation with Tim Burton. He's always wanted to play Tonto and now finds himself playing the Lone Ranger's sidekick in a huge budget Disney movie - which, probably for all the wrong reasons, is the most talked about film of 2013.

The movie has been slaughtered by US critics though garnered fonder reviews in the UK. It's all the same to Depp, given he never watches his own movies.

Speaking to the Independent ahead of the film's release this weekend, the actor explained: "I made a choice a long time ago, that I was better off not watching my films, which is a drag because you miss out on a lot of your friends' incredible work. 

But I feel like it would just harm me. I would rather stay as ignorant as possible about the result of anything because once you're done playing that character, it's really not your business anymore."

Johnny DeppJohnny Depp Plays Tonto in 'The Lone Ranger'

That means although Depp has spared himself Alice in Wonderland, The Tourist and The Lone Ranger, he's also missed himself playing some pretty cool parts, not least Captain Jack Sparrow in the early Pirates of the Caribbean movies. 

"Actually, somebody once put together a reel containing bits of different films I had done," he added ".and when I saw the characters line up in a row like that, I thought it was amazing that I was able to get away with it."

"Truly. I am just amazed that I still get jobs. I am shocked," he concluded.

The Lone RangerThe Lone Ranger Has Stunning Visuals, Though Critics Were Not Impressed With The Movie As A Whole

Depp is currently shooting Wally Pfister's action-drama Transcendence, with Morgan Freeman and Kate Mara. It follows two leading computer scientists who work towards their goal of Technological Singularity as a radical anti-technology organization fights to prevent them from creating a world where computers can transcend the abilities of the human brain.

It all sounds pretty interest, though Depp has already put pen to paper on another Pirates movie, and Alice in Wonderland 2. Sigh. 

Watch the Lone Ranger trailer here: