Johnny Puff: Secret Mission featuring Johnny Depp as the voice of a puffin secures distribution for release

As Johnny Depp attempts to make his comeback after a very public defamation trial, the Pirates of the Caribbean star returned to Cannes with his new film Jeanne Du Barry. Additionally, Depp will be lending his pipes to a new animated feature titled Johnny Puff: Secret Mission, in which he’ll be playing the titular character of Johnny Puff. The new film is inspired by the Puffins series and is directed by Nestor F. Dennis and produced by Iervolino & Lady Bacardi Entertainment, who is behind the new Michael Mann Enzo Ferrari biopic, Ferrari, starring Adam Driver.

Deadline has now reported that prior to the 2024 premiere, Johnny Puff: Secret Mission has signed deals with international distributors for its global release. The Johnny Depp animated puffin film has been sold to Little Brother, which will distribute to Germany, AK Entertainment, which will release the film in Korea, Melies is the distributor for Spain, NOS Audiovisuais will release the animated movie in Portugal, FrontRow will distribute to the Middle East and Wediacorp distributes the movie in Turkey. The film has secured these deals ahead of the American Film Market, which will be in Los Angeles later this month. Discussions are currently underway for a North American distributor set for a first quarter release in 2024.

The synopsis, according to Deadline, reads, “Johnny Puff helps his Puffin friends as they go on a secret mission to save their beloved village Taigasville from the evil plans of villain Otto von Walrus.” Additionally, “In the Puffins franchise, the characters adopt an idiosyncratic dialect, which Depp has previously described as a mesh of his own voice and real Puffin sounds. The movie’s life lessons include recycling, environmental protection, and team spirit.”

Deadline has also released new stills from the animated film featuring Johnny Depp as well as a new trailer.

Johnny Puff: Secret Mission is produced by Cristobal Rodriguez and Nestor F. Dennis at Melies Producciones, in participation with U.S. companies WWPS and Evolution. Italian firm Iuvit is handling sales on the project.

Depp’s biggest franchise at Disney, Pirates of the Caribbean, has been trying to reboot for some time now with multiple ideas by different screenwriters. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer is hopeful he can bring Depp back in some fashion, although his former Pirates co-star, Vince Lozano, doubts his return to the high seas.