Johnny Depp Will Return to Acting Someday ... Focused on Directing Amid New Chapter

Johnny Depp hasn't retired from acting, despite the fact he's currently giving all his attention to directing right now ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Johnny tell TMZ ... the Oscar nominee isn't done with performing in front of the camera, but his current passion has been directing the biopic "Modi," as he's been very happy being back in the director's chair.

The forthcoming drama about the life of Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani stars Riccardo Scamarcio, Sally Phillips and Al Pacino ... and the film has already gotten great buzz. It's his first time directing a feature film since 1997's "The Brave" ... which he also co-starred in with Marlon Brando.

'JOKER 2' COMPARISONS TO 'LA LA LAND' ALL PART OF FILMMAKING!!! No Biggie, Says Art Director

The new trailer for "Joker: Folie à Deux" is stirring up some buzz among moviegoers and some filmmakers, who think some scenes very closely echo the musical "La La Land."

Austin Gorg, the art director of Damien Chazelle’s 2016 hit, "La La Land," hasn't really noticed the comparisons himself ... but he tells TMZ any similarities are no big deal 'cause filmmaking often involves borrowing a bit of inspiration from other people's work.

Austin reckons the Todd Phillips-directed 'Joker 2' drawing comparisons to Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone's flick is likely just a case of both films tapping into well-worn cinematic tropes explored by many movies -- as he points out, "La La Land" was essentially a love letter to classic films, even using sets from old-school musicals.

'Fury' Movie Prop Tanks Up For Auction

Prop tanks from the 2014 war film "Fury" are about to hit the auction block, and they're expected to fetch tens of thousands.

Tracks & Trade -- an auction platform for unique historical military vehicles -- has listed the 2 tanks featured in the movie starring Brad Pitt and Shia LaBeouf, which were used in place of actual WWII vehicles during filming to prevent potential damage to the authentic ones.

One of the tanks listed is called the "Sherman," while the other is named the "Tiger" -- the latter which had limited gear change opportunities.

Sydney Sweeney Off-Key in Key West ... Performing Karaoke Classics

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GIVING THEIR ALL
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Sydney Sweeney and fellow actress Hadley Robinson had a euphoric night out in Key West ... as the duo belted out some karaoke gold.

The "Anyone But You" costars hit up The Backyard Bar in Key West, FL Saturday night ... and what they may have lacked in vocals, they definitely made up for in flair!

Hadley kicked things off with a spirited rendition of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" ... followed by a group performance of Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline."

Francis Ford Coppola's Wife Eleanor Coppola Dead at 87 ... Filmed 'Apocalypse Now' Documentary

Eleanor Coppola -- the filmmaker and wife of famed director Francis Ford Coppola -- has died ... according to a statement made by her family.

The matriarch of the famous film family passed away Friday at her home in Rutherford, CA ... a small town in Napa Valley. They did not give a cause of death.

Eleanor met Francis in 1962 while working as an assistant art director on his first movie, "Dementia 13" ... and the couple started dating.

Eleanor got pregnant shortly thereafter, married Coppola in Las Vegas and gave birth to their first son, Gian-Carlo.

Michael Jackson Biopic Gonna Be a 'Long' Flick W/ 30+ Songs ... Will Do His Life Justice

Michael Jackson's biopic promises to be a pretty long film -- that's what the film's key producer is saying anyway, and it's gonna be chock-full of all his greatest hits.

Graham King made a surprise appearance at Lionsgate's CinemaCon panel Wednesday, where he talked about the forthcoming "Michael" movie that chronicles the late singer's life ... and they even played a first-look trailer at the event.

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The footage for that has yet to surface publicly, but word is ... it looks pretty dang good.

Margot Robbie Producing a Monopoly Movie ... New Toy/Game Expert???

Margot Robbie is the go-to gal for toy-inspired movies after "Barbie" ... this time passing go and collecting laughs with the movie adaptation of the classic board game, "Monopoly."

The actress and her production company, LuckyChap, are teaming up with toy giant Hasbro Entertainment and Lionsgate to take a trip around the board and bring it to life for the big screen ... news that just came out Wednesday at CinemaCon.

The "Monopoly" movie concept has been brewing for a while now, with actor Kevin Hart and director Tim Story reportedly attached to the project back in 2019.

'Romeo & Juliet' New Lead Francesca Facing Racial Abuse ... 800 Artists Sign Letter of Support

Hundreds of Black and non-binary artists are rallying around Francesca Amewudah-Rivers in the wake of the racial abuse she's facing since being cast opposite Tom Holland in "Romeo & Juliet."

An open letter -- initiated by Susan Wokoma and Somalia Nonyé Seaton -- was signed by almost 900 performers and published Wednesday in The Guardian ... where they praised Francesca as a rising star in London's West End theater district.

However, the note also addressed the racially charged abuse Francesca faced after being revealed as the romantic lead in the new production of the Shakespeare classic.

Sylvester Stallone's Tulsa King Actor Accused Of Making Disparaging Remarks ... Director Denies It Ever Happened

The casting director of "Tulsa King" claims she quit after Sylvester Stallone insulted the extras on the set, but the director tells TMZ no such insults were hurled and she quit because she was called out for not doing her job.

Casting Supervisor Rose Locke reportedly claimed Sly and the director called the extras "ugly, "tub of lard" and referred to one actor as a "fat guy with cane." A Facebook page for the Atlanta-based actors claims the man with the cane said the comment "hurt his soul."

According to a Facebook post, Locke also claimed Sly said, "Bring in pretty young girls to be around me."

MEL GIBSON RDJ Had Guts Sticking Up for Me ... Post-2006 DUI Arrest

Mel Gibson's infamous arrest and antisemitic tirade in 2006 left him blacklisted for years ... but he's now giving thanks to pal Robert Downey Jr. for throwing his legacy a lifeline.

The actor/director gave his thanks to RDJ in a new Esquire interview profiling the recent Oscar winner -- and he detailed how Rob was one of the only A-listers back in the day who were willing to give him a second chance

MG says, "One time, I got into a bit of a sticky situation where it kind of ended my career. I was drunk in the back of a police car and I said some stupid s**t, and all of a sudden: blacklisted. I’m the poster boy for canceled."

Jackie Chan Doing Fine at 70 ... After Concern for His Health

Jackie Chan is assuring fans he's doing well after some photos of him looking downtrodden sparked concerns about his health.

The action movie star shared the health update while celebrating his milestone 70th birthday on Sunday. Alongside a series of throwbacks, the action star reflected on his 6 decades in the movie industry, and confirmed he has no plans to retire.

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He added ... "Not so long ago, a lot of friends saw some recent photos of me on the internet, and they were all concerned about my health. I want to take this opportunity to let everyone know, don’t worry! It’s just a character appearance for my latest movie. The character requires me to have white hair, white beard and look old."

Bradley Cooper Nearly Dropped Out of 'The Pines' ... Last-Minute Changes

Bradley Cooper's IMDb's full of memorable roles ... but, he nearly pulled out of one incredible performance -- 'cause last-minute script changes gave him the ick.

The actor apparently nearly dropped out of "The Place Beyond the Pines" after director Derek Cianfrance says he and screenwriter Darius Marder rewrote every word weeks before starting principal photography.

Cianfrance told IndieWire he gave the new script to Cooper ... who called him up and said he wasn't interested in the new direction they took the film.

Woody Allen Romance of Filmmaking Gone ... New Movie Could Be Last

Woody Allen's disillusioned with film ... saying the romantic days of movie past are gone -- and, he might be hanging up his director cap.

The controversial director spoke with AirMail for an interview published Saturday ... and lamented the current state of the film industry while promoting his 50th feature-length film "Coup de Chance."

When asked if he cares about distribution issues surrounding his films, Allen says he doesn't really pay attention to it ... moving on from the movie as soon as he's edited the final version.

Nikki Bilderback Bring On 'Bring It On' Sequel ... If OG Cast Comes Back

A "Bring It On" sequel seems more possible by the day with Kirsten Dunst even talking about it ... and another cast member told us she'll don her pom poms again ... on one condition.

Nikki Bilderback -- who played Whitney in the hit 2000 movie -- tells TMZ ... she'd absolutely do a sequel provided it comes with a good script and the other ladies sign on.

NB says the movie needs to hold its own because so many generations of fans love the film. She says she gets fans from 12 to 50 telling her how much they love the flick ... and she doesn't want to let them down.

Suki Waterhouse, Robert Pattinson First Look at Our Baby!!!

Suki Waterhouse and Robert Pattinson have two new titles – mom and dad!

The English actors just had their first child together and Suki was so excited that she posted a photo of herself holding the little one wrapped in a blanket on her Instagram page Thursday.

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In the caption, Suki wrote, "Welcome to the world angel ❤️," but she didn't reveal any details about her cutey pie – not even the gender of the infant.

MOLLY RINGWALD I Conceived My Kid at Studio 54 ... In Dressing Room, No Less

Molly Ringwald had a night to remember back in the day ... because she says her daughter was conceived at the famed Studio 54 -- albeit, well after its heyday.

The actress shared the intimate deets with The Times, saying her daughter Mathilda came to be through a sex session she had with her husband Panio Gianopoulos -- explaining they banged in a dressing at Studio 54 while it was being used for the Broadway show 'Cabaret.'

Molly says this happened toward the end of her run with the production in '03 -- and it sounds like part of the reason was because she was getting a little old to have children.