All you need to know about Johnny Depp and one of his most iconic and bizarre real estate purchases: an entire French village!(Image Credit: Instagram)

Years ago, Johnny Depp embraced the relaxing life of the South of France a little too well. In 2001, he ended up buying an entire French village! Located near Saint-Tropez, the abandoned 19th-century space consisted of a lot of small structures and a main home area. The actor at the time had bought the space to act as a vacation area and sanctuary.

In 2001, Johnny Depp invested in buying and restoring a French village

In 2001, according to a Daily Mail report, the actor bought an abandoned French Village that is situated in a commune 17 miles from Saint-Tropez. The 19th century village had been abandoned a long time ago, and when Depp bought it, the space needed quite a lot of construction work to revive its beauty. Although the actor never disclosed how much he paid for the village, he spent around USD 10 million on its reconstruction.

The 'Pirates of the Caribbean' star invested a lot of money in renovating the abandoned property. From creating a skate park, swimming pools, and even a pirate-themed wine cellar. (YouTube)

The estate, which spans across 37 acres of land, has a main home that is worth USD 43 million, along with a gym, a chapel, a staff home, a workshop, a restaurant and bar, and around six guest houses. Along with that, according to Gentlemen’s Journal, the property also has its own underground wine cellar made in the form of a cave! This cellar was made as an ode to his ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ character. The main house itself consists of 15 bedrooms and 14 bathrooms, filled with rustic decor and stone flooring and walls. He also has a personal art studio, which he uses for painting and displaying his art collection. The studio is surrounded by exposed timber beams and rustic stone. Some of the other recreational spots on the property also include two swimming pools and a skating park.

Johnny Depp created his own private dining experience in the Townsquare area

The actor recreated the entire Townsquare area of the small village, which he transformed into his own luxury dining area. He invested in creating private dining restaurants to give visitors an exclusive experience of fine dining in the South of France, with private dining spaces that mimic the style of an actual bistro. Depp named one of the restaurants in the Townsquare area as Chez Marceline, while he built another space in front of the restaurant called Blanchisserie, which translates to laundry.

Johnny Depp has been trying to sell his French estate for years now

The actor listed the estate for sale in 2015, with the first asking price set at USD 27 million. Again in 2021, the star listed it on Sotheby’s Realty, where the price was first listed at USD 63 million, and again in 2022 for USD 55 million. In 2024, various reports suggested that the sale of Depp’s estate was paused for renovations. Since then, there has been no update about the actor’s property.