Johnny Depp jokes about assassinating Donald Trump

Impact

Actor Johnny Depp joked about assassinating President Donald Trump during an appearance at the Glastonbury Festival in England's southwest Somerset County on Thursday.

"When was the last time an actor assassinated a president?" Depp said before a screening of The Libertinethe second film of that name he's starred in. "It's been a while, and maybe it's time."

The comments were an apparent reference to John Wilkes Booth, the actor who shot and killed President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in 1865.

Depp claimed he's "not an actor," but someone who "[lies] for a living."

"By the way, this is going to be in the press and it'll be horrible," Depp said. "It's just a question. I'm not insinuating anything."

Nevertheless, Depp faced immediate backlash for his remarks — made a little over a week after a gunman opened fire on Republicans at a Virginia baseball field, severely wounding Rep. Steve Scalise.

Comedian Kathy Griffin faced similar controversy for a photo shoot in which she posed with a likeness of Trump's bloody, severed head. Griffin apologized for the gory photo shoot, which Trump called "sick."

Depp later apologized for the remarks, describing it as a "bad joke" attempted in "poor taste."

“It did not come out as intended, and I intended no malice," Depp said in a statement to People. "I was only trying to amuse, not to harm anyone.”

Depp's Trump assassination joke comes as newly released documents indicate the 54-year-old actor's managers were apparently aware of his alleged abuse of his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard.

June 23, 2017, 3:40 p.m. Eastern: This story has been updated.