Johnny Depp Cast in Wes Andersons Next Film -- Will He Get His Mojo Back?

There is little denying Johnny Depp's dominance at the box office in the children and teen markets. Whether he's cast as Captain Jack Sparrow in the big-budget Disney franchise "Pirates of the Caribbean" or as one of the iconic characters of youth literature in "Alice in Wonderland" or "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," film studios need do little more than open up their coffers and let the treasure sail in by the shipload.

However, the three-time Academy Award-nominated actor's latest films for adults have cast off with little critical fanfare, only to capsize and sink into a sea of debt.

This year's "Dark Shadows" captured a disappointing $77.4 million domestically and another $156.8 million worldwide. However, Warner Bros. shelled out a reported $150 million to make the film , plus the cost of an expensive marketing campaign. After splitting receipts with the theaters, the studio will be looking to finagle some sort of streaming and DVD miracle to get back into the black.

The "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" star's latest homage to long-time pal and gonzo journalist, Hunter S. Thompson, was an even bigger catastrophe. "Rum Diary" managed to bank just $5 million in its opening week. It eventually captured a measly $13.1 million domestically and an additional $10.8 million internationally -- making it one of the 10 biggest flops of 2011.

And we're not the only ones to notice the once surefire actor's slide.

Despite raking in over a billion dollars worldwide with "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," Warner Bros. put the brakes on director Rob Marshall's most recent collaboration with the "Donnie Brasco" actor. The swashbuckling duo were set ! to redo Dashiell Hammett's detective novel "The Thin Man" -- which inspired a number of films throughout the 30s and 40s, as well as a television series in the 1950s. Deadline reported that budgetary concerns played a factor in the studio's decision to put the film on hold.

"The Lone Ranger" -- the 49-year-old actor's other collaboration with "Pirates of the Caribbean" alumni, director Gore Verbinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer -- has also been plagued with budgetary troubles. Disney stepped in twice to bring costs down, force rewrites, cut scenes, and ask the three principles to forgo their usual upfront fees.

However, runaway budgets and a few box office bombs aren't the only problems for 'The Libertine.' He hasn't hit a homerun with reviewers since 2007's "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street."

News that Depp would take part in critical darling and hipster wunderkind Wes Anderson's next film, "The Grand Budapest Hotel," couldn't have come at a better time for the actor. With filming for "The Lone Ranger" wrapping this week and "The Thin Man" reboot on hold, the "Finding Neverland" star had little on his plate till the fifth installment in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise -- which has yet to be scheduled.

A fresh role and some media praise could help return the talent to being a regular fixture at Hollywood awards shows, and remind adults that it's okay to see a Johnny Depp film without the kids in tow.

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