Johnny Depp has issued an apology just hours after he made a controversial comment about US President Donald Trump, asking, "When was the last time an actor assassinated a president?"
"It did not come out as intended, and I intended no malice. I was only trying to amuse, not to harm anyone," the actor said in a statement to People on Friday.
Depp's joke was made while introducing his movie The Libertine at the Glastonbury music festival in England.
It started when he asked festival-goers: "Can you bring Trump here?"
Responding to subsequent jeers, he said: "You misunderstand completely. When was the last time an actor assassinated a President?"
Depp then added: "I want to qualify, I am not an actor. I lie for a living. However, it has been a while and maybe it is time."
The BBC first reported Depp's comments, which some read as a reference to the 1865 shooting of Abraham Lincoln by actor John Wilkes Booth.
"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."
The White House responded to his comments on Friday (local time).
"President Trump has condemned violence in all forms and it's sad that others like Johnny Depp have not followed his lead," a White House statement read.
"I hope that some of Mr Depp's colleagues will speak out against this type of rhetoric as strongly as they would if his comments were directed to a Democrat elected official."
Reuters
