Johnny Depp Gearing Up for "The Rum Diary"

Johnny Depp is gearing up to once again amaze audiences with his portrayal of a character based on Hunter S. Thompson in the big screen adaptation of The Rum Diary.

Warner Independent is bringing the book to life, and according to Variety reports, Depp will star and co-produce with Graham King. Depp's "Infinitum Nihil" and King's "GK Films" both acquired rights to the book.

Unlike Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, the lead character in The Rum Diary (written in 1959 and published in 1998) is not Thompson but a freelance journalist, Paul Kemp, working for a rundown newspaper in the 1950s Puerto Rico.

Depp, one of the hardest working actors in Hollywood, just finished filming Sweeney Todd, a Tim Burton musical that has become one of the most anticipated films of the fall.