Johnny Depp announced plans to purchase a historical piece of land on which hundreds of Native American Indians were killed, a decision that has sparked controversy between present-day members of the tribe.
Depp is nearing the end of a process to purchase a portion of the Wounded Knee National Historic Landmark, land where 300 Native American men, women, and children were killed in 1890. CBS reports that Depp plans to buy the $4.9 million property and give it back to the descendants of those who lost their lives.
"I am doing my best to make that happen," Depp said of the possible acquisition. "It's land they were pushed on to and then they were massacred there. It really saddens me."
Members of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation desperately seek to buy the land back from landowner James Czywczynski, who has put the 40-acres of history on the market. Though the tribe members are trying to find a way to own the land themselves, some have concerns that Depp’s purchase is merely for publicity.
"It's also buying into the idea that our ancestry and history have a price tag on them," tribe member Dawn Moves Camp said. "We have pride too. We'd rather it be done in an honorable way. I hope our tribe finds some way to buy the land back without outside help."
Recent reports state that Depp is set to reprise his role as The Mad Hatter in a sequel to the wildly successful Tim Burton adaptation of Alice in Wonderland .
Deadline exclusively reports that Depp has signed on to participate in Alice in Wonderland 2 in the wake of the box office disaster of Disney’s The Lone Ranger . Though Depp is set to return in the Disney reboot, director Burton will not be returning at the helm. Muppets director James Bobin will be stepping in for the much anticipated sequel.
Alice in Wonderland grossed $1 billion worldwide upon its release in 2010, according to The Huffington Post reports. Depp is also in the final stages of negotiation for Pirates of the Caribbean 5 .
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