Warner Bros. has released a new TV spot and a good deal of new images from director Scott Cooper’s (Crazy Heart) upcoming Whitey Bulger crime drama Black Mass. The film stars Johnny Depp as the notorious crime boss who simultaneously worked as an FBI informant and committed horrible crimes throughout the Boston area for decades. As a fan of Cooper’s work (Out of the Furnace didn’t totally come together, but it’s an admirably ambitious effort), this has been high on my most anticipated list for a while. But I wasn’t prepared for just how transformative Depp’s performance seems to be, and as can be witnessed in this new TV spot, he’s fully immersed himself in the role without turning it into caricature.

But in addition to Cooper’s direction and a standout performance by Depp, Black Mass also has an absolutely stacked cast working in its favor. Peruse the images below and you’ll see face after face of talented actor, seemingly filling somewhat smaller roles than he or she is used to. One imagines that’s all in service to a smart take on Bulger’s life via Cooper, and I can’t wait to catch the film at TIFF in a few weeks.


Check out the new TV spot below, followed by a number of new images, both via Warner Bros. Black Mass will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival and opens in theaters on September 18th. The film also stars Joel Edgerton, Benedict Cumberbatch, Rory Cochrane, Jesse Plemons, Kevin Bacon, Dakota Johnson, Juno Temple, W Earl Brown, Corey Stoll, Julianne Nicholson, Adam Scott, and Peter Sarsgaard.

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Here’s the official synopsis for Black Mass:

In 1970s South Boston, FBI Agent John Connolly (Edgerton) persuades Irish mobster Jimmy Bulger (Depp) to collaborate with the FBI in order to eliminate their common enemy: the Italian mob. The drama tells the story of this unholy alliance, which spiraled out of control, allowing Whitey to evade law enforcement while consolidating his power and becoming one of the most ruthless and dangerous gangsters in Boston history.