MTV was a different beast in 1991. You didn't just "drop" a video; you premiered a cinematic event. And honestly, nobody did cinematic rock better than Tom Petty. When the tom petty video with johnny depp hit the airwaves, it wasn't just another clip. It was a six-and-a-half-minute cautionary tale that felt like a movie.
The song was "Into the Great Wide Open."
If you’ve seen it, you know the vibe. It’s gritty. It’s Hollywood. It’s kind of heartbreaking. Johnny Depp stars as Eddie Rebel, a kid from the middle of nowhere who moves to L.A. with a guitar and a dream. Basically, it's the story of every person who ever stepped off a Greyhound bus on Sunset Boulevard.
Why the Into the Great Wide Open Cast Was So Wild
Seriously, look at the credits. It’s a fever dream of 90s stardom. You’ve got Johnny Depp at the absolute peak of his "cool indie guy" phase. He had just done Edward Scissorhands. He was the definition of a heartthrob with an edge.
But Petty didn't stop there. The video is packed:
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- Faye Dunaway plays Eddie’s high-society manager.
- Gabrielle Anwar is the girlfriend who teaches him those first few chords.
- Matt LeBlanc shows up as a young kid at the very end—this was years before Friends.
- Terence Trent D'Arby and Chynna Phillips make cameos.
It’s basically a Hollywood A-list party compressed into a music video. Director Julien Temple (who also did the iconic "Free Fallin’" video) managed to capture that specific L.A. burnout feeling.
The story behind the shoot is actually pretty interesting. Depp and Dunaway were actually on a break from filming a movie called Arizona Dream. The production had stalled because the director, Emir Kusturica, was having a bit of a breakdown. Since everyone was just sitting around in Los Angeles, Petty’s team scooped them up.
The Tragedy of Eddie Rebel
The tom petty video with johnny depp follows Eddie’s rise and fall. He starts out as a "rebel without a clue." He gets a tattoo. He meets a girl. He learns to play.
Then comes the ego.
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As Eddie becomes a star, he turns into a complete jerk. There's a scene where he's being a diva in a dressing room, and another where he's dismissive of the people who helped him get there. Petty himself pops up in multiple roles—the narrator, a roadie named Bart, a reporter, and even the tattoo artist. It’s like he’s watching the character he created slowly destroy himself.
One of the most famous lines in the song is about the A&R man saying, "I don't hear a single." That was Petty’s way of poking fun at the record industry. He’d lived through those corporate battles himself. By the end of the video, Eddie is broke and forgotten. He ends up back at the same tattoo shop where he started, watching a new kid (LeBlanc) start the cycle all over again.
Why This Video Still Matters in 2026
You'd think a video from over thirty years ago would feel dated. Strangely, it doesn't. The themes of "Into the Great Wide Open" are actually more relevant now with influencer culture and the "main character" syndrome we see on TikTok.
People still search for this video because it represents a specific moment when rock stars were larger than life. Petty wasn't just a singer; he was a storyteller. And Depp? He wasn't just an actor; he was a symbol of that era's restless youth.
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Little Known Details
- The Women: Petty once joked that he never saw so many women show up to a video shoot in his life until Johnny Depp was on set.
- The Roles: Petty played four different characters. He loved playing "the common man" observing the chaos.
- The Guitar: The guitar Depp plays in the video isn't just a prop; he actually moved to L.A. originally to be a musician, not an actor. That's why he looks so natural holding it.
How to Experience Petty's Legacy Today
If you’re diving back into this era of music history, don't just stop at the video. The entire Into the Great Wide Open album is a masterclass in songwriting. Produced by Jeff Lynne, it has that lush, "Traveling Wilburys" sound that defines Petty's late-career peak.
To really get the full experience:
- Watch the un-cut version of the video. The short MTV edit misses a lot of the narrative nuance.
- Listen to "Learning to Fly" right after. It was the first single from the album and deals with similar themes of ambition and gravity.
- Check out the documentary Runnin' Down a Dream. It gives a massive amount of context on Petty’s relationship with Hollywood.
The tom petty video with johnny depp remains a masterpiece of the medium. It’s a reminder that the "Great Wide Open" can be a beautiful place, but it’s also a place where you can get lost if you aren't careful.
If you want to dig deeper into the 90s rock scene, your next move should be looking into the making of the Wildflowers album. It was Petty's solo masterpiece that followed this record, and it peels back even more layers of the man behind the music.