Johnny Depp's career is so far in the ground that he has nowhere to go but up.

With that in mind, we're eagerly waiting to see what he'll do as James 'Whitey' Bulger in the upcoming gangster flick, Black Mass.

Based on a true story and subsequently copied somewhat in The Departed, Depp plays a criminal mastermind who forged an alliance with the FBI to control Boston's underworld.

There's an impressive cast backing up Depp, including Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Joel Edgerton, Dakota Johnson, Jesse Plemons and Peter Sarsgaard.

We're already liking some of the quotable dialogue, particularly Depp's chilling voice and the whole "'I'll eat ya" thing.

Take a look.

Director Scott Cooper's disappointing second film, Out Of The Furnace, had a similarly impressive cast. Likewise, Crazy Heart had the imitable Jeff Bridges as a wounded country singer.

Black Mass is Cooper's third effort so we're hoping for a course correction with this. All signs, so far at least, seem positive.

We'll have to wait until the latter part of this year to find out if it's any good.