Johnny Depp has one of the most distinctive faces in Hollywood , but he 's almost unrecognizable in the first trailer for his latest film Black Mass . In the long-awaited trailer for the film to be released this September , Depp plays James 'White ' Bulger - the notorious Boston gangster who topped the FBI 's most wanted list for 16 years before he was finally arrested in 2011 . The trailer was one of several Warner Bros screen at CinemaCon on Thursday , and the creepy two-minute clip was a highlight of the day . Scroll down for video . American gangster : The first trailer for the upcoming biopic on the life of Boston gangster James 'Whitey ' Bulger was released Thursday . Johnny Depp plays the notorious criminal in the film . Unrecognizable : In the trailer , Depp is completely transformed for the role . He looks several years older , with grey slicked back hair and his brown eyes changes to a grey-blue . Bulger pictured in a 1973 mugshot , right . With thinning blond hair slicked back meticulously , disarming grayish blue eyes , and speckled , pink skin , 51-year-old Depp is transformed into a menacing presence in the generation-spanning story about the alliance between Bulger and the FBI . 'This is a film about the abuse of power , ' said director Scott Cooper . 'In the city of Boston at this time , criminals and lawmen were virtually indistinguishable . ' Depp , he said , gives a 'performance for the ages . ' The trailer opens up to Depp eating dinner and complimenting the host and asking about the marinade . The host , played by actor David Harbour , initially tells Depp it 's a family secret but eventually caves and spills the recipe . Dinner talk : The chilling clip begins with a friendly Depp complimenting his host , played by David Harbour ( far right ) , on the steak they 're eating . Daggers : When Harbour quickly gives up the 'family secret ' recipe , Depp turns cold and goes into a lecture on spilling secrets . Most wanted : The rest of the trailer shows flashbacks of Bulger 's darkside : carrying out hits and womanizing . Killer : Depp stands threateningly over a man in this clips previewed in Thursday 's new trailer . Evil laugh : Depp eventually breaks the scary silence over the table and breaks out into an unsettling cackle . That 's when Depp turns serious and goes on a chilling monologue about the importance of keeping secrets . ' I was just say- ' a nervous Harbour answers before Depp cuts him off . 'Just sayin ' gets people sent away . Just sayin ' got me a nine-year stretch in Alcatraz , you understand ? So just sayin ' can get you buried will quick , ' Depp says . A silence falls over the table for several seconds , before Depp breaks out in an unsettling cackle . On set : Depp is pictured above filming Black Mass last July , along with co-star Peter Sarsgaard ( right ) The crime drama is based on the 2001 book Black Mass : The True Story Of An Unholy Alliance Between The FBI And The Irish Mob written by Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill . The film also stars Joel Edgerton , Benedict Cumberbatch , Kevin Bacon , Peter Sarsgaard and Dakota Johnson . Bulger had a long career of run-ins with the law , dating all the way back to when he was just 14 years old . In the early 70s , after spending nine years in prison for armed robbery and truck hijacking , Bulger returned to Boston and joined a prominent Irish mob in South Boston . As he became climbed up the rankings of the mob , Bulger was recruited in the mid 1970s to become an informant for the FBI , supplying the bureau with information on a rival crime family . Then in 1997 , Bulger was outed as an informant in newspaper reports and he went on the run when his own handler said he was about to be hit with an indictment . Captured : Bulger pictured on the left in 2011 , after he was finally arrested after 16 years on the run . He is currently imprisoned in a maximum security prison in Florida . Depp on the right . Starting young : Bulger 's criminal history stretches all the way back to when he was just 14 years old and a part of a Boston street gang . For the next 16 years , Bulger evaded law enforcement until he was finally caught on June 22 , 2011 at a Santa Monica , California apartment he shared with his longtime girlfriend . He went on trial two years later on 32 counts of racketeering , money laundering , extortion , weapons charges , and ties to 19 murders . He was found guilty on 31 of those charges in August and sentenced to two consecutive life in prison sentences in November 2013 . The 84-year-old is currently incarcerated at an all-male federal high-security prison in Sumterville , Florida . Jack Nicholson 's character in the Oscar-winning film The Departed is thought to be loosely based on Bulger .
Black Mass is set to be released in the day .