Johnny Depp might have taken the prize for coming up with the most creative reason to miss a press conference for his new movie, Mortdecai, in Tokyo Tuesday, CBC informed. But the actor really did blame his absence from a news conference in Tokyo on the mythological Latin American beast. Depp is in Japan to promote Mortdecai, an action-packed farce also starring Gwyneth Paltrow. 

The 51-year-old actor was all smiles while joking Wednesday with journalists in Tokyo about why he was a no-show at a news conference a day earlier. Depp explained he had been ill but said that wasn't the reason.

"I was attacked yesterday morning by a very rarely seen or experienced animal called 'chupacabra.' I fought with it for hours. They're very persistent, very mean. And I'm pretty sure it came into my suitcase. I threw him off the 23rd floor. So we'll never see him again. Thank you for understanding," he said.

The chupacabra is a legendary creature rumored to inhabit parts of the Americas.