There’s a rumor that Johnny Depp is finally going to tie the knot with his girlfriend of nine years, French singer/actress Vanessa Paradis. Their daughter, Lilly Rose, suffered from life-threatening E.Coli infection that turned into sepsis about two months ago and that was said to have prompted Depp to propose:

Lily-Rose was rushed to a London hospital in March after contracting the E.coli bacteria, which caused her kidneys to shut down. Filming on Depp’s latest movie Sweeney Todd was halted so he could keep a vigil at the youngster’s bedside with Paradis.

But now little Lily is back to full health, the star wants to make his relationship with Paradis official, and plans to wed his partner of eight years this summer in the small French village of Plan de la Tour, near St Tropez, according to media reports.

A source from their village in France said that the couple has one of “the strongest relationships in Hollywood but after their daughter was taken ill the family became an even closer-knit unit.”

This same rumor came up last year, with “locals” also being the source, so I kind of doubt it’s true.

Depp has spoken out for the first time about his daughter’s health scare, saying her strength helped them all pull through it, and that he’s grateful for every day with his family. He talked to London’s Mirror in an exclusive interview:

“It gave us a great scare,” he sighs. As Lily-Rose lay critically ill for nine days, Johnny and long-term girlfriend, 34-year-old Vanessa Paradis, kept a constant vigil at her bedside.

“What got us through this wasn’t the strength of Vanessa or me but our daughter and her incredible ability to make us feel OK even though she was very unwell. She was super-strong,” he says.

The E.coli bug – most commonly associated with improperly cooked meat – had caused her kidneys to shut down. Frantic with worry, Johnny, 43, refused to return to the set of movie Sweeney Todd until she was out of danger, throwing filming into chaos.

“It was a very bumpy patch but she has come through it beautifully and unscathed and she is now as healthy as she always was. She is wonderful.” he says.

“It was a reminder to us of how lucky we are to be able to breathe, walk, talk, think and surround ourselves with people we love.”

He says that he’s grateful to Pirates producers for salvaging his career while giving him time to spend with his family. About the future of the series he says “Why shouldn’t we try a fourth and a fifth?”

Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis are parents to fully recovered Lilly Rose, who turns 8 this month, and Jack Jack, who is five. When they’re all at home in the south of France, Johnny walks his two children to school and back each day.