October 15, 2026 |
Dior has had 11 glorious years with its signature menswear scent Dior Sauvage. After celebrating a decade of the best-selling scent last September with a rodeo-inspired installation in the courtyard of Somerset House, Parfums Christian Dior’s creative director Francis Kurkdijan went straight back into the lab to keep building.
Cut to today, and Kurkdijan has intensified the scent’s original composition to deliver Dior Sauvage Extrait, the house’s first ever extrait de parfum for men. At its heart is a sensual oud, sourced from the lush highland regions of Vietnam, giving the fragrance an irresistible tail that envelopes the wearer wherever he goes. Surrounding that is a moody Indonesian patchouli, folded into the creamier notes of vetiver from Madagascar and cedarwood from Virginia. Topped off with an aromatic, smoky bergamot, Dior Sauvage Extrait leans into the intensity of its predecessors and then some, possessing the same captivating spirit with a distinct and striking bent.
Johnny Depp, Dior Sauvage Ambassador, returns as the face of the new fragrance – an actor whose devout commitment to his on-screen characters and instinctive approach to his craft has made him its perfect match. Here, he speaks about this addition to the Sauvage family, his relationship to scent and his lasting character traits.
1. When did you discover this new iteration of Sauvage?
When I was last with Francis Kurkdjian, he put these wonderful scents together and challenged me with a guessing game, which was a way for him to allude to this new adventure. Francis is both an artist and a scientist… He has a unique way of recording a smell that you react to in an emotional way.
2. Is this particular talent similar to the recording of a feeling for a movie?
There is a common relationship between scent and what I do in my day job. You smell one scent -sometimes a very simple one, like lavender or honeysuckle- and immediately, without asking for it, you are transported to a moment in your life. A scent can take you back to another time, place or memory the same way music can take you back to a very precise place in your life. Scent is one of our most important gifts.
3. Sauvage Extrait has been described as an “olfactory tattoo.” You have many tattoos yourself. Do you remember when you got your first one?
I got my first tattoo when I was 17. Like I was saying about scents and memories, my tattoos represent different moments and chapters of my life. They’re all tied to memories or dedications of love, for my kids, and for some of the people I’ve lost.
4. They bring a sense of permanence to your very skin… What is your most lasting character trait? The most stable aspect of your personality?
This is a good question because there have been times in my life when I was quite confused about where I was, who I was, what was expected of me and who I was supposed to be. I remember calling old friends, talking to them for a while and asking them whether I sounded different. I am lucky to have kept a lot of friends from that period when I was a young guitarist, playing music in rock’n’roll clubs before sneaking out the back door. Sal Jenco, my best friend from when we were 8 years-old, is still in my life.
5. We know you as a public person, but the main image of the Sauvage campaign is about solitude. Where do you go to be alone?
The moment I arrive in the Bahamas, I’m instantly and totally anonymous. There, I can find the isolation that helps me decompress from the months spent making films and traveling around. I arrive and I don’t have to say a word to anyone for days. Talk about being a lucky fellow!
Photography by Jean-Baptiste Mondino for Christian Dior Parfums. Grooming by Dior using Sauvage The Serum, Sauvage The Lotion, Sauvage Hair Serum. Dior Sauvage Extrait can be purchased for £153 at dior.com.
