Los Angeles, Sep 5 (IANS): Actor Johnny Depp has joked about killing his dogs and eating them.

During a press conference for his film "Black Mass" at the Venice Film Festival on Friday, the 52-year-old poked fun at the controversy surrounding allegation that he illegally smuggled his two pet dogs, Boo and Pistol, into Australia in May, reports aceshowbiz.com.

Asked if he planned to take his dogs on a gondola ride during his visit to the Italian city, Depp said: "I killed my dogs and ate them under direct orders from some kind of, I don't know, sweaty, big-gutted man from Australia."

Depp was accused of smuggling his dogs into Australia while filming "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" in the country. At the time, Australian Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce gave the "Transcendence" actor 50 hours to bring his dogs back to California or they would be euthanised.

The two Yorkshire terriers were eventually safely returned home, but the actor was threatened with jail time for the breach. However, it was later revealed that his wife Amber Heard was the one facing the charges because she's the owner of the dogs, not Depp. The actress could face fines as high as $100,000 or as long as 10 years in prison if found guilty.