Will Smith Posts Clip of Him Hugging Johnny Depp at Red Sea Film Festival

Johnny Depp hasn't been widely embraced by very many A-listers in Hollywood since his trial with Amber Heard -- but one star's welcoming him back with open arms ... Will Smith.

The two actors were both at the Red Sea Film Festival in Saudi Arabia this past week, and they each walked the carpet separately ... as did other big celebs. But once they got inside, it appears they not only crossed paths ... but brought it in for the real thing, all friendly-like.

Interestingly, Will himself posted a couple clips that show him and Johnny hugging and chatting -- and although the moment is fleeting as part of his larger compilation ... he didn't shy away from it, and he certainly didn't try to hide the fact he palled around with JD.

Now, WS didn't explicitly go out of his way to name Johnny or touch on their meetup in his caption. He simply wrote, "Wow! Thank You Red Sea Film Festival! You have created real Magic — An Oasis of art & creativity! What’s Next? I’m in."

You actually have to watch his post in full to catch the fact they hung out -- but it's there, and it's definitely interesting ... as it appears he's the first big-time star to deal with Johnny in this manner, especially post-trial.

Johnny's "comeback" has been less than lukewarm -- he's appeared in some high-profile campaigns here and there ... but we haven't seen him really splash back onto the Hollywood scene in a major, mainstream way. Ditto for his ex-wife, BTW ... she's at arm's length as well.

Like we said ... Will looks to be the first real A-lister who's accepted Johnny back into the fold -- as a manner of speaking. And, strangely enough, they don't seem to have any real history ... no movies together, and they weren't old friends either from what we can tell.

And yet, here's Will squeezing Johnny tight with no reservations. Considering Will himself has become somewhat embattled of late -- perhaps it's not as crazy as we think.

Will did just say the other day that he's on a healing journey and trying to adjust his outlook on life -- and it would seem that starts with not judging others who've been labeled a certain way. FWIW, Johnny's rep is still incredibly divisive ... even after his in-court victory.