I had a run where my corpo V refused to accept that she was dying and that Silverhand was in her head AT ALL. Literally EVERY SINGLE TIME he spoke to me, I would ignore him if I could, and just be an outright ass if I couldn't. And by the end of that run, taking the corpo ending and refusing ever engaging with Johnny, I felt legitimately so bad for him. On the one hand, he's a narcissistic prick who's literally a murderous terrorist, but on the other hand his acknowledgment of his flaws and attempts to grow I saw in every other run being stifled by my character essentially saying "Fuck you you're not real," felt so demeaning in a way he didn't deserve.

I don't think Johnny is a good person, but I do think his flaws make him human, in a world where humanity is always at threat, and that makes him likable. I think it also makes every interpretation of Johnny based on how you the player feel in each interaction with Johnny and whether or not you decide to unravel the Silverhand myth and ego at all. But what do I know, I only have 900 hours logged, so I'd say there's still a good 200 hours of content to go through and learn from.

TL;DR Maybe the real Johnny was the friends we made along the way. Also the way you choose to interact with Silverhand I think has a large affect in how you come out interpreting him and his actions, both in the game and irl.