Summary: The defamation trial between Johnny Depp & Amber Heard

The lowdown in five minutes (if you're a fast reader).

Karen Lui | May 21, 2022, 12:19 PM

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This story contains descriptions of physical and sexual abuse. Discretion is advised.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you'd probably have heard about the ongoing defamation trial involving Hollywood actor Johnny Depp, 58, and his ex-wife Amber Heard, 36.

Heard had accused Depp of domestic violence in a Washington Post op-ed in Dec. 2018, while Depp is suing her for defamation.

The trial commenced on April 11, 2022, with the closing arguments scheduled for May 27.

Here's some background information about this case.

Before the defamation case

Heard and Depp met in October 2009 on the set of "The Rum Diary", in which they played lovers.

Following Depp's split from long-time partner French actress Vanessa Paradis, Depp and Heard started a relationship in 2012, according to Variety.

Depp and Heard tied the knot in February 2015.

In May 2016, Heard filed for divorce and obtained a temporary restraining order against Depp.

Heard accused Depp of being verbally and physically abusive towards her, partially blaming it on drug and alcohol abuse.

In August 2016, the couple settled their divorce case. Heard dismissed the allegations of physical abuse against Depp, and retracted her request for a restraining order.

She also pledged to donate the entire divorce settlement of US$7 million (around S$9.7 million) that Depp paid her to charity.

The settlement included a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that prevents either party from discussing the relationship publicly.

Two years later, however, the matter was back to haunt Depp.

In June 2018, Depp sued The Sun and its executive editor for libel, after an article where they labelled Depp as a "wife beater," claiming that he had abused Heard during their relationship.

In November 2020, Depp lost the case and subsequently resigned from the "Fantastic Beasts" film series, at the request of the production company, Warner Bros.

How the lawsuit came about

In December 2018, The Washington Post published an op-ed written by Heard, which included the following sentence:

"Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out."

The actress does not explicitly identify Depp in her piece.

In February 2019, Depp sued Heard over this article for defamation, claiming US$50 million (around S$69 million) in damages.

According to the court document shared by Deadline, Heard's "clear implication" that her former husband is a "domestic abuser is categorically and demonstrably false" and "defamatory per se".

Depp claimed that Heard's allegations were "part of an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity" for Heard and to advance her career.

He also said that Heard's false implications had adversely affected his career as a film actor and reputation as a public figure, as he lost movie roles—specifically his leading role as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise.

Heard responded by lodging a US$100 million counterclaim in August 2020.

In the court document, Heard accused Depp of "orchestrat[ing] a false and defamatory smear campaign" against her, which included "false and defamatory statements" in order to get her fired from "Aquaman".

Main points of contention

The courthouse battle has been broadcasted via numerous live streams since it started.

During the opening statements, Depp's legal team accused Heard of making him look like a "villain".

They insinuated that her words have caused "irreparable harm," adding that his name is now associated with "a lie, a false statement uttered by his former wife."

The allegation that Heard is a victim of domestic violence by Depp will be proved a lie, the team said.

Heard's lawyers argued that her words in the article weren't about Depp, her marriage, or her relationship but her "life after that", emphasising it's "her right" to speak those words "whether you agree" with them or not.

However, they admitted that Heard had accused Depp of abuse.

They also insisted that it was Depp's "own bad behaviour" that tarnished his reputation.

One of Heard's lawyers also described the couple's trip to Australia as a "three-day hostage situation", alleging that Depp took eight to 10 ecstasy tablets in Australia before sexually assaulting Heard.

Despite being listed as one of the potential witnesses for Heard, billionaire CEO of Tesla Elon Musk, whom she briefly dated after her divorce from Depp, would not be testifying in the trial, according to CNN.

Here's where we go into more detail, with Depp and Heard's testimonies. You may also have seen some clips/articles of the specific incidents on social media.

Depp's testimony

On day 5 of the trial, Depp took the stand and admitted that he and Heard argued during the relationship, but maintained that he has never hit her or any woman in his life.

He apologised for the vulgar language in the text messages sent about Heard, adding that he has a dark sense of humour and sometimes use humour to deal with pain.

The actor admitted to using drugs as "self-medication" and said the details about his substance abuse had been "grossly embellished" in court and most of it was "plainly false".

Depp continued giving testimony on day 6, sharing that Heard's "pure hatred" for him often "escalate[d] into violence" that begins with a slap, shove, "throwing a TV remote at [his] head] or a "glass of wine in [his] face".

Addressing the first incident of alleged domestic violence in early 2013 when Heard laughed at Depp's "Wino Forever" tattoo that was modified after his break-up with Winona Ryder, Depp denied striking Heard and reiterated that he has never struck a woman in his life.

Depp then accused Heard of throwing a vodka bottle at him, which shattered, and he subsequently noticed the tip of his finger was severed.

He admitted that in his state of shock, he had written "little reminders" of Heard's alleged lies in blood on the walls.

He also revealed that he sustained a bruise on his face after receiving a "kind of a roundhouse punch" from Heard a couple of weeks after the finger injury.

Depp also said that Heard's op-ed article was "obviously" about him and their relationship even if he wasn't explicitly mentioned by name.

On day 7 of the trial, Heard's lawyer presented emails and text messages with the vulgar content that Depp had sent to Heard, as well as his friends, family, and associates.

Depp defended one of them as a reference to a Monty Python scene—one of Depp's favourite movies—and later admitted that he was not proud of the language he used in anger.

Messages in which Depp discussed drug use and a photo of cocaine on a table were also presented in court.

A video clip secretly filmed by Heard showing Depp smashing and kicking kitchen cabinets at his home as well as audio clips of conversations were also played in court, including one whereby Depp could be heard saying:

"I become irrational when you're doing movies. I become jealous and f*cking crazy and weird... We fight a lot."

More audio recordings were played on day 8 where Depp could be heard attempting to disentangle himself from the situation while Heard continued the argument.

In one recording, Depp could be heard saying, "Walking away is necessary... Otherwise it's just going to be a bloodbath... It's just not worth it."

Depp also clarified that he did not throw a cigarette at Heard, or put it out on her.

Heard's testimony

Heard started giving her testimony on day 14 of the trial.

Here is a non-exhaustive list of claims by the actress:

  • Depp became controlling in their relationship, and allegedly first hit her over the comment she made about his tattoo. According to Heard, she returned a few days later after Depp apologised and said he'd rather cut his hand off than lay it on her.
  • Depp allegedly made her feel "really dirty to be an actor" and accused her of "wh*ring" herself out.
  • He allegedly "backhanded" her while wearing a lot of rings such that her "lip went into [her] teeth".
  • He allegedly held her on the floor while screaming at her and she could not remember "how many times he hit [her] in the face."
  • Depp had allegedly forcibly performed a body cavity search on her after accusing her of hiding his drugs.
  • Depp reportedly dragged her along the floor by her hair in December 2015, which left her with a busted lip, bruising, and hair torn from her scalp.
  • He allegedly pummelled her and pounded the back of her head with his fist.
  • Depp allegedly kicked her to the ground during a private flight between Boston and Los Angeles, due to his jealousy over her co-star James Franco in "The Adderall Diaries".
  • Depp allegedly attempted to control her acting career such that she only accepted parts that required minimal make-up and no romantic scenes.
  • Depp allegedly accused her of having an affair with "Danish Girl" co-star Eddie Redmayne.
  • Depp allegedly threatened to cut her face with a broken bottle and raped her with a bottle.

In addition, Heard denied leaving fecal matter on their bed when they were married, which Depp insisted was done by Heard or her friends as a prank.

Heard also described the impact of being called "a hoax" and "fake" by Depp's lawyer, which included:

  • Being erased from a L'Oreal beauty campaign
  • Being dropped from television series "The Stand"
  • Having a significantly reduced role in "Aquaman"

A number of people, including friends, family, as well as current and ex-employees of the former couple, have also testified in the trial.

The trial resumes on May 23.

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Top images by Jim Lo Scalzo/ POOL/POOL/AFP via Getty Images and Evelyn Hockstein/Pool/AFP via Getty Images.