Pop Culture Mondays/5.9.22
The “HERE’S JOHNNY” Edition
Happy Monday my darling pop culture junkies! There is SO much happening in the world of pop culture, I apologize IN advance for not being able to cover everything. As always, if there is anything, in particular, you have questions about or what to know more about (or less of) PLEASE hit me up. For those of you recovering from COVID from your super spreader events (White House Correspondents Weekend, Met Gala, proms, etc..) this will all pass. For those of you even QUESTIONING getting the vaccine or even the booster…I cannot explain how amazing science is and it is WAY more advanced than your sister’s best friend’s cousin’s wife who is an expert….It is for the betterment of HUMANITY and your family and yourself. OK, I digress…
LOTS to get into and I just want to explain that we have HUGE issues to tackle in general, but specifically women’s rights AND we will cover it…I do think James Corden put it perfectly:
I am not making the BABY YODA image about this specifically THIS WEEK, because the pop culture convo IS around Johnny Depp and Amber Heard…but let's just get into it shall we? AND for those of you new here….this is a brief escape with lots of audio. It’s the newsletter that fills you in on all the trends and vital moments you never knew you needed.
XO….
WTF IS HAPPENING? 🐝🐝🐝🐝
Well, SHIT. The fact that TikTok is dominated by THIS vs the outrage of what’s happening with Roe V. Wade is pretty telling…but look, here we are so let’s just lean into it for the sake of PCM. IN case you have missed my other newsletters OR pods — BTW last week’s POD is my most popular so please check it out here where Jessica Rovins, communications strategist EXTRAORDINAIRE, and I really get into the Met Gala and Roe V Wae - NOT to mention this trial…
But in case you are new here and have been hiding from the world…let me bring you up to speed on the CLIFFS NOTE version.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard were married. They divorced. It was a brutal breakup back in 2016. Amber accused Johnny of beating her. We all believed her or at least publicly believed her because:
A. It was a time when all women were to be believed with NO questions asked
B. She showcased bruises
C. Snippets of prejudicial audio was released clearly by Amber’s team. Amber was the victim of domestic abuse and Johnny was a washed-up drunk who beat his wife.
Amber went on to star in “Aquaman”, and Johnny went on to lose all movies he had in the hopper including the beloved “PIRATES OF THE CARRIBEAN” franchise he had helped build for Disney. Amber wrote an Op-Ed in the Washington Post about being the victim of domestic abuse, though never mentioning Johnny by name, everyone OBVIOUSLY knew who she was talking about. Some other things happened in between, like a trial in the UK in which Johnny lost and was ordered to pay Amber millions which IN turn she promised to two organizations. It has since been discovered she only shared a small fraction of the money she promised and the money she sent to the ACLU, one of the orgs she promised millions, was sent SOME of the money from Elon Musk’s holding company. WOO boy…catch all that?
SO, here we are today. A new trial was brought on by Johnny who is suing Amber and the Washington Post for that OpEd. Johnny had fought to have the trial televised which initially I thought was nuts but now, you see how brilliant he and his team were to do so. AND LET ME BE CLEAR…I do not think anyone is an angel in this scenario and addiction is a tragic thing and just because someone wasn't ever violent before doesn’t mean they can’t change on a dime.
HOWEVER, the new audio/video that the public was shown does paint a different picture than the one painted back in 2016. Witness testimony for Johnny which we have showcased here paints a very different picture. AND, now this past week, Amber herself was on the stand, and let’s just say….girlfriend did NOT help her case. She definitely needs more acting school and well…let’s just ROLL THE TAPE as they say…
AHHHHH…the 🐝 face is really making its rounds on social media. Here are a couple:
OK, that one is dark….
SO….you get the idea. There are thousands of videos like this. The internet is so SQUARELY behind Johnny it is wild and while there is a petition that millions of people have signed to have Amber removed from “Aquaman”, there is another petition that millions have signed to have Johnny brought back to “Pirates”. Many court observers believed the socials were in full support of Johnny ONLY BECAUSE he went first so all the testimony was in his favor (even when he read aloud about burning her but I digress…). Experts assumed the tide would turn once Amber took the stand.
THIS did not happen. Her facial expressions have not helped. Her hysterically crying on the stand but with no tears has not helped. Her weirdly detailed stories that make no sense when broken down, have NOT helped. For example:
In these TikToks, you see creators try to make sense of her testimony that starts with her saying she’s on the couch but then somehow she is on the carpet….
Then on top of all this, a rumor started going around that Amber was snorting blow (cocaine) WHILST on the stand. I find this to be utter bullshit and fabrication by the TikTokkers (She was just sniffing boogs you guys) but nevertheless, it went wild:
And this one has gotten a bajillion views making light of Johnny’s alleged JAR of cocaine…and honestly, I feel like the jar of cocaine image is only helping him:
AND then…the big thing happened that all of us lawyers (I am technically a lawyer because since getting hooked on “LA Law” as a kid and I am the daughter and granddaughter of lawyers AND because I know every single outcome of every single “Law & Order SVU”, I AM A LAWYER. WHO needs law school OR the Bar exam, am I right?) But this seems to have some bigger ramifications based on Johnny’s lawyer's response. Amber brings up Kate Moss in her testimony where she recalls a story about Johnny pushing Kate down the stairs. Apparently, this is a big deal for Johnny’s team as explained in THIS TikTok…wonder if this means we see Kate Moss take the stand?
And this story also getting taken apart. She walks out, he slaps her, and she turns to look at him? But assuming she was looking at him if he was able to slap her? It is so dark:
AND Now, let’s get to Johnny’s lead lawyer, Benjamin Chew. AN unlikely heartthrob if you will. The TikTokkers have fallen in love with him…😳😳😳 (IMAGINE if social media existed during OJ trial??)
AND on the flip side…OK, I have to admit this might be my fave TikTok of all TikToks on this whole story…the TikTok creators are NOT impressed with Amber Heard’s lawyers at all. ENJOY this one (sorry it will play in your head now forever):
THIS APP IS FREE you guys. FREE I say.
On that note, I will end with this widely liked TikTok which is seemingly the sentiment of all of social media. It is an interesting time that highlights a very different world than the one we were in in 2016/2017. The idea that we believe ALL women is coming to an end. It sucks and whether AMber is lying or not is NOT for me to determine but the fact is people do lie. For whatever reason, they do. And the world of cancel culture is changing too…people are sick of it. Does that make them right-wing? NOPE. It makes them human.
ROE v. WADE:
Obviously, there is nothing more important. But PCM is about looking at what’s happening in pop culture, so forgive me as I dive into what is unfolding on the socials around this. SO, as Anna Wintour’s Met Gala was unfolding LAST Monday, and the seemingly less glam attendees (not all, but a lot) were showcasing their lack of knowledge of what THE GILDED AGE (the theme for that night) was…or their stylists at any rate. Or the fact they JUST DID NOT care about the theme set by Anna, and decided to go with whatever they wanted, in ANY event, the irony was intense. As many were celebrating women in their fancy clothes — theoretically inspired by the Gilded Age — a massive scoop by Politico published — a leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion on Roe V. Wade and how abortion laws should be at the hands of state lawmakers and not the federal government.
Time stood still.
I went from analyzing Kim Kardashian in Marilyn Monroe’s dress to literally feeling like I was being kicked in the gut by a bunch of men with knives on their steel-toed boots. And I know many people far smarter than me knew this was coming but LORD let me say I never thought it was possible. You hear stories of girls in Afghanistan who were on one day wearing dresses and going to school and then overnight were banned from school and banned from wearing regular clothes. But surely this could not happen in America?
Well, I was wrong.
I had an abortion. I cannot imagine my life today had I not had an abortion when I was 18. My boyfriend and I had done everything right. We were “safe” but that proved to not work. We were young and inexperienced and probably reckless. I am grateful that I had amazing and understanding parents to whom I could turn. And an amazing Planned Parenthood near me and amazing support all around. And let me be clear, had abortion not been legal at that time…I would have still been ok. I had parents with money. I came from privilege. My mother would have figured it out. But there are many that would not and now they will be forced to be mothers when they didn’t want to be. Is adoption an option? For some. What about foster care? Yeah, OK. It’s just incredible that for the most part, men are making laws about women’s bodies. The same people complaining about their rights when it comes to having to wear a FUCKING mask are the same celebrating the loss of women’s rights to their own bodies. It is a crime. ANWAY, that’s my $.02…let’s go to the socials:
Here is a trend happening:
There are so many of these videos detailing women’s own stories…I have no tears left.
Gen Z is realizing what is happening and frankly, I have so much faith in this generation. I do believe this ultimately will be a bad decision for the conservative party. Short term it is horrendous. Long-term, bad for the bad guys tbh. But the socials had their say:
Also…this guy is SOMETHING else. Serious question…wtf is OVER-EDUCATED? I MEAN….
Literally, this is our country right now can you EVEN? BUT, this response was heaven:
And more fears around what this ruling can mean:
And this by Margaret Atwood is a MUST READ:
I cannot think about this more today. It is too upsetting. But I ask, do what you can. Fundraise for organizations helping women. Donate to Planned Parenthood, and VOTE VOTE VOTE:
AND NOW FOR SOME OF MY FAVORITE THINGS (OR SOME OF THE DESPICABLE ONES…)
You probably need a drink right about now or some really decadent chocolate dessert. Well, I have the next best thing and that is some other funny things happening and some great content.
- Never have I smiled more at a trend than this new one around Lizzo’s new song, “About Damn Time”:
- Bono and The Edge performed in a train station in Kyiv. I love these boys with my whole heart.
- This really messed with me:
- Miami’s fake harbor was trending topic from this weekend’s F1 Grand Prix:
- Artist Mike Posner made a TikTok detailing his story since his hit song “I took a pill in Ibiza” came out and it’s breathtaking:
- And the new APEROL SPRITZ for the summer is……? THE DIRTY SHIRLEY. God help us all! 🥳
- AND I will end on this note….if you watch any video today, make sure it is THIS one. Kendrick Lamar is a genius. His new song, “The Heart Part 5” is a masterpiece. This VIDEO? This video is both but also terrifying in that it shows how incredible DEEP FAKE technology is. JUST YOU WATCH:
THAT IS IT my darlings…
Well, that was a LOT huh? Have a beautiful week my lovelies. Be kind. Be strong. Be vocal. Be YOU.
AND…please do check out the POP CULTURE MONDAYS ON THURSDAY podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. It’s a lot of fun. It is basically like sitting around a table with me having wine and cheese. JOIN US!
If you aren’t already a subscriber (PLEASE PLEASE SUBSCRIBE!!!) and please do SHARE this with all your friends…and IF want this in your inbox please send an email to:
subscribe@popculturemondays.com
Or CLICK SUBSCRIBE below!
