Johnny Depp & Amber Heard: What has happened so far?
We are all, probably, following the defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in Fairfax, Virginia, and it appears that we are all mixed up, with its messiness, scandal, and the glamorous movie stars at the center, so here is everything you need to now, so far:)
Everything seems to start with Depp suing his ex-wife, Amber Heard, for $50 million for an op-ed she wrote for the Washington Post in 2018 on her experiences as a domestic abuse survivor. Despite the fact that Heard never named Depp by name, his lawyers say that allusions to their client (as well as Heard’s previous public abuse allegations) are apparent and that the piece harmed Depp’s career and reputation. Heard has filed a countersuit for $100 million, alleging that Depp and his legal team defamed her by dismissing her claims as a fake.
But, the story goes further, Heard first publicly accused Depp of domestic abuse in May 2016, when she requested and acquired a temporary restraining order based on domestic violence only days after filing for divorce. Heard was lying, according to Depp’s lawyer, and was “attempting to secure a premature financial resolution by alleging abuse.”
In August 2016, Heard dropped her plea for a permanent restraining order after the couple struck an out-of-court divorce settlement. The two also released a joint statement in which they inexplicably claimed that none of their contradicting claims regarding each other was accurate. On the one hand, “There was never an intent of physical or emotional harm” (so Depp wasn’t abusive), and on the other, “Neither party has made false accusations for financial gains” (so Heard was not lying for a better financial settlement).
Perhaps more perplexing, this situation resembles a do-over. Depp sued the executive editor and publisher of the British newspaper The Sun for libel in 2018, after it referred to him in a story as a “wife-beater,” bringing the matter to the usually more plaintiff-friendly British courts.
When Depp’s lawsuit against the Sun went to trial in London in 2020, the Sun had to prove that its allegation about Depp was correct. Despite the odds, the newspaper, which demanded that Heard specify 14 occasions in which she claimed Depp harmed her, succeeded. The judge agreed that “Mr. Depp put her in fear of her life,” and Depp stated shortly after that he had been ordered to leave the Fantastic Beasts movie franchise.
While we start off with the examples, it is important to note that overall throughout the trial, Depp’s team is also focusing on the gap between Depp’s past and Heard’s. Depp has been accused of property damage and verbal threats before, but never of the level of violence Heard recounts, which prior girlfriends have regarded as out of character for him. Heard, though, does have some minor claims of violence to account for.
In 2009, Heard got into a fight at an airport with her then-girlfriend Tasya van Ree. Heard was detained after she reportedly hit van Ree in the arm, but no charges were filed. And Heard’s former assistant, Kate James, said in court this April that when she requested Heard for a pay raise, Heard spit in her face.
The trial started with some strong evidence that Depp acted violently towards Heard. Heard presented witness testimony, contemporaneous text messages, emails, and diary entries, as well as images of her bruises at the UK trial. They showed a definite pattern of misuse when taken combined, most commonly when Depp was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. And in order to fabricate them, Heard would have had to spend years scheming to smear Depp’s reputation, and spoiler alert: Depp claims Heard did.
While the contents are too many to include here, here is a rundown of some of the more often discussed cases:
Heard’s Friends:
In June 2013, one of Heard’s close female friends hugged her. Depp, who was drunk and high on mushrooms, went into a fury, grabbing the woman’s wrists and threatening to harm her, according to Heard. He then allegedly wrecked the cottage where he and Heard were staying, struck Heard, and hurled glasses at her. Depp got upset and damaged the cottage, as per some witnesses, and discovery also revealed contemporaneous emails between Depp and actor Paul Bettany in which they dream about burning Heard as a witch. “Let’s drown her before we burn her!!!” At one point, Depp texts. “I will fuck her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure she’s dead.”
The Australia Trip:
March 2015, Australia, Heard claims Depp went on a three-day rage, during which he attacked her many times. Both Heard and Depp agree that Depp’s fingertip was severed during this time (Depp claims Heard threw a bottle at him and cut it off, whereas Heard claims Depp cut it off himself by punching the wall and a plastic wall-mounted phone) and that he then used the injured finger to scrawl demeaning graffiti about Heard over a mirror and lampshade. Heard’s sister and her friend Rocky Pennington testified that they spotted her covered in bruises and cuts immediately after the event and that Heard informed them that Depp had assaulted her. Depp’s crew claimed they didn’t know how he lost the tip of his finger, according to texts.
Not Punching, Hitting:
Over the course of their relationship, Depp has made public audio recordings of conversations he had with Heard. Heard mentions punching Depp in the tapes, which were originally revealed by the Daily Mail shortly before the UK trial in January 2020. Heard says “I’m sorry that I didn’t … hit you across the face in a proper slap, but I was hitting you, it was not punching you. Babe, you’re not punched. I don’t know what the motion of my actual hand was, but you’re fine, I did not hurt you, I did not punch you, I was hitting you.”
Depp responds to her as; “I just couldn’t take the idea of more physicality, more physical abuse on each other,” warning Heard that “I’m scared to death we are a fucking crime scene right now.” Heard replies, “I can’t promise you I won’t get physical again. God, I fucking sometimes get so mad I lose it.”
The Faeces on the Bed:
Days after a battle with Heard and Depp, Depp saw a snapshot of feces on his bed. He stated that he did not see Heard between April 22 and May 21, 2016, because he had “received some news that was as absurd and grotesque and cruel, and then I was shown a picture of what the problem was”. He said he was given a photo of “(their) bed and on (his) side of the bed was the human fecal matter, so (he) understood why it wasn’t a good time to go down there”. Depp stated that his “initial response” was to “laugh”. He added; “It was so outside, it was so bizarre and so grotesque that I could only laugh.”
What About a Verdict?
Judge Penney Azcarate informed jurors that final arguments will be held on May 27. And before the final verdict, before Depp’s side gets the opportunity to respond, Heard’s team will complete presenting their case. Judge Azcarate stated that jury deliberations will begin immediately after closing remarks on May 27. With the volume of evidence provided, it’s hard to predict how long the jury would need to think about Depp’s defamation charges.
So far, more or less these are the pieces of evidence we have on the trial, believing to one of the sides is a personal choice, but after all, who can know the real truth behind the closed doors?
Resources:
https://ew.com/celebrity/experts-weigh-in-johnny-depp-amber-heard-defamation-trial/
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/johnny-depp-amber-heard-timeline-b2072935.html
