If you haven’t been under a rock for the past six almost seven weeks, by now you must be aware of the libel trial Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are facing after the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ actor sued the actress and ex-wife for defamation. All because, allegedly, she pointed out him as a domestic abuser in an op-ed she wrote for the Washington Post. Now the jury has given him the reason and concluded that Heard must pay him 15 million dollars.
A lot has happened in those six weeks. During this time, we learned that Johnny Depp has been into rehab several times, that Amber did take her dogs into Australia without the proper documentation, and that both, have anger and violence problems which turned their relationship into a mutual abusive one.
Here is a quick recap of the trial that shook the Hollywood world and that could damage what has been walked through in terms of victims of domestic abuse.
The lawsuit
In April 2022, Johnny Depp filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife for defamation after in an op-ed signed by Amber Heard, the actress revealed she had suffered from domestic violence. Although Depp’s name wasn’t mentioned, he argued that it was implied and that those allegations were damaging his image and career.
The lawsuit was brought to the U.S after Johnny Depp lost a similar case in the English court in which the tabloid The Sun called him “wife beater” in consequence of Heard’s op-ed.
It was clear they had a mutually abusive relationship
Throughout the trial, both parties took the stand to give their testimonies about their relationship. In both cases, it was clear that both had gone through some kind of abuse.
Johnny Depp declared that he felt diminished and abused during the time he was married to Amber and that she was “in need of violence”; while the actress said that Depp turned into a monster every time he consumed illegal substances and that he was manipulative and controller.
Amber said that Johnny turned violent after she worked with James Franco because he believed they both had an affair. Johnny Depp accused Amber of cheating with Elon Musk although Amber’s publicist revealed they did date after the divorce.
One of the most polemic incidents has to do with an injury Johnny had on his finger and which happened during their time in Australia while filming Pirates of the Caribbean.
Different allegations were made
Amber Heard revealed that Johnny Depp had drug and anger problems, while during one of the testimonies was revealed that Amber failed to complain to Australian legislation when she entered the country with her dogs without the proper documentation and which could make her face another trial in that country.
It was also revealed that up to this day, Amber hasn’t been able to complete her pledge of donating her divorce settlement to two charities and that Elon Musk made several donations on her behalf.
The witnesses
During the trial, psychology experts, as well as Hollywood industry representatives were called to testify. Some to talk about the psychological traits of both parties to the point of diagnosing Amber with PTS and Johnny being called a narcissist.
However, there were two witnesses that caught the attention. Amber’s sister, Whitney Henriquez and Kate Moss. During the trial, Whitney’s boss’s deposition in the U.K court revealed that it was Whitney who was afraid of Amber and feared for Johnny’s life.
Ellen Barkin, Depp’s former partner also testified in the trial on Amber’s behalf, just as she did in the 2020 U.K case where she claimed that Depp was verbally abusive during their short relationship, and accused the actor of throwing a bottle of wine across a hotel room while they were dating.
However one of the most expected testimonies was the one of Kate Moss, who got called to the stand after Amber Head wrongfully mentioned her name.
The English model refused the story in which, allegedly, Johnny Depp threw her off the stairs when they were dating.
The legal teams
But witnesses and testimonies weren’t the only spicy thing going on during the trial. The participation of both legal teams was much commented on social media, especially Camille Vazquez, the young attorney that took the spotlight during the cross-examination and Elaine Bredehoft, who was defending Amber Heard.
