Tag: Amber Heard

  • Johnny Depp on stand: Ex-wife Heard’s allegations ‘heinous’

    By Associated Press

    FAIRFAX:  Actor Johnny Depp told jurors Tuesday that he felt compelled to sue his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel out of an obsession for the truth after she accused him of domestic violence.

    “My goal is the truth because it killed me that all these people I had met over the years … that these people would think that I was a fraud,” he said.

    Depp flatly denied ever hitting Heard, calling the physical and sexual assault allegations against him disturbing, heinous and “not based in any species of truth.” “Nothing of the kind ever happened,” Depp said in court.

    Alluding to the fall his career has taken since Heard levied abuse allegations against him, the former “Pirates of the Caribbean” star said, “it’s been six years of trying times. It’s very strange when one day you’re Cinderella, so to speak, and then in 0.6 seconds you’re Quasimodo.”

    For the first hour-plus of testimony Tuesday, Depp gave long, stream-of-consciousness answers to questions about his childhood and his early movie career, speaking in his signature deep baritone. After one long answer, he admitted: “I forgot what the original question was.”

    Indeed, he acknowledged his meandering style, particularly as it relates to his writing style. He mentioned his long friendship and collaborations with the late gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, and said he sought to emulate a style that often incorporated brash language and embellishing thoughts.

    He said that led him at times to write text messages that he now finds embarrassing, and he apologized to the jury for the vulgar language he used in text messages introduced as evidence to describe Heard.

    “In the heat of the moment, in the heat of the pain I was feeling, I went to dark places,” he said. But he said he’d been waiting for six years to tell his side of the story after Heard filed for divorce against him in 2016 and sought a restraining order against him.

    ALSO READ: Amber Heard to go on social media hiatus ahead of defamation lawsuit filed by Johnny Depp

    The trial began more than a week ago, but, prior to Tuesday, jurors had only seen the Hollywood star sitting silently with his team of lawyers as each side has tried to embarrass the other in a trial that Heard’s lawyers accurately predicted would turn into a mudslinging soap opera.

    After denying Heard’s abuse allegations, Depp spoke at length about a childhood in which physical abuse from his mother was “constant.” When he became a father, Depp said, he made sure his children didn’t experience that kind of upbringing.

    Depp will continue his testimony Wednesday. In Tuesday’s session, he testified primarily about the early years of his relationship with Heard, saying she seemed “too good to be true” at first.

    “She was attentive,” Depp said of the woman he married in 2015. “She was loving. She was smart. She was kind. She was funny. She was understanding … We had many things in common, certain blues music … literature.”

    He said there were little things, though, that gave him indications of a rocky relationship ahead. She became upset, he said, when he broke an established routine in which she took off his boots for him when he came home. And he said she was angry when he wouldn’t go to bed when she was ready.

    “I didn’t understand why, as a 50-some-year-old man, I couldn’t go to sleep when I wanted to,” he said.

    Depp, 58, said he was cognizant of the age difference between him and Heard, 35. “I acknowledge the fact I was the old, craggy fogey and she was this beautiful, creature,” he said. But Depp said that within a year and a half, it was as if Heard had become another person.

    Actress Amber Heard in the courtroom during a hearing at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax. (Photo | AP)

    So far, Depp’s friends, family, and employees have testified that Heard was the aggressor in the relationship, physically attacking him on multiple occasions. Heard’s former personal assistant testified that Heard spit in the face in a fit of rage.

    Heard’s lawyers have said Depp physically and sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions, often in situations where he drank so much he later blacked out. Depp said Heard’s allegations of his substance abuse have been “grossly embellished” and that there have been no moments where he’s been out of control.

    “I’m not some maniac who needs to be high or loaded all the time,” Depp said, though he admitted to doing “a line or two” of cocaine with Heard’s sister, Whitney.

    The actor said he was addicted to pain medication, which stemmed from an injury on the set of the fourth “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie. He also said he took his mother’s “nerve pills” when he was a kid. But Depp said he detoxed from the pain medication and has experienced long periods of sobriety over the years.

    “The characterization of my ‘substance abuse’ that’s been delivered by Ms. Heard is grossly embellished,” Depp said. “And I’m sorry to say, but a lot of it is just plainly false. I think that it was an easy target for her to hit.”

    The lawsuit itself is supposed to be over whether Heard libeled Depp when she wrote a 2018 op-ed piece in The Washington Post about domestic violence. In the article, Heard referred to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.”

    She never mentioned Depp by name, but Depp and his lawyers said it was a clear reference to accusations Heard made in 2016 when the couple divorced and she sought a restraining order against him.

    Heard’s lawyers, who have filed their own countersuit against Depp, said nothing in the article libels him. They say the abuse allegations are true, and that the damage to Depp’s reputation — which he says got him booted from the lucrative “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie franchise — came from his own bad behavior.

  • Amber Heard’s ex-assistant alleges actress’s claims of physical abuse are false

    By IANS

    LOS ANGELES: The ongoing legal battle between ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard has taken an interesting turn as Heard’s former assistant Kate James, has testified against her boss’s claims of physical abuse at the hands of Depp in the court, reports ‘Insider’.

    Heard is being sued by her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, for $50 million, on allegations that she defamed him by describing herself as a “figure representing domestic violence” in a 2018 op-ed in the ‘Washington Post’.

    As per ‘Insider’, Heard responded to the lawsuit by countersuing Depp, and alleging that he physically assaulted her on 10 occasions throughout their relationship. The couple parted ways in 2016, after Heard filed for a protective order in court, with what appeared to be a bruise on her face.

    Depp’s attorneys presented a prerecorded video of Kate to the jurors. During her period of working for Heard as her personal assistant from 2012 to 2015, Kate argued that she never witnessed Heard and Depp getting into verbal or physical altercations, nor did she notice any evidence of domestic violence during her regular visits to the couple’s respective homes.

    However, she said Heard did contact her in distress after arriving back at their home in Los Angeles after a private flight with Depp in May 2014. For the said incident, Heard alleged in court filings that Depp kicked her and threw objects at her on the flight because he was upset about a romantic scene she had filmed the day prior with James Franco.

    Kate also recalled how she was at the receiving end of humiliation and abuse from Heard when she asked for an increased salary. ‘Insider’ reports that she said she initially took the position for $25 per hour because the schedule was flexible enough for her to be able to pick up her son after school.

    But about six months into the job, James said, it became a full-time position. She says Heard screamed at her when she pushed back against the $50,000 salary Heard offered, which she said was about half of what she usually makes.

    Recalling the incident, Kate said, “She (Heard) leapt out of her chair and put her face approximately four inches from my face, spitting in my face, how dare I ask for the salary I’m asking for.”

  • Amber Heard to go on social media hiatus ahead of defamation lawsuit filed by Johnny Depp 

    By PTI

    LOS ANGELES: Actor Amber Heard says she will be “offline for the next several weeks” as she faces a defamation lawsuit in the US filed by her former husband and embattled Hollywood star Johnny Depp.

    Heard, who will next be seen in Warner Bros/ DC film “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom”, shared the update with her fans and followers on Instagram on Saturday night.

    “I’m going to go offline for the next several weeks. As you may know, I’ll be in Virginia where I face my ex-husband Johnny Depp in court. Johnny is suing me for an op-ed I wrote in the Washington Post, in which I recounted my experience of violence and domestic abuse,” the 35-year-old wrote in the note.

    According to Variety, Depp has launched a legal battle against Heard after she penned a Washington Post op-ed in 2018 stating that she is a survivor of domestic abuse. Although Heard did not mention Depp (58) by name in the column, she accused him of domestic violence after filing for divorce in 2016.

    In her message on Instagram, the actor said in the article in question she never named Depp but rather wrote about “the price women pay for speaking against men in power”.

    “I continue to pay that price, but hopefully when this case concludes, I can move on and so can Johnny,” she further said.

    Depp is pursuing a USD 50 million defamation lawsuit against Heard. Her plea to dismiss the suit after Depp lost his libel case in the UK was denied. The case is set to open Monday in Fairfax County, Virginia.

    In her post Heard continued she has always “maintained a love” for her former husband, adding that “it brings me great pain to have to live out the details of our past life together in front of the world”.

    “At this time, I recognize the ongoing support I’ve been fortunate to receive throughout these years, and in these coming weeks I will be leaning on it more than ever,” she added.

    In November 2020, Depp lost a UK libel case against the publisher of The Sun, a British tabloid that alleged he was a “wife-beater” in a 2018 article. The judge ruled that the words were “substantially true”.

    Later Heard requested that Depp’s defamation suit filed against her in the US be dismissed after the UK verdict came out, since both lawsuits involve allegations of Depp as an abuser. However, the Virginia court ruled that the two cases and statements were “inherently different”.

    Depp has since argued that Hollywood is “boycotting” him, pointing to the long-delayed release of his biopic “Minamata”.

    Since his losing the UK lawsuit, the actor also exited the Warner Bros franchise “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, where he had played the main antagonist role of Gellert Grindelwald in two films. Mads Mikkelsen was later recast in the role for the upcoming third film titled “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore”, which was released in the UK on April 8.

  • Johnny Depp, Amber Heard’s troubled marriage to be explored in new docuseries

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s turbulent marriage and contentious divorce is the subject of an upcoming two-episode documentary series in the works at Discovery Plus.

    As per Variety, Discovery has commissioned ‘Johnny vs Amber’, a docuseries that will tell the story of the breakdown of Depp and Heard’s relationship, and how it spiralled into a celebrity court case. The announcement regarding the upcoming project was made by Discovery UK on Friday, November 19, 2201.

    The documentary will show the different perspectives with one episode focusing on ‘The Pirates of the Caribbean’ actor’s perspective, while the other episode will focus on the ‘Aquaman’ actor’s side of the story.

    ‘Johnny vs Amber’ will feature testimony from lawyers for both stars, as well as those close to the pair. It will also examine extensive footage and audio recordings filmed by the former couple themselves.

    The documentary will be available on Discovery Plus this fall. The series was ordered for Discovery Plus by Laycock, commissioned by Charlotte Reid and executive produced by Matt Reid for Discovery.

    The documentary series is being executive produced by Nick Hornby and Fran Baker for Optomen.

    “Through the tapes, home videos and text messages shown in court, these films give viewers a rare and important insight into a marriage that went tragically wrong, and to better understand the hugely important issue of domestic violence,” Hornby said.

    As per People magazine, Heard filed for divorce from Depp in 2016 and later accused him of domestic violence. Depp has denied all the allegations levelled against him. A judge finalised their divorce in January 2017 with Heard being granted a USD 7 million settlement. Their legal battles continued when Depp sued Heard for defamation after the actor wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post in 2018 about surviving domestic violence. However, Heard never named Depp in the op-ed. The case is still ongoing.

    At the time, Depp’s lawyers said in the lawsuit, “Mr Depp never abused Ms Heard. Her allegations against him were false when they were made in 2016. They were part of an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity for Ms Heard and advance her career.”

    In response to the lawsuit, Heard’s rep told People magazine in a statement at the time, “This frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced. Mr Depp’s actions prove he is unable to accept the truth of his ongoing abusive behaviour. But while he appears hell-bent on achieving self-destruction, we will prevail in defeating this groundless lawsuit and ending the continued vile harassment of my client by Mr Depp and his legal team.”

    Depp also sued the British tabloid The Sun for libel after it called him a “wife-beater.” He lost the case in November 2020. After losing the case, Depp agreed to exit the role of dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in the ‘Harry Potter’ spinoff series, ‘Fantastic Beasts’. 

  • Johnny Depp makes rare red carpet appearance amid legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Hollywood star Johnny Depp hit the red carpet recently at the Deauville Film Festival amid his ongoing legal battle with ex-wife Amber Heard.

    According to Page Six, he attended a screening in north-western France of his film ‘City of Lies’, in which he has played a retired detective who is convinced the Los Angeles Police Department played a part in the 1997 murder of The Notorious B.I.G.

    The movie has also addressed the 1996 death of Biggie’s rap rival Tupac Shakur. The ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star wore a navy suit and a matching fedora as he strolled the red carpet, stopping several times to take photos and sign autographs for fans in attendance.

    ‘City of Lies’ had first premiered in December 2018 out of competition at the Noir in Festival in Italy. It was initially intended to be released in the US in September 2018 before being hit with several delays, which were extended even further due to the COVID pandemic.

    The crime flick has since been made available on various streaming platforms and can be seen on Hulu in the US.

    Depp’s rare red carpet appearance comes weeks after a Virginia judge ruled the actor could proceed with pressing libel charges against Heard over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed that the ‘Aquaman’ star penned claiming she had been a victim of domestic violence during their marriage.

    Depp has claimed that Heard’s accusations have resulted in him being “blacklisted” by Hollywood, which he believes to be the reason his latest film, ‘Minamata’, has yet to open in US theatres. The Oscar nominee and Heard were married from 2015 to 2017 and were embroiled in a nasty divorce proceeding that included numerous allegations of abuse.

    As per Page Six, the exes have both denied mistreating each other, though they acknowledged in a joint statement in 2016 that their “relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile.”

  • Johnny Depp’s libel suit against Amber Heard will proceed despite UK ruling

    By ANI

    WASHINGTON: Despite a devastating legal loss in the United Kingdom, Hollywood actor Johnny Depp will get a second libel trial to try to show that he didn’t physically abuse his ex-wife Amber Heard.

    As per The Hollywood Reporter, Depp has been allowed to move forward with his defamation lawsuit against Heard.

    The 58-year-old actor is suing his ex-wife over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed where Heard wrote about surviving domestic violence. Heard never named Depp in the op-ed, but she did accuse the actor of domestic violence amid their 2016 split, which he denied.

    In court documents obtained by People magazine on Tuesday, a Virginia judge granted the actor the right to pursue his lawsuit, denying Heard’s supplemental plea to dismiss the case after Depp lost his UK libel lawsuit against British tabloid The Sun.

    In November 2020, the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star lost his case against the British tabloid which called him a ‘wife-beater’. The court upheld the outlet’s claims as being “substantially true.”

    Heard’s plea to dismiss Depp’s lawsuit, filed in Virginia in March 2019, came as the actor argued the UK judgment should hold sway on the proceedings in the US since both lawsuits centre on allegations of the actor as an abuser.

    Instead, Fairfax County Chief Judge Penney Azcarate rejected Heard’s plea, saying while the actor’s op-ed and The Sun’s article may be similar in that they related to claims of abuse, the statements made by the tabloid and Heard’s in her op-ed were “inherently different.”

    “Heard argues she was in privity with The Sun because they both had the same interest in the case. However, for privity to exist, Heard’s interest in the case must be so identical with The Sun’s interest such that The Sun’s representation of its interest is also a representation of Heard’s legal right,” Azcarate wrote in her ruling.

    “The Sun’s interests were based on whether the statements the newspaper published were false. Heard’s interests relate to whether the statements she published were false.”

    Azcarate added Heard hadn’t been named a party in Depp’s lawsuit against The Sun because her op-ed was published after he sued the tabloid.

    In her December 2018 op-ed, Heard wrote, “I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out.”

    Three months after it was published, Depp filed a defamation lawsuit against the actor for USD 50 million. At the time, Depp’s lawyers said in the lawsuit, “Mr Depp never abused Ms Heard. Her allegations against him were false when they were made in 2016. They were part of an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity for Ms Heard and advance her career.”

    In response to the lawsuit, Heard’s rep told People magazine in a statement, “This frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced. Mr Depp’s actions prove he is unable to accept the truth of his ongoing abusive behaviour. But while he appears hell-bent on achieving self-destruction, we will prevail in defeating this groundless lawsuit and ending the continued vile harassment of my client by Mr Depp and his legal team.”

    Following the loss of his libel case against The Sun, Depp attempted to appeal but two UK justices refused his application for a fresh trial on the grounds that a second hearing was unlikely to produce a different outcome.

    Depp also agreed to exit the role of dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in the ‘Harry Potter’ spinoff series, ‘Fantastic Beasts’.

    Earlier this month, Depp was granted permission to determine if Heard had donated part of her USD 7 million divorce settlement to the ACLU. Heard previously pledged to donate the settlement to the ACLU and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles after their divorce was finalised in 2017.

    In a July 22 hearing transcript provided to People magazine by Heard’s attorney Elaine Bredehoft said her client is still planning to donate one half of her total settlement to the ACLU and the other half to CHLA — and while “it is undetermined what those payment schedules will be,” Heard has already made “the first payment toward the pledges” and then some — specifically, “more than a million” each to the ACLU and CHLA.

    “We produced the documents from the ACLU on how much she has. She has always said she fully intends to continue to give the full USD 7 million, but she can’t do it yet. She will do it when she can. But she has given a significant amount to both,” Bredehoft added of Heard, in part.

    In an interview with The Sunday Times last week, Depp claimed there was a “boycott” of him in Hollywood as he discussed his latest film, ‘Minamata’. The movie premiered in the UK last week but has not been given a US release.

    Depp plays W. Eugene Smith, a photojournalist who visited the town of Minamata in Japan in the 1970s to document the effects of mercury poisoning there. 

  • Amber Heard announces arrival of baby girl Oonagh Paige via surrogacy

    By PTI
    LOS ANGELES: Hollywood star Amber Heard says she welcomed her first child, a baby girl, in April through surrogacy. The “Aquaman” star announced the arrival of her daughter on Instagram on Thursday.

    “I’m so excited to share this news with you. Four years ago, I decided I wanted to have a child. I wanted to do it on my own terms. I now appreciate how radical it is for us as women to think about one of the most fundamental parts of our destinies in this way,” Heard wrote alongside a photo of her tenderly cradling the baby.

    My daughter was born on April 8, 2021. Her name is Oonagh Paige Heard. She’s the beginning of the rest of my life.
    — Amber Heard (@realamberheard) July 1, 2021

    “I hope we arrive at a point in which it’s normalised to not want a ring in order to have a crib,” the 35-year-old actor added. Heard said her daughter was born on April 8 and has been named Oonagh Paige Heard.

    “A part of me wants to uphold that my private life is none of anyone’s business. I also get that the nature of my job compels me to take control of this. My daughter was born on April 8, 2021. Her name is Oonagh Paige Heard. She’s the beginning of the rest of my life,” she added.

    The actor, who is currently in a relationship with cinematographer Bianca Butti, appears to have named the newborn after her late mother Paige, who died in May 2020. Heard was previously married to Hollywood star Johnny Depp from February 2015 to May 2016.

    The two have since divorced and were subsequently embroiled in a legal battle over domestic violence allegations, that continues to this day.