Topline
Amber Heard took the stand in Johnny Depp’s $50 million defamation suit against her Thursday, and claimed the Pirates Of The Caribbean actor sexually, emotionally and physically abused her during their relationship.
US actress Amber Heard testifies at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia, on … [+]
Key Facts
While crying, Heard recounted a 2015 fight between her and her then-husband in which she claimed Depp hit her, choked her, threw bottles at her and sexually assaulted her with a bottle.During his testimony, Depp denied he assaulted Heard and claimed she threw bottles at him and severed his finger when one shattered. Heard said Depp told her “I’ll f**king kill you” and held up a broken bottle to her and threatened to “carve up” her face during the 2015 incident.
After the fight, Heard said she found messages written to her by Depp in his blood—something Depp admitted to doing during his testimony.
Heard said Depp often hit her during their relationship, describing several instances of times he put his hands on her, and said “nothing I did made him stop hitting me,” including her fighting back physically, screaming at him, freezing or threatening to leave him.
Heard said Depp frequently accused her of cheating on him, sometimes with her co-stars like James Franco—who Depp “hated”— and Depp would become angry with Heard when she had to perform a romantic scene and didn’t tell him.
Crucial Quote
“This is the most painful and difficult thing I have ever gone through,” Heard said about the trial when starting her testimony Wednesday.
Chief Critic
During his time on the stand, Depp denied ever abusing Heard, saying “the only person I’ve abused in my life is myself,” and that he was a victim of domestic violence.
Key Background
Depp, 58, is suing Heard, 36, over a 2018 Op-Ed for the Washington Post she wrote in which she described herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” Heard didn’t mention Depp by name in the piece, but he argues the insinuation he was an abuser cost him his acting career. Heard and Depp divorced in 2016, when she filed a temporary restraining order against him and said he abused her, which he denied. The couple later settled their split and released a joint statement, writing “our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love. Neither party has made false accusations for financial gain. There was never any intent of physical or emotional harm.” Depp also sued a British newspaper, The Sun, for libel for referring to him as a “wife beater,” which he lost. Heard countersued Depp for $100 million in 2021. In his testimony, Depp painted Heard as the aggressor in their relationship. Though text messages were shown in which Depp described his ex-wife as a ““slippery w***e” and other graphic terms, the actor said he was using abstract humor in the vein of Monty Python.
Further Reading
Amber Heard ‘Felt Nothing’ For Elon Musk, Psychologist Testifies During Defamation Trial (Forbes)
Musk Likely Paid Portion Of Amber Heard’s Pledged ACLU Donations, Exec Testifies (Forbes)
Johnny Depp Defamation Trial: Here Are The Key Moments From The Actor’s Testimony (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2022/05/05/amber-heard-accuses-johnny-depp-of-sexual-physical-abuse-on-stand-in-defamation-trial/