Johnny Depp Concludes Testimony in Defamation Case Against Amber Heard

Hollywood actor Johnny Depp concluded his four-day testimony in the defamation case filed against Amber Heard, his former wife, on Monday. The defamation trial is currently being held in a Fairfax, Virginia court.

Ben Rottenborn, Amber Heard’s attorney, cross-examined Depp during his fourth day on  the stands. During the trial, he was asked about some recorded audio clips of the actor arguing with his ex-wife. The court had listened to the recordings a few hours before the actor started his testimony.

Depp has been adamant in his claim that he hasn’t hit his former wife. Instead, he claimed to be the one hit by her on several occasions. In other words, the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ actor claims to be the one who suffered domestic abuse, not his former wife.

On being asked whether Amber Heard was the only one to have had issues with the actor’s alcohol abuse, Depp stated that if anyone had any problems with his drinking habits, it was himself. “The only person I’ve abused in my life is myself”, he added. According to him, the end phase of his relationship with his former wife was “horrific”.

Johnny Depp has sued Heard for $50 million for an opinion piece she wrote for The Washington Post way back in 2018, where she describes herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse”. Although the article doesn’t mention Depp directly at any point, the 58-year-old actor claimed that it had defamed him, which resulted in him losing lucrative acting projects. Amber Heard has counter-sued him for $100 million for having smeared her name by portraying her as a liar.

The defamation trial began on April 11 and is expected to continue over at least six more weeks. Heard hasn’t yet testified in the court on this matter.

After being cross-examined by Heard’s attorney, Depp stayed on the stand for redirect examination by Jessica Meyers, his attorney. Here, he mentioned that some of the texts produced by Heard’s attorney as evidence to his violent nature were actually meant to be irreverent. He also claimed some of these texts to be based on Monty Python movies. According to Depp, he often tends to use humor to handle difficult or unpleasant situations.

In the testimony provided to the court, Depp also claimed that he would also try to leave the room or house in an effort to de-escalate the situation during his disagreements with Heard. Describing their relationship as ‘horrific’, Depp said that no one deserves to live like that.

The testimony was concluded after his attorney played an audio recording dating back to 2016. The audio was of a recorded conversation among the two after Heard had secured a restraining order against Depp in the same year. In the recording, Depp is heard proposing that the couple issue a joint letter saying that they loved each other and the media had created a storm around them. According to Depp, this was an attempt towards finding a ‘peaceful settlement’.

However, Amber Heard resisted the idea, instead challenging him to go public with his claims of facing abuse. In the audio, she is heard saying “Tell the world Johnny, tell them Johnny Depp… I, Johnny Depp, a man… I’m a victim, too, of domestic violence. Let’s see who believes you. Let’s see who believes a white man, a white man of privilege can be a victim over a woman? Go on”

When asked by his attorney how he responded to this threat by Heard, Depp concluded by saying “I said, ‘Yes. I am.’”

Depp and Heard met each other in 2009 and got married in 2015. However, their marriage did not last long, and the couple divorced in August 2016. The former couple have accused each other of physical violence during the short while that they were married. They have both denied the claims made against them.