The verdict for the Amber Heard-Johnny Depp defamation trial in the United States has been reached by the jury.
The jury shared its verdict on June 1, ruling in favor of Depp and his defamation case against Heard. Depp was not in court for the trial, but Heard attended the reading. As per the ruling, Depp will be entitled to damages from Heard over the claims of defamation. Per the jury's verdict, Depp is entitled to $15 million in damages. The jury also ruled in favor of Heard, who countersued Depp for defamation over his claims that her own abuse allegations were a hoax. The jury believes Heard should receive $2 million in damages.
The trial was the result of Depp suing Heard for $50 million over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed the latter wrote that the former claims did damage to his career by painting him as an abuser, including costing him a $22.5 million payday for a sixth Pirates of the Caribbean film. In November 2020, Depp lost a similar case against British tabloid The Sun after the paper insinuated he was an abuser in a headline and the actor sued for libel. Days later, Warner Bros. asked him to resign from Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. Heard filed her own $100 million defamation countersuit against Depp in 2020.
Unlike the libel trial, this case has taken a different tone, with Heard receiving vicious backlash from the public on social media. Multiple petitions, including one to bring Depp back as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and another to remove Heard from Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, have emerged online as well.
In April, Heard's lawyers accused Depp of sexually assaulting the Aquaman star during the pair's marriage. Depp's camp denied the claims, telling CBR at the time, "These fictitious claims were never made at the onset of Amber’s allegations in 2016, and only advantageously surfaced years later once she was sued for defamation after noting in her op-ed that she was a victim of 'sexual violence. Words are key in a defamation case and conveniently, this allegation only came after that. This follows a pattern of her elaborate, erroneous claims which have continued to change and evolve over time for the purpose of Hollywood shock value of which Amber has mastered and used to exploit a serious social movement."
But Heard claims the alleged abuse she suffered didn't end there. In May, Heard recounted multiple allegations of assault from Depp. Taking the stand in Depp's libel lawsuit against her, Heard described several incidents during which Depp allegedly slapped or backhanded her. Heard recounted the first time she says Depp hit her. "I will never forget it," she said. "It changed my life." Heard said the two were talking about a tattoo of Depp's, which read, "Wino" -- a modified version of a tattoo Depp originally got while dating ex-girlfriend Winona Ryder. Heard said she initially couldn't read what it said and laughed when he told her. "I just laughed, because I thought he was joking. And he slapped me across the face," Heard said. "And I laughed. I laughed, because I didn’t know what else to do. I thought, 'This must be a joke.'"
After this, Depp allegedly slapped Heard again and said to her, "You think you're a funny bitch." Heard described then enduring another slap from Depp, which she said caused her to fall to the floor. Depp outright denied the incident happened, saying, "Why would I take such great offense to someone making fun of a tattoo on my body? That allegation never made any sense to me." According to Heard, many similar events followed this one.
Later in May, Heard claimed Depp tried to kill her. While Heard was under cross-examination by Depp's lawyer, Camille Vasquez, during her fourth day on the stand at their ongoing defamation trial, Vasquez played audio recordings of arguments between the couple and read love notes Heard had written to Depp after the Pirates of the Caribbean star had allegedly abused her. Vasquez then asked Heard, "You weren't scared of him at all, were you?" The actor responded, "This is a man who tried to kill me. Of course, it's scary. He's also my husband."
Depp, meanwhile, has levied his own abuse claims against Heard, alleging -- among other things -- that she nearly severed his finger with a glass bottle.
As a result of the public harassment Heard has received from the trial, the actor's lawyers compared her treatment to victim-blaming. "This whole case is about blaming Amber Heard for things she didn’t do," said Heard's lawyer, Ben Rottenborn, while addressing the jury in late May. "But that's what Mr. Depp does, that's what he's always done. Blame other people, refuse to take accountability."
If you are a U.S.-based victim of sexual assault or misconduct in need of help, contact RAINN at 800-656-4673 to be connected with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area. If you are based outside the U.S., click here for a list of international sexual assault resources.
