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Johnny Depp wins defamation trial against Amber Heard, awarded over $10m in damages

Jurors spent about 12 hours deliberating over three days in the defamation trial that has pitted the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star against "Aquaman" actress Amber Heard. The jury rejected Heard's claims that Depp had abused her. The panel awarded Heard $2m in damages in her countersuit.

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Johnny Depp wins defamation case against Amber Heard

Johnny Depp won his defamation case against Amber Heard Wednesday with a jury awarding him $15 million after a bombshell seven-week trial marked by shocking allegations of abuse leveled by both sides.

The jury found in favor of Depp on all counts, indicating that the seven-member panel did not credit Heard's allegations of domestic violence and sexual assault.

Judge Penney Azcarate reduced Depp's punitive damages award from $5 million to $350,000 – the maximum under Virginia law, bringing the total sum to just over $10 million.  

Depp, 58, who is on tour with guitarist Jeff Beck in England, did not show up for the verdict, while Heard, 36, sat at the defense table wearing a somber expression as she listened to the decision in Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp spotted at Newcastle pub before major win in defamation case

Johnny Depp, wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, greeted patrons at a Newcastle pub in England about one hour before the jury in his defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard reached a verdict.

"Surreal to have met this man an hour before the verdict came in for him and I'm so pleased he's in my home town of Newcastle able to relax, celebrate and enjoy himself," wrote Gary Spedding, who posted the picture of Depp on Twitter.

Newcastle is in northeast England and a few miles from Gateshead, where Depp is scheduled to perform with guitarist Jeff Beck Thursday night as part of a music tour.

Depp wasn't in the courtroom Wednesday when the jury awarded him more than $10 million in damages finding that his ex-wife had defamed him by calling him an abuser in a 2018 op-ed.

The panel also found in Heard's favor as to one of her claims in her countersuit, awarding her $2 million.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard issue statements following the jury’s verdict

The jury in the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial delivered a verdict on Wednesday and awarded the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star with $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.

Judge Penney Azcarate reduced Depp's punitive damages award from $5 million to $350,000 – the maximum under Virginia law, bringing the total sum to just over $10 million. 

Both parties issued separate statements following the news. "The disappointment I feel today is beyond words," Heard's statement said. "I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence and sway of my ex-husband.

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Posted by Janelle Ash

Johnny Depp trial watchers proclaim "Justice for Johnny!" after verdict read

FAIRFAX, Va. – Court watchers waiting outside the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial responded to the jury's verdict announced Wednesday.

"Shock, happiness," one woman, Nuha, told Fox News as she wiped away tears. "I never thought he'd win, so this is amazing."

The jury awarded Depp more than $10 million in the defamation lawsuit he'd filed against his ex-wife. The Pirates of the Caribbean star said Heard, who received $2 million for her own accusations, defamed him when she wrote in a 2018 op-ed that she was a victim of domestic abuse.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Lisa Bennatan

Johnny Depp's legal team speaks to reporters outside the courthouse

Johnny Depp fans erupted in cheers as his lead lawyers, Ben Chew and Camille Vasquez, exited the courthouse and gave a brief statement.

"Today's verdict confirms what we had said from the beginning that the claims against Johnny Depp are defamatory and unsupported by any evidence We are grateful, so grateful to the jury for their careful deliberation, to the judge and the court staff," Vasquez said.

Chew said his team was "truly honored" to represent Depp and "pleased the trial resonated for so many people in the public who value truth and justice."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp issues statement celebrating victory

After Johnny Depp won his defamation case against ex-wife Amber Heard, he released the following statement through his publicist.

"Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed." 

"All in the blink of an eye. False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me. It had already traveled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career." 

"And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled. My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that I would be facing and the inevitable, worldwide spectacle into my life, was only made after considerable thought. 

"From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me.

"I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that. I am, and have been, overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and the colossal support and kindness from around the world. I hope that my quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up."

"I also hope that the position will now return to innocent until proven guilty, both within the courts and in the media. I wish to acknowledge the noble work of the Judge, the jurors, the court staff and the Sheriffs who have sacrificed their own time to get to this point, and to my diligent and unwavering legal team who did an extraordinary job in helping me to share the truth. The best is yet to come and a new chapter has finally begun."

"Veritas numquam perit. Truth never perishes. "

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Jury awards Johnny Depp $13 million more than it awards Amber Heard

In a sweeping victory for Johnny Depp, the seven-member panel found in the actor's favor on all counts and awarded him $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.

In a token win for Amber Heard, the jury found that a single statement in her countersuit was defamatory and awarded her $2 million in compensatory damages and nothing in punitive damages.

The verdict indicates that the jury did not believe Depp had abused Heard. Judge Penney Azcarate reduced the $5 million punitive damages sum to $350,000 -- the maximum allowed under Virginia law.

Heard, flanked by her sister, ducked out of the courthouse without speaking to the press after the devastating loss.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard issues statement following loss in defamation trial

Amber Heard released a statement through her publicist shortly following the jury's decision to award her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, $15 million in damages in his defamation case against the "Aquaman" actress.

“The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband," Heard said in her statement.

"I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously," she continued.

"I believe Johnny’s attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK," Heard noted. "I’m sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American – to speak freely and openly.”

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Jury awards Amber Heard $2 million in compensatory damages

The jury also found in favor of Amber Heard in her countersuit against Johnny Depp, awarding her $2 million in compensatory damages.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp awarded $15 million in damages -- but judge reduces sum

In a sweeping victory Wednesday, Johnny Depp was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and another $5 million in punitive damages.

Judge Penney Azcarate reduced the punitive damages sum to $350,000 -- the maximum allowed under Virginia law.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp wins defamation case against Amber Heard

Johnny Depp won his defamation case against Amber Heard in a sweeping victory.

The seven-panel jury found in Depp's favor on each defamation allegation. Heard wore a stoic expression, as the verdict was read in court.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jury enters the courtroom -- then leaves

The seven-member panel entered the courtroom.

Judge Penney Azcarate informed the jury that they must enter the damages portion of the verdict form, indicating the amount each side should be awarded. She then sent them back to the deliberation room.

The omission suggests that the jury found there were defamatory statements on at least one side.

Heard, wearing all black, wore a somber expression. Johnny Depp is on tour in the UK with guitarist Jeff Beck.

Dozens of Depp supporters showed up after news of the verdict went out and gathered in front of the courthouse.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Amber Heard arrives for verdict

Amber Heard is in the courtroom waiting to hear the jury's decision. Johnny Depp is not. Her sister, Whitney Henriquez Heard, sat behind her in the front row of the gallery.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp will not be present for verdict, Amber Heard will

A source close to Johnny Depp confirmed he will not be present for the verdict.

"Due to previously scheduled work commitments made before the trial, Mr. Depp will not be physically present for today's 3 p.m. verdict and will be watching from the United Kingdom," the source said.

Depp, 58, has been touring with guitarist Jeff Beck in England and has performed three shows since the jury began deliberations Friday.

Heard is en route to the courthouse.

"Your presence shows where your priorities are," said a spokesperson for Heard. "Johnny Depp plays guitar in the UK while Amber Heard waits for a verdict in Virginia. Depp is taking his snickering and lack of seriousness on tour."

The CEO of Herald PR, Juda Engelmayer, who represents Harvey Weinstein, said it was a bad look for Depp.

“He’s already assuming he’s won, and it shows complete arrogance," Engelmayer told Fox News Digital.

“It’s like he thinks he's a rock star and above it all. I would have urged him to get back here, or at the very least, told him to stay out of the public eye."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors reach verdict in Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard

The verdict won't be announced until 3 p.m. The panel of seven jurors took a short lunch break that ended at 12:45 p.m.

Amber Heard is expected to be present, while Johnny Depp is not. The jurors deliberated for nearly 13 hours over three days.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jury breaks for lunch until 12:45 p.m.

The seven-member panel will be on lunch break until 12:45 p.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Monica Lewinsky weighs in on Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard

Monica Lewinsky weighed in on the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard trial in an op-ed Tuesday, calling it "courtroom porn and a "pure car wreck."

"We have become so attuned to this narrow, cynical cycle of social media encounters that we consider the trial not tragic or pathetic, but as a pure car wreck: accessible, tawdry, and immediately gratifying," she wrote of Fairfax County Circuit Court civil trial in Virginia that has been live-streamed on almost every major media outlet. 

She called the seven-week spectacle "courtroom porn" that the public now consumes through biased social media feeds in the Vanity Fair piece.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors began deliberating at 9 a.m.

The panel of seven members started its third day of deliberations Wednesday morning at 9 a.m.

They got the case on Friday but only spent two hours weighing the matter before they were sent home for the long weekend.

They returned on Tuesday and slogged away for another seven hours before informing the court they were ready to go home for the night.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Kate Moss attends Johnny Depp's concern in London

Supermodel Kate Moss attended Johnny Depp's rock concert Tuesday in London, as he awaits a verdict in his $50 million defamation suit against his ex-wife Amber Heard, a source confirmed. 

It was Depp's third performance alongside legendary guitarist Jeff Beck, and he invited Moss as his guest, according to the source. 

Photos posted online show Depp on stage rocking out Tuesday — one day after receiving a standing ovation at the same venue.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jury dismissed after more than nine hours of deliberations

The jury hasn't reached a verdict after more than nine hours of deliberations over two days. They will resume weighing the case Wednesday morning at 9 a.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp is staying at Ritz, dining on chicken parm during bombshell trial

Johnny Depp has been camped out at the Ritz-Carlton in Virginia during his marathon defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, recuperating from his daily courtroom grind with chicken Parmigiana dinners and red wine, sources told Fox News Digital.

Jurors received the sensational case on Friday and deliberated for two hours before breaking for Memorial Day weekend. They returned Tuesday to continue weighing the case.

Located roughly 15 minutes away from the Fairfax County Courthouse, the five-star property is in McLean, Virginia, conveniently connected to a high-end shopping mall that boasts Louis Vuitton and Gucci among other luxury retailers.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors in Johnny Depp defamation case ask first question

The panel of seven jurors returned form lunch at 1 p.m. A short time later, the panel informed the court that it had a question.

The jury asked Judge Penney Azcarate to clarify whether a question on jury instructions referred to Amber Heard's entire op-ed or just the title, "I spoke up against sexual violence and faced our culture's wrath."

Th judge sent back a note indicating the question referred to only the headline.

"The statement is the headline and not the entire op-ed," Azcarate said in court.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jury is on lunch break until 1 p.m.

The seven-member panel is on a lunch break until 1 p.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Lily-Rose Depp turns 23 amid dad's ugly defamation trial

Lily-Rose Depp celebrated her 23rd birthday amid her father's $100 million defamation suit against ex-wife Amber Heard.

Depp turned 23 on May 27 and marked the milestone on Instagram Sunday with two snaps of herself in a pink camisole wearing a matching pink "Birthday Princess" sash.

In one shot, the actress, a Chanel brand ambassador, smiled as she sat in front of a bunk bed. A bouquet of pink roses tied with a pink bow is featured in another picture from the same day and has garnered more than 1.2 million likes.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyers show up to court Tuesday

Johnny Depp's legal team -- including Camille Vasquez and Ben Chew -- showed up to the Fairfax County Courthouse Tuesday morning shortly before jurors resumed deliberations in the actor's defamation case.

An hour later, Vasquez, wearing white, her signature color, and the other Depp lawyers, departed the courthouse briefly before returning, where a panel of seven jurors is deliberating.

Depp is likely still in England, where he's on tour with guitarist Jeff Beck, while Heard remains nearby in case a verdict comes in, sources told Fox News Digital.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp fans drives by courthouse with an elaborate makeshift pirate ship

A Johnny Depp fan circled the courthouse twice Tuesday hauling a makeshift pirate ship on a trailer bed.

The elaborate prop outfitted with rope, an anchor and an intricate"Pirates of the Caribbean" mural drove by as jurors resumed deliberations Tuesday.

A life-sized figure of a pirate was attached to the bow next to a cannon in homage to Depp's most famous movie role.

The bizarre trial has featured eccentric Depp fans -- including a man dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Will Johnny Depp be in court for the verdict?

Johnny Depp played London Royal Albert Hall in England Monday night alongside guitarist Jeff Beck.

His team will not confirm whether he'll be present when the jury reaches a verdict at Fairfax County Courthouse -- but it doesn't seem likely.

His lawyer, Camille Vasquez, asked Judge Penney Azcarate last week whether Depp had to be there, and she said no.

After seven grueling weeks, Depp jetted off to England over the weekend to tour with Beck.

The jury deliberated for just two hours Friday before they were dismissed. They're due back in court Tuesday morning to resume deliberations.

With the trial's headliner likely absent, only a dozen or so fans showed up Tuesday morning to get into the courtroom. Heard will be present for the verdict, a source close to her team confirmed.

More than 300 people waited in line last week for hours to catch a glimpse of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors go home for the weekend

Jurors deliberated for two hours Friday without reaching a verdict.

The seven-member panel, composed of five men and two women, were sent home for the long weekend.

Judge Penney Azcarate instructed them to return Tuesday at 9 a.m. to continue weighing the case.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Summations wrap, jurors begin deliberations

Jurors began deliberations Friday afternoon at about 3 p.m. after listening to summations for more than four hours.

Seven jurors will decide whether to award Johnny Depp $50 million over an op-ed Amber Heard wrote identifying herself as a victim of domestic abuse.

Depp's legal team argued that the piece wasn't true and ruined his reputation and career.

The panel will also weigh Heard's $100-million counterclaim against Depp for allegedly conspiring with his lawyer to defame her by calling her abuse allegations a hoax.

The jury, who is composed of five men and two women, has spent six weeks listening to testimony and can now discuss the case for the first time.

Judge Penney Azcarate didn't say how late jurors would deliberate but said she won't serve dinner.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Kate Moss' is not on Johnny Depp's payroll

Amber Heard's lawyers argued that most of Johnny Depp's witnesses were on his payroll.

But, in Camille Vasquez's rebuttal, she listed the numerous witnesses who were not, including supermodel Kate Moss, who testified for Depp.

"Kate Moss is most definitely not on Mr. Depp’s payroll," said Vasquez, who pointed out that the actress had few supporters in or outside of court.

"You may have noticed no one showed up but her sister," she said of Whitney Henriquez Heard, who was sitting in the gallery.

Hundreds of fans have shown up every day for Depp, while Heard's supporters can be counted on one hand.

“This is a woman who burns bridges, her close friends don’t show up for her,” said Vasquez, referring to testimony from Rocky Pennington and Melanie Inglessis.

They both said they were no longer friends with Heard but testified on her behalf.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'The First Amendment doesn't protect lies, 'Johnny Depp's lawyer says

Camille Vasquez told jurors in her rebuttal summation that the "the First Amendment doesn't protect lies."

She called Amber Heard's testimony a "performance" and her a story "a constantly moving target."

"You saw her get caught in lie after lie," she said. "Ms. Heard has no right to tell the world that Mr. Depp physically or sexually assaulted her when that isn’t true. That’s not protected speech."

Depp is suing Heard for $50 million over a 2018 op-ed in which she identified herself as a survivor of domestic abuse.

"A  person's life cannot and should not be destroyed by a baseless charge and no opportunity to defend yourself," Vasquez said. That’s why Mr. Depp had to bring this change.”

Heard is countersuing Depp for $100 million, alleging that he conspired with his lawyer, Adam Waldman, to defame her by calling her allegations an "abuse hoax."

But Vasquez argued that Heard had not proven that Depp had helped craft or sign off on Waldman's statements to the press.

Further, she said, Heard hasn't shown that she lost a single job opportunity due to the alleged defamatory statements.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Lawyer says Amber Heard has no reason to lie

Amber Heard's lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, told jurors Amber Heard had no motive to lie.

She said that California is a no-fault divorce state, and Heard was entitled to half of what Depp earned during their marriage. Depp allegedly made $65 million and all Heard got was $7 million for the one-year union.

Depp's team has called Heard a "gold digger," and said she publicly promised to donate the sum to charity but, instead, pocketed it.

But Bredehoft said that the words "donate and pledge are interchangeable," and the actress still intends to fulfill the promise.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Of course it was Boo,' Amber Heard's lawyer says of feces in marital bed

Amber Heard's lawyer Friday blamed the couple's teacup Yorkie for the excrement in their marital bed.

"Boo has this huge problem," Elaine Bredehoft told jurors of the 4-pound dog. "Of course it was Boo. He was always doing this, but Johnny just won’t get there."

Johnny Depp testified that the poop was far too large to have come from the tiny pup. Depp's driver said Heard admitted to him that it was a horrible prank gone wrong.

Bredehoft described the May 21, 2016, fight, when Depp showed up at their penthouse after they hadn't seen each other for a month.

He was on a "tear about feces," and he had already been drinking and was high, she said. ”He just won’t let it go," the lawyer told jurors.

After Heard laughed with her friend on the phone about the accusation, Depp allegedly bashed her in the face with a cellphone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Ben Rottenborn says trial is about more than Amber Heard and Johnny Depp

Amber Heard's lawyer, Ben Rottenborn, told jurors in his closing line that the significance of this defamation trial is greater than both parties.

"This trial is about so much more than Johnny and Amber Heard," he said in summations. "It's about freedom of speech. Stand up for it, protect it, and reject Mr. Depp's claims against Amber."

Rottenborn then handed the reins off to Elaine Bredehoft to address Heard's $100 million countersuit.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard on verge of tears as lawyer describes alleged liquor-bottle assault

Amber Heard fought back tears Friday, as her lawyer described Johnny Depp's alleged sexual assault of her with a liquor bottle.

He showed jurors pictures of the bar area in Australia after the blowout 2015 fight that left Depp missing a piece of his finger. Rottenborn read a line from Heard's testimony, "I didn’t know if the bottle he had inside me was broken.”

Heard testified that Depp repeatedly penetrated her with the liquor bottle while in a drug-fueled rage.

Rottenborn paused, as Heard's face became emotional and she look like she was about to cry.

The attorney insisted that Heard had nothing to do with Depp's injured finger, but even if she "chopped it off with an ax, it would have nothing to do with if Mr. Depp abused her."

Rottenborn also scolded Depp and his attorneys for laughing and smiling, as he went through each incident of alleged sexual assault and domestic violence.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard summations interrupted by an Amber Alert

About 15 minutes into Amber Heard's lawyer's summation, an Amber Alert went off in the courtroom.

Ben Rottenborn's presentation was briefly interrupted, as Judge Penney Azcarate instructed those in the courtroom to shut off their phones.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Video of Johnny Depp violently slamming cabinets shown to jurors

Amber Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn played jurors a video of Johnny Depp violently slamming cabinets during summations.

The footage was filmed by Heard and later appeared on TMZ. Depp's team says she sold it or gave it to the gossip site.

Rottenborn also displayed some of Depp's text messages discussing Heard and described him as using the "most vile, disgusting language you could ever imagine."

In a text to actor Paul Bettany, Depp wrote "Let's drown her. Let's drown her before we burn her" and later said he would "f--- her burnt corpse."

"These words are a window into the heart and mind of America’s favorite pirate," the attorney said. "This is the real Johnny Depp."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's lawyer says her op-ed protected by First Amendment

Amber Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn kicked off summations by telling jurors the First Amendment protects the actress's op-ed about surviving domestic abuse.

"The statements she wrote were not false, and the First Amendment protects them," Rottenborn said, as Heard, wearing a gray suit, looked on.

A lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union proposed the op-ed and actually wrote the first draft, he said.

He called Johnny Depp's claims that Heard is lying "victim-blaming and most disgusting."

Rottenborn argued that if Depp abused Heard even once in any form, Heard wins.

“We’re not just talking about physical abuse, we’re talking about emotional abuse, psychological abuse, financial abuse sexual abuse," Rottenborn told jurors. "If you think they were both abusive to each other, then Amber wins."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer Ben Chew says case is not about money

After Camille Vasquez wrapped up her portion of summations, she handed off the podium to Ben Chew, who walked jurors through the jury form and the damages portion of the case.

Chew told the panel of nine jurors, two of whom are alternates, that this case is not about Johnny Depp's $50 million lawsuit against Amber Heard, but the actor's legacy.

“This case for Mr. Depp has never been about money nor is it about punishing Ms. Heard," he said. "It is about Mr. Depp's reputation and freeing him from the prison in which he has lived for the last six years...It’s about showing Mr Depp’s children, Lily-Rose and Jack, that the truth is worth fighting for.”

Depp hugged Chew in the courtroom.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Photos contradict Amber Heard's testimony, Johnny Depp's lawyer says

Camille Vasquez showed jurors photos of Amber Heard snapped at events or by paparazzi after alleged attacks by Johnny Depp.

There are no visible injuries on Heard, who has said she used makeup to cover up bruises and a broken nose.

"What we have is a mountain of unproven allegations that are over the top and implausible," Vasquez told jurors. "You either believe all of it or none of it."

She continued, "Either she’s a victim of truly horrific abuse, or she’s a woman who is willing to say absolutely anything.”

Vasquez said that Heard had doctored photos showing redness under her eye after the actress alleged that Depp bashed her in the face with a cellphone May 21, 2016.

Heard went to a Los Angeles courthouse six days later to obtain a restraining order against Depp. When she emerged from the building, her photo was taken with bruises under her right eye.

Vasquez said Heard tipped off TMZ to her presence, who knew she would have a bruise and would pause for the picture. The next day, her photo was taken with her former best friend, Rocky Pennington, and the two are laughing. Depp has no visible bruise on her face.

“Its not her story. It’s not Ms. Heard’s story," Vasquez said of the actress's claim she is a domestic violence victim. "It was an act of profound cruelty, not just to Mr. Depp, but to true survivors of domestic abuse for Ms. Heard to hold herself as a public figure for domestic violence. It was false, it was defamatory, and it caused irreparable harm.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Ms. Heard spun a story,' Camille Vasquez says of alleged liquor-bottle rape

Camille Vasquez said that Amber Heard's account of the 2015 blowout brawl in Australia that left Johnny Depp missing a piece of his finger was fabricated.

“Ms. Heard spun a story of horror, a three-day ordeal with a violent Mr. Depp assaulting her," Vasquez said in summations, describing Heard's testimony of being bent over and raped with a Maker's Mark bottle.

"She claimed she had bruises on her face, cuts all over her arms and feet and was bleeding from her vagina from the sexual assault," Vasquez said, as Heard closed her eyes tightly.

Vasquez pointed out that Heard took pictures of the messages Depp had scrawled on mirrors with his injured finger but none of her alleged injuries.

Several witnesses also testified that they saw no injuries on Heard after the fight, and she never sought medical treatment.

The "Aquaman" actress also never told anyone she had been sexually assaulted until Depp sued her in 2019, Vasquez noted.

"Either she’s a victim of truly horrific abuse, or she’s a woman who is willing to say absolutely anything," Vasquez said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'It was a performance,' Camille Vasquez says of Amber Heard's testimony

“We told you this would be a performance a role of a lifetime , a survivor of brutal domestic abuse," Camille Vasquez said of Amber Heard in summations.

Vasquez reminded jurors that Heard's acting coach Kristy Sexton said she had difficult crying on cue.

"Ms. Heard has difficulty crying when she’s acting," Vasquez said. You saw it, Ms. Heard sobbing without tears while spinning elaborate exaggerated, fantastical accounts of abuse.”

Vasquez continued, “It was a performance.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard falsely claimed she donated $7 million, Johnny Depp's lawyer says

Camille Vasquez reminded jurors Thursday that Amber Heard promised to pay her full $7 million divorce settlement to two charities.

Vasquez said Heard donated less than $1 million to the American Civil Liberties Union and just $250,000 to the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. Jurors were then played a video of Heard telling a Dutch talk show host that she had donated the sum in full.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer plays recordings of Amber Heard admitting to abusing the actor

Camille Vasquez played several recordings Thursday during summations of Amber Heard admitting to hitting Johnny Depp.

"I'm sorry that I didn't hit you across the face in a proper slap, but I was not punching you," Heard is heard saying before calling him a "baby."

In another clip, she admitted she started the physical fight.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'There's an abuser in this courtroom and it is not Mr. Depp,' Camille Vasquez says

Camille Vasquez accused Amber Heard of being the abuser in her toxic relationship with Johnny Depp.

"There is an abuser in this courtroom and it is not Mr. Depp. There is a victim of domestic violence in this courtroom but it is not Ms. Heard," Vasquez said. "Ms. Heard is in fact the abuser and Mr. Depp the abused."

Vasquez called Heard a "deeply troubled person, violent, afraid of abandonment, desperate for attention and approval."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Camille Vasquez kicks of summations

Camille Vasquez told jurors Friday morning that Amber Heard "ruined" Johnny Depp's life with false domestic violence allegations.

"On May 27, 2016, Ms. Heard walked into a courthouse in Los Angeles, California, to get a no notice ex parte restraining order against Mr. Depp, and in doing so, ruined his life by falsely telling the world she was a survivor of domestic abuse at the hand of Mr. Depp," Vasquez said.

She continued, "Today on May 27, 2022, exactly six years later, we ask you to give Mr. Depp his life back." 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Trial begins with jury instructions for deliberations

Once Judge Penney Azcarate wraps up jury instructions, both sides will deliver closing arguments.

Each summation is expected to take about two hours.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp fans flock to the courthouse where closing arguments will begin shortly

Johnny Depp fans began lining up outside the Fairfax courthouse Thursday night to get into the courtroom Friday and get a glimpse of the actor during closing arguments.

Only the first 100 got a coveted wristband -- their ticket into the courtroom out of more than 300 people.

The first in line, Ena Cress, of Fairfax, Virginia, arrived at 11:30 p.m., and it was her fourth time in the courtroom since the trial began.

"I'm here as a supporter of men having a voice," she said. "I think he just happened to be the first brave one to come out."

Another Depp fan, Evan Torres, who was dressed as Jack Sparrow, waited in the back of the courthouse for the actor's arrival.

"I'm here to support my hero, Mr Johnny Depp," he said in an English accent. When asked why he admired Depp, he said, "He's a weirdo just like me."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors' identities sealed for one year

A judge granted a motion from Amber Heard’s legal team to seal the identities of the seven jurors in Johnny Depp’s defamation case against her for one year, a court filing shows. 

Judge Penney Azcarate issued the order May 18 without summarizing Heard’s motion, which is sealed.

Depp’s legal team hinted at the reasons for the decision in a hand-scrawled line at the bottom of the document.

“Agreed as to the proposed relief but objecting to and not agreeing to characterizations as to Mr. Depp’s interactions with his fans, etc,” wrote Ben Chew and Camille Vasquez.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard confronted with witnesses who contradict her testimony

Johnny Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez grilled Amber Heard on cross-examination, confronting her with witnesses who've contradicted her testimony.

"Your lies have been exposed to the world multiple times," Vasquez said.

"I haven't lied about anything," Heard replied, defiantly, as she stared at the jury. 

She asked Heard about an incident at the Hicksville Trailer Palace in 2013, where the actress alleges Depp threatened to break the wrist of a woman who had been too friendly with her. Later that night, Heard said that Depp sexually assaulted her, performing a "cavity search" on her and trashed their trailer.

Vasquez pointed out that Heard's own witness, Rocky Pennington, who was present, did not observe Depp threaten the woman.

Further, the former owner of the luxury trailer park in Joshua Tree, California, testified that the trailer was not wrecked. A single light sconce was broken, he said.

Heard claimed she didn't recognize the former owner as having been at the property that night and insinuated that he wasn't being truthful.

"You're calling him a liar?" asked Vasquez.

"I'm just saying he wasn't there," she responded. Heard also insisted she had never tipped off TMZ to a story -- despite testimony from a former field producer Morgan Tremaine, who suggested she had.

"Another liar on the stand?" asked Vasquez.

"I just know that's incorrect," she shot back during the testy exchange with Depp's attorney.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard rests rebuttal case, testimony portion of trial is over

Jury to hear closing arguments Friday at 9 a.m. After summations, jurors will begin deliberations.

Judge Penney Azcarate told the panel they can deliberate as late as they want Friday "within reason."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Camille Vasquez grills Amber Heard on cross-examination

Johnny Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez grilled Amber Heard on cross-examination, confronting her with witnesses who've contradicted her testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I have a right as an American!' Amber Heard tells jurors

Amber Heard retook the witness stand Thursday and told jurors in emotional testimony that she has a right to share her "truth" without consent harassment and bullying.

"I have a right as an American to talk about what happened to me, to own my story and my truth, I have the right," said Heard, her face twisted with emotion.

The actress said not only does she have to live with the trauma she suffered ever day but must endure further abuse. "My hands shake,  I wake up screaming," she said. "I have to live with the trauma and damage done to me."

On top of suffering alleged sexual and physical abuse by her ex-husband Johnny Depp, she said his fans have tormented her.

"I receive hundreds of death threats regularly, if not daily," she said. Thousands since this trial has started. People mocking -- mocking, mocking my testimony about being assaulted."

She told jurors her intimate partners and friends have rules on how they can touch and interact with her due to her PTSD.

In a dig at Depp, she said she's not making light of the proceeding. "I’m not sitting in the courtroom, snickering, laughing, smiling, making snide jokes," she said, her lower lip trembling. "This is horrible this is painful and this is humiliating for any human being to go through."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'People want to kill my baby in the microwave,' Amber Heard tells jurors

Amber Heard retook the stand Thursday in her rebuttal case and said that people threaten to kill her and her baby every day.

"I am harassed, humiliated, threatened every single day," she said, her lower lip trembling. "Even just walking into this courtroom, sitting here in front of the world, having the worst parts of my life, things that I lived through used to humiliate me."

She continued, staring at the jurors as she spoke. "People want to kill me and they tell me so every day. People want to kill my baby in the microwave and they tell me that," the "Aquaman" actress said.

Heard has a 1-year-old daughter, Oonagh Paige Heard, she had via surrogate. She has said that she is both the mother and father to her child.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Dr. Dawn Hughes says Amber Heard has PTSD

Amber Heard's legal team recalled Dr. Dawn Hughes, a psychologist with a speciality in intimate partner violence, to rebut the testimony of Johnny Depp's psych expert.

Hughes doubled down on her original findings, insisting Heard suffers from PTSD triggered by alleged abuse at the hands of her ex-husband.

She also said the "Aquaman" actress did not fake her symptoms.

Dr. Shannon Curry, Depp's expert psychologist, determined that Heard did not suffer from PTSD and had intentionally exaggerated her symptoms.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard calls computer forensic expert as first witness in rebuttal case

Julian Ackert, a computer science expert, was called by Amber Heard's team as their first rebuttal witness.

He's trying to poke holes in Johnny Depp's computer expert, who said Heard's photos of her injuries had been altered.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Johnny Depp rests his rebuttal case

After calling a single witness Thursday, Johnny Depp rested his rebuttal case.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's team calls orthopedic surgeon with speciality in hands

Dr. Richard Gilbert, an orthopedic surgeon with a speciality in hands, was the first witness Thursday.

He was called as a rebuttal witness in Johnny Depp's case, and said the actor's account of how he lost the tip of his finger makes sense.

"A vodka bottle, a hard object, could have crushed the tip of the finger," Gilbert testified. "As the vodka bottle broke, the glass would have lacerated the finger, resulting in soft tissue loss, which was also seen in this injury."

Amber Heard's expert witness, Dr. Richard Moore, also an orthopedic surgeon with a speciality in hands, said Depp's account was inconsistent with his injury.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star testified that Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him that shattered on his hand, slicing off the tip during a 2015 brawl in Australia.

Heard implied on the stand that Depp smashed a phone "into smithereens" bashing off the tip, which Gilbert called unlikely. An injury sustained from repeated punches would usually damage the knuckles because the hand is balled up in a fist, he said.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Depp forensic expert describes Heard’s photographs as edited, not original images

Johnny Depp's legal team called a forensic and metadata expert to the stand on Wednesday afternoon to analyze Amber Heard images in the on-going defamation trial.

Bryan Neumeister testified "colors have been modified" throughout a series of photographs that were "quite a bit different" and allegedly showed bruising and bodily harm on Heard.

When asked to verify validity of the images, Neumeister said: "First of all, you can’t. Nobody can identify the authenticity of the photos and the reason is the manner of collection."

He added: "I'd have to see each photo. There’s no way to authentic any photos based on what I received." 

He described the images he received as "screengrabs," and explained he had been shown edited photographs, not original images.

"These photos will not digitally fingerprint with each other in other words forensically they don't match," Neumeister said.

When Heard’s team specifically asked if he found any modifications to the metadata, Neumeister couldn't answer.

“There is no way to know because of the way the files were presented," he said. "It is not a question that can be answered.”

Depp's team attempted to object: "Asked and answered."

Heard's legal defense rephrased: “You found no evidence.”

Neumeister responded: "That’s incorrect." 

“They’re not photographs, they’re screengrabs,” Neumiester said.

Court adjourned at about 4:40 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon and the trial is still on schedule to hear closing arguments on Friday morning.

Posted by Tracy Wright

Former TMZ staffer wanted '15 minutes of fame,' Amber Heard's lawyer says

On cross-examination, Amber Heard's lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, asked former TMZ staffer Morgan Tremaine if he reached out to help on the case for publicity.

"So this gets you your 15 minutes of fame?" Bredehoft asked.

"I stand to gain nothing from this. I’m actually putting myself in the target of TMZ, a very litigious organization," Tremaine replied. "I could say the same thing about you taking Amber Heard as a client.” 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Ex-TMZ staffer implies Amber Heard's team was source of embarrassing Johnny Depp video

Surprise witness, former TMZ field producer Morgan Tremaine, took the stand Wednesday -- six days after contacting Johnny Depp's attorney.

He said he first worked on an assignment involving Amber Heard May 27, 2016, when he dispatched a photographer to snap her leaving a Los Angeles courthouse after obtaining a restraining order against Johnny Depp.

“Their objective was to capture her leaving the courthouse, and then, she was going to, sort of, stop and turn toward the camera and display the bruising on the right side of her face,” said Tremaine, who did not know who called in the tip.

About three months later, TMZ got an email with a link to a video Heard filmed of Depp violently slamming kitchen cabinets.

The footage was previously played for jurors, but the clip sent to TMZ was shorter, and did not include the beginning that shows Heard setting up the camera or the end that shows her smirking, Tremaine told jurors.

TMZ owns the copyright to the video. He said that TMZ obtains copyright if video is sent to the tip line from the original copyright owner, usually the person who shot the footage.

If footages doesn't come from the original copyright holder, it takes quite a bit of time to verify before TMZ can publish a story, he said.

"How much time passed from when you received the kitchen cabinet video before it was posted?" asked Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez.

"About 15 minutes," he replied.

Tremaine said he worked on other Heard' stories -- including dispatching photographers to snap her arriving at LAX or visiting her lawyer's office.

FOX Corporation acquired TMZ in 2021 and also owns Fox Digital.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp threatened to slice off Elon Musk's manhood in angry text

During cross-examination, Johnny Depp was confronted with a text he sent to his then-talent agent Christian Carinno threatening to slice off Elon Musk's manhood.

"Let's see if mollusk has a pair," Depp wrote in the vulgar Aug. 15, 2016, message, using his nickname for Musk. "Come see me face to face...I'll show him things he's never seen before...Like, the other side of his d--- when I slice it off."

Heard dated Musk after she split from Depp in May 2016. Depp has accused Heard of cheating on him with the Tesla CEO during their marriage.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor used shocking language to describe Heard in the message shown to jurors -- including calling her a "gold digging, low level, dime a dozen, mushy, pointless, dangling overused flappy fish market."

He added, "I can only hope karma kicks in and takes the gift of breath from her."

Depp admitted he was the author and that the message was "horrific."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp gets tripped up on cross-examination

Amber Heard's lawyer, Ben Rottenborn, asked Johnny Depp on cross-examination whether he had ever said "if you want to be with a woman sexually then she is rightfully yours?"

Depp responded, "That’s ludicrous."

Rottenborn pressed Depp. "You also said with respect to women you want to be with, 'I need, I want, I take' haven’t you?" the lawyer asked.

Equally ludicrous," Depp replied. “There is not enough hubris in me to say anything like that.”

Rottenborn then confronted Depp with a text exchange he allegedly had with his assistant Feb. 22, 2017. The messages were turned over by Depp's legal team.

"Molly's p---y is RIGHTFULLY MINE!!!! Should I not just bust in and remove its hinges tonight???" the text says. "I want to change her understanding of what it is like to be thrashed about like a pleading Mackrel....I NEED. I WANT. I TAKE."

Depp denied he sent the messages and said someone else may have borrowed his phone and texted his assistant.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Judge clears way for ex-TMZ staffer to disclose source of embarrassing Johnny Depp video

A judge Tuesday denied an emergency motion filed by TMZ to block a former employee from testifying about the source of a 2016 video that Amber Heard filmed of Johnny Depp violently slamming cabinets.

TMZ doesn't want ex-staffer Morgan Tremaine taking the stand, and Judge Penney Azcarate heard arguments on the issue Wednesday before the lunch break. 

Heard’s lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, offered a glimpse of Tremaine’s potential testimony.

“He’s going to claim that someone leaked to TMZ that Ms. Heard was going to obtain the TRO on that Friday and also leaked the kitchen video,” she said, arguing that the testimony is hearsay and shouldn’t come in. “I’m almost certain he’s not going to claim it’s Ms. Heard.”

Charles Tobin, who reps TMZ, argued that there’s “journalistic privilege” which protects reporters from disclosing their sources.

But the judge pointed out that the “journalist privilege” goes to the reporter, not the company. The former employee is voluntarily testifying and has chosen not to assert “journalistic privilege.”

Under cross-examination, Heard denied leaking the video or alerting the press to her presence at a Los Angeles courthouse when she obtained a restraining order against Depp May 27, 2016. 

The actress, accompanied by her publicist, said that when she emerged from the courthouse she was surprised to find a crush of reporters and photographers, who snapped pictures of her bruised face. 

If someone on Heard’s team leaked the video, the testimony could be very damaging to her case. Depp has argued that her abuse claims were an elaborate hoax. 

FOX Corporation acquired TMZ in 2021 and also owns Fox Digital. 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp admits there was a phone in bar area during blowout Australia fight

On cross-examination Wednesday, Johnny Depp was confronted with his testimony from the UK libel trial against The Sun newspaper for branding him a wife-beater.

He was asked whether a "phone that was a wall mounted phone that was picked up by you held in your right hand, you were repeatedly smashing it against the wall with your right hand?"

"That is possible," Depp replied. "I do not believe I spent very much time on the phone. I remember ripping it off the wall.”

Amber Heard testified that Depp bashed off the tip of his finger while punching a phone during a brawl in Australia in 2015.

Depp's lawyer, Camille Vasquez, suggested that the actress was lying about the wall-mounted phone. It didn't appear in any of the photos of the rented house and the property manager testified that he did not see one.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Source close to Amber Heard releases statement on Kate Moss testimony

A source close to Amber Heard released a statement Wednesday after Kate Moss testified on behalf of Johnny Depp.

"So Johnny Depp didn't abuse Kate Moss. That makes him 1 for 2 in the abuse column," the source said. "But, to date, he’s 0 for 1 in the courtroom on the central issue in this case back when he lost the same exact case in England. And when the jury deliberates over the singular issue in this case -- whether Amber Heard can exercise her right of Freedom of Speech --- he'll be 0 for 2, no matter how much his lawyers try to distract and divert the jury’s attention."

Depp sued The Sun newspaper for branding him a wife-beater in England and lost the case.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp calls Amber Heard's accusations 'unimaginably brutal'

Johnny Depp said Wednesday on the witness stand that it had been difficult to listen to ex-wife Amber Heard's testimony.

“No human being is perfect," he said in response to questioning by his lawyer. "None of us. But I have never in my life committed sexual battery, physical abuse -- all these outlandish, outrageous stories of me committing these things."

He called his ex-wife's accusations "insane," "humiliating" and "unimaginably brutal"and told jurors it left him no choice but to try to clear his name.

"I don’t think anyone enjoys having to split themselves open and tell the truth but, um, there are times when one simply has to because it’s gotten out of control," he said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Kate Moss, Johnny Depp's ex, says actor never pushed her

Supermodel Kate Moss testified Wednesday that her ex-boyfriend Johnny Depp never pushed her down a flight of stairs and suggested he was never violent with her, refuting a claim that Amber Heard made on the stand. 

Moss, 48, wearing a black blazer over a blouse, addressed jurors in Fairfax County Circuit Court, in Virginia, via a live video link from Gloucester, England.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star and Moss dated from 1994 to 1998.Depp's lawyer Ben Chew asked Moss whether anything happened when the pair took a vacation to the Golden Eye resort in Jamaica, and she explained she had an accident.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says Amber Heard twisted Kate Moss story into 'ugly incident'

Johnny Depp testified that he told Amber Heard about ex-girlfriend Kate Moss' accident on a staircase while on vacation in Jamaica.

"I recall speaking with Ms. Heard about that very incident," he said. "It was raining very heavily that day, Kate slipped and I recalled the story to her. Ms. Heard took the story and turned it into a very ugly incident all in her mind. There was never a moment where I pushed Kate down any set of stairs."

Moss was the first witness Wednesday and confirmed Depp's account of her accident at the Golden Eye resort.

Heard testified that she once punched Depp because she thought he was about to push her sister, Whitney Heard, down a flight of stairs.

She said she had once heard a rumor that Depp had shoved his supermodel ex down a staircase.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I miss it,' Johnny Depp says of sliced off finger tip

Johnny Depp's lawyer asked him what he told his addiction doctor, David Kipper, after he lost the tip of his finger during a 2015 brawl with Amber Heard in Australia.

“There would be no point in lying to the man," he said of Kipper, who initially treated the injury. "He’d been through it with me and Ms. Heard before. I told him that she had thrown a bottle of vodka and smashed and cut my finger off -- the tip of my finger, the tip of my finger, a good chunk, I miss it.” Depp then chuckled ruefully.

Heard testified that Depp lost the tip of his finger by bashing his hand into a wall-mounted phone in between allegedly beating and sexually assaulting her.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says he got Amber Heard 'Aquaman' role

Johnny Depp testified Wednesday that he secured Amber Heard's role as Mera in "Aquaman" -- her most successful movie yet.

“The film was going to be shooting in Australia and for Ms. Heard that was a potential problem," said Depp, possibly referring to Heard illegally bringing their dogs into the country. She's under investigation for perjury over the incident, according to reports.

Depp said Heard asked for his help. He called three "upper echelon" Warner Bros. executives -- but wasn't allowed to share the conversation they had.

“I can only say that ultimately she did get the job in the film, so hopefully I suppose I had curbed their worries to some degree,” Depp said, as Heard smirked in court.

Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez asked Heard during cross-examination whether Depp got her the role. Heard, visibly annoyed, responded that she auditioned and had gotten herself the part.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp retakes the stand as a rebuttal witness in his defamation case

Johnny Depp climbed back into the witness box Wednesday as a rebuttal witness in his defamation case against Amber Heard.

He already spent four days telling jurors about his childhood and his toxic marriage to Heard. The two tied the knot in February 2015 and called it quits a little over a year later.

The divorce was finalized in 2017.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Dr. Shannon Curry recalled as rebuttal witness

Psychologist Shannon Curry, who diagnosed Amber Heard with borderline and histrionic personality disorders, was recalled Wednesday.

Johnny Depp's team called Curry to try to refute Heard's expert witness, psychiatrist Dawn Hughes, who testified that the actress suffers from PTSD triggered by domestic abuse.

Hughes also told jurors that Heard does not have borderline or histrionic personality disorders.

Curry said that Heard does not have PTSD and her test scores indicated she had "exaggerated and feigned" her symptoms.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He never pushed me, kicked me or threw me down the stairs,' Kate Moss says of Johnny Depp

Kate Moss testified briefly Wednesday via video from England that ex-boyfriend Johnny Depp never pushed her down the stairs.

Depp's lawyer asked Moss, who was wearing a black blazer over a blouse, about whether anything happened when the pair took a vacation to a resort in Jamaica.

"We were leaving the room and Johnny left the room before I did, and there had been a rainstorm," Moss told jurors. "As I left the room, I slid down the stairs and I hurt my back, and I screamed because I didn’t know what happened to me and I was in pain. He came running back to help me and carried me to my room and got me medical attention."

The British fashion icon said she dated Depp from 1994 to 1998. Chew asked Moss if Depp ever pushed her in any way.

"He never pushed me, kicked me or threw me down any stairs," she replied. The supermodel said she had never testified in a court proceeding before.

Chew asked her why she agreed to do so in this case, but Judge Penney Azcarate didn't allow her to answer, sustaining an objection from Heard's team.

Heard's lawyer declined to cross-examine Moss. The cat walker was allowed to testify after Heard mistakenly blurted out her name during her turn on the stand.

The "Aquaman" actress told jurors about a fight with Depp in March 2015 when she thought he was about to push her sister down the the stairs, and she punched him.

"I don't hesitate. I don't wait. I instantly think of Kate Moss and the stairs, and I swung at him," Heard testified.

The statement prompted Chew to turn to his team in the courtroom and do a fist pump, as Depp grinned.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Kate Moss testifies by video on behalf of Johnny Depp

British fashion icon Kate Moss began testifying Wednesday morning via video link on behalf of Johnny Depp.

She's expected to refute an alleged rumor that Depp once pushed her down a flight of stairs. Amber Heard referenced the alleged incident during her testimony, which opened the door for Depp's team to call Moss.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Amber Heard didn't pay promised $3.5 million to children's hospital, witness says

Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) representative Candie Davidson-Goldbronn said in a pre-recorded deposition played for jurors Tuesday that Amber Heard only paid $250,000 of a promised $3.5 million donation.

After Heard split from Johnny Depp, she publicly announced that she would donate her $7 million divorce settlement to two charities: the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the CHLA.

While promoting a movie, the actress told the host of the Dutch TV show "RTL Late Night" that she had donated the entire sum in full. “I wanted nothing,” she said in the 2018 interview, after she had received the divorce payout.

Davidson-Goldbronn told jurors that the hospital only got $350,000 from Heard.

The hospital rep said she reached out to the actress and her attorney in a 2018 letter, asking whether she still intended to satisfy her pledge. Heard and her counsel did not reply.

ACLU Chief Operating Officer Terence Doughtery previously testified that Heard had satisfied $1.3 million of her pledge to the charity. Most of that sum came from Heard's then-boyfriend Elon Musk, who made the donations in her name, Doughtery testified.

On cross-examination, Heard claimed that she uses the words "donate" and "pledge" synonymously. "I don't," shot back Depp's lawyer, Camille Vasquez.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Elon Musk donated $250,000 to charity on behalf of Amber Heard, witness says

Elon Musk made a $250,000 donation to the charity Art of Elyseum on behalf of Amber Heard, a witness testified Tuesday in a pre-recorded deposition.

Jennifer Howell, a former friend of Heard's sister, said she understood that the check came from the Tesla titan.

Musk made hundreds of thousands in donations to charities in Heard's name, according to previous testimony in the defamation trial.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

A Stanford psychiatrist slams Amber Heard's psych expert

Stanford psychiatrist Richard Shaw testified as a rebuttal witness Tuesday on behalf of Johnny Depp.

He was called to discredit Dr. David Spiegel, who told jurors Monday that Depp had narcissistic personality traits.

Shaw said it was unethical for Spiegel to have made the assessment based on the Goldwater Rule, which bars mental health experts from diagnosing public figures without meeting or examining them.

"His conduct unfortunately did violate the Goldwater rule," Shaw said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard and 'Aquaman' star Jason Momoa didn't have 'chemistry'

Amber Heard was almost dropped from "Aquaman 2" due to a lack of chemistry with co-star Jason Momoa, a Warner Bros. executive testified at Johnny Depp's defamation trial against his ex-wife.

Walter Hamada said in the pre-taped deposition played for jurors Tuesday in Fairfax County Circuit Court, in Virginia, that the pair were not a good match.

"They didn’t really have a lot of chemistry together," he explained in the deposition recorded March 15, 2022. "I think editorially they were able to make that relationship work in the first movie, but there was concern that it took a lot of effort to get there."

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

British icon Kate Moss to tell jurors Johnny Depp didn't abuse her

British supermodel Kate Moss will take the stand Wednesday on behalf of Johnny Depp in his bombshell defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard.

Moss, 48, will testify via video link about an incident when she was "walking down some stairs in Jamaica. She was wearing flip-flops, and she slipped on the last two stairs. Johnny caught her and tended to her," a source told the New York Post.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp was 'cowering' and 'afraid,' says former Hickesville trailer park owner

The former owner of a luxury trailer park in California said that Johnny Depp and Amber Heard stayed with a group of friends back in May 2013.

Depp was friendly and "really nice," and Heard seemed annoyed that he wasn't paying attention to her, Morgan Night told jurors Tuesday. At one point, Heard pulled Depp aside to talk at the Hickesville Trailer Palace in Joshua Tree.

"She was upset at him and she was yelling at him, and I personally had been in an abusive relationship before --" he began when Judge Penney Azcarate cut him off with a sustained objection.

“He was kind of cowering and seemed almost afraid, and it was really, like, odd to see because he was older than her obviously, but I just went back in the house," Night testified.

The next day, Depp apologized to him profusely.

Night contradicted Heard's direct testimony that Depp got angry with her that night after he got a jealous that another woman had touched her when they were high on MDMA.

She said that Depp grabbed the woman's wrist and threatened to break it.

Heard and Depp went back to their trailer to talk and that's when he allegedly sexually assaulted her. The "Aquaman" actress told jurors, as she sobbed, that Depp, in a drug-fueled rage, performed a "cavity search" on her looking for his cocaine. He also completely trashed the trailer, she said.

The only damage to the restored 1950s camper was a single broken sconce, and Depp paid $62 to replace it.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Surprise witness testifies on behalf of Johnny Depp

Morgan Night, the former owner of the Hickesville Trailer Palace, said that Johnny Depp rented out the entire property in May 2013.

Night said that a lawyer for Depp reached out to him about five weeks ago, after a former co-worker passed along his number.

He said he remembered the night very different from what Amber Heard described in her direct testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's team recalls Hollywood expert

Hollywood expert Richard Marks, an entertainment lawyer, was recalled Tuesday by Johnny Depp's team to try to poke holes in Amber Heard's defense case.

Heard's Hollywood expert, Kathryn Arnold, said the actress lost between $45 and $50 million in job opportunities after Depp allegedly defamed her. Heard played Mera in "Aquaman" -- one of the top grossing films of all time and her career should have exploded after this, she said.

Arnold compared Heard's potential career trajectory to Jason Momoa in "Aquaman," Chris Pine in "Star Trek," and Gal Gadot in "Wonder Woman."

But Marks said there is no basis Arnold's multimillion figure, and the actors she used as comparisons to Heard were the stars of their super hero films.

“Jason Momoa is not a comparable actor," Marks said. "He played "Aquaman,' not a supporting character like Mera.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's hand surgeon testifies

Dr. David Kulber, a hand surgeon who reconstructed Jonny Depp's finger after he lost the top of his finger during a blowout fight in with Amber Heard in 2015 in Australia, testified Tuesday via live video.

He said Depp had a fractured finger with soft tissue loss after the March 8 brawl. Depp testified Heard threw a vodka bottle at him that shattered on his hand. Heard has denied it.

After his first surgery, Depp had a pin in his finger and a soft cast holding two of his fingers in place.

An attorney for Depp asked Kulber asked if the actor could have grabbed someone while wearing the cast. He replied that he could attempt to but probably wouldn't be very successful.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard and Jason Momoa didn't have strong chemistry, Warner Bros. exec says

Warner Bros. executive Walter Hamada said in a pre-recorded deposition played for jurors Tuesday that Amber Heard and "Aquaman" co-star Jason Momoa didn't have a lot of chemistry.

Heard was almost dropped from "Aquaman 2" over the issue, Hamada said in the deposition taken March 15, 2022.

“They didn’t really have a lot of chemistry together," he said. "I think editorially they were able to make that relationship work in the first movie, but there was concern that it took a lot effort to get there."

Hamada told jurors that Heard's role as Mera in "Aquaman 2" wasn't pared down -- but the part was always intended to be minor in the script.

"Was her role ever reduced for any reason?" Depp's lawyer Ben Chew asked Hamada.

"No," he replied. Hamada was called by Depp's team as a rebuttal witness to undermine Heard's claim her role in "Aquaman 2" was reduced after Depp allegedly conspired with his lawyer to defame her.

An entertainment expert testified Monday that Heard should have been able to negotiate a significant pay increase for the the second film due to the success of the first.

But Hamada said it was the studio's policy not to renegotiate contracts.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp fan wears poop costume in diss of Amber Heard

A Johnny Depp fan showed up Tuesday to the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse, in Virginia, wearing a poop costume in a diss to Amber Heard.

Depp accused Heard or one of her friends of defecating in their marital bed in 2016 as a prank gone horribly wrong in retaliation for the actor arriving late to her 30th birthday dinner.

She has denied it and blamed the sizable load on Depp's 4-pound teacup Yorkie, Boo.

Ever since, Heard has been dubbed Amber Turd by Depp fans, a hashtag that has gone viral on Twitter.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard rests defense case without calling Johnny Depp

Amber Heard's legal team rested their case Tuesday without calling Johnny Depp as previously planned.

The move prompted Depp's lawyer Ben Chew to file a motion to dismiss Heard's $100 million counterclaim that alleges the actor defamed her through his attorney by calling her abuse allegations a hoax.

Chew argued that Heard did not present any evidence that Depp crafted or knew about the statements his lawyer Adam Waldman made to the press.

He thought her team would call Depp to fill this "gaping hole" in evidence -- but they didn't.

Further, Heard can't prove that Waldman acted with "actual malice" in making the statements, Chew told Judge Penney Azcarate in Fairfax County Circuit Court, in Virginia.

The judge denied the motion to strike.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Court breaks for the day

Trial set to resume Tuesday morning at 9 a.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Infamous defecation incident could be to blame for Amber Heard's career decline

Johnny Depp's lawyer asked entertainment expert Kathryn Arnold on cross-examination whether the infamous defecation incident could have played a role in the decline of Amber Heard's career.

Arnold said that she expected Heard's ascendency in Hollywood to follow the path of Jason Mamoa, Gal Gadot and Ana de Armis who also appeared in successful super hero movies. After Depp allegedly launched a smear campaign against Heard, she hasn't landed a major movie role or endorsement.

 "Of those comparable actors and actresses, is there a single one that has had any press suggesting that they defecated in the marital bed?" asked Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison.

"I don't know. I have no idea," she replied. Depp famously accused Heard or one of her friends of pooping in their marital bed in 2016 as a prank.

Dennison asked Arnold whether the ugly allegation may have hurt Heard's reputation in the industry.

“If one believed it, yes," Arnold said. "We don’t have any proof or video of anyone defecating in a bed.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard lost more than $45 million after alleged smear campaign, expert says

Amber Heard's career should have followed the trajectory of co-star Jason Momoa in "Aquaman," Gal Gadot in "Wonder Woman"and Ana de Armas in "Bladerunner" -- instead it ground to a screeching halt.

“They all were on a steady rise or a meteoric rise," entertainment consultant Kathryn Arnold told jurors. "Her career should have followed that same upward swing."

Arnold called Heard's role as Mera in "Aquaman" her "'A Star is Born' moment."

But after ex-husband Johnny Depp allegedly launched a smear campaign against her, she couldn't land a role or an ad campaign.

Arnold estimated how much money Heard lost by comparing the careers of other actors who had starred in successful super hero films.

The expert said that after Depp and his lawyer allegedly called Heard's abuse allegations a hoax, her role in "Aquaman 2" was minimized, L'Oréal stopped using her in an ad campaign and no new offers came in.

The expert said that Heard should have earned at least $45 million from unrealized movie and TV roles and endorsement deals -- but didn't specify over what period.

Posted by Emmett Jones

Entertainment expert says Amber Heard's op-ed had no impact on Johnny Depp

Entertainment industry expert Kathryn Arnold told jurors Monday that Amber Heard's op-ed referring to herself as a domestic abuse victim had no impact on his career.

Heard's lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, asked Arnold to weigh in on Depp's claim that the piece ruined his reputation and turned him into a pariah in Hollywood.

“Hardly anybody knew the op-ed existed before he filed suit," Arnold said. "Certainly not Disney.”

Depp's team has alleged that the actor was dropped from the sixth "Pirates of the Caribbean" over the op-ed, but Arnold testified this isn't true. There is no Pirates 6 in the making at the moment and studio bosses were already discussing taking the franchise in another direction.

Depp is expensive, chronically late for shoots and has been surrounded by controversy that isn't appropriate for Disney's brand, she said

The "Black Mass" actor's ongoing litigation has hurt him more than the op-ed, she said.

“In actuality he’s causing his own demise by bringing these lawsuits forward and continuing to ignite the fire of negative publicity around both of them,” Arnold said.

The expert added that Heard's career cratered after Depp allegedly made defamatory statements through his lawyer calling her allegations of abuse a hoax.

"She was on the precipice of a meteoric rise with 'Aquaman'" before the alleged libelous comments, Arnold said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's team backtracks; will not call Johnny Depp as witness

Amber Heard's team will not call Johnny Depp to the stand Monday as previously planned.

Depp is still expected to testify a second time as his own rebuttal witness on Wednesday, a source close to the actor told Fox News Digital.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's psych expert says actress has 'traits' of borderline personality disorder

Dr. David Spiegel said that Amber Heard has "traits" of borderline and histrionic personality disorders but not enough of them "to meet full criteria" for a diagnosis.

Johnny Depp's psych expert, Dr. Shannon Curry, diagnosed Amber Heard with both disorders.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp may have narcissistic personality disorder, psychiatrist testifies

Dr. David Spiegel suggested Monday that Johnny Depp is a narcissist, although the psychiatrist acknowledged that he had not directly examined the actor.

Spiegel described narcissistic personality traits including "poor control, rapid mood shifts, undue sense of admiration, worship power" and attributed many of them to Depp.

"The fact he thought that Amber owed him and only wanted to be together with him because of his fame is an example of that," Spiegel said of narcissistic traits. "I think the jealousy is an example of that."

On cross-examination, Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison asked Spiegel whether he had diagnosed the actor with narcissistic personality disorder.

“I would certainly, if I didn’t, I’m certainly thinking that, but at least I’m going to say he has traits," answered Spiegel. "So it’s a provisional diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder.”

Dennison questioned Spiegel on whether he had violated the Goldwater Rule, barring mental health experts from diagnosing people they have not examined.

Spiegel said he had not because he did not render a definitive diagnosis.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Dr. Spiegel's Marlon Brando comment prompts Depp to bury his head in his hands

Amber Heard's psych witness on substance abuse and intimate partner violence, David Spiegel, got combative during cross-examination.

Spiegel said that the fact Johnny Deep needed his lines fed to him through an earpiece was consistent with cognitive decline caused by drug abuse.

On cross-examination, Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison said the actor used the earpiece to listen to music as part of his process. He also questioned Spiegel on whether he knew that Hollywood film legend Marlon Brando also used an earpiece.

"Isn't he dead?" replied Spiegel, prompting Depp to laugh then put his head in his hands. In another exchange, Spiegel admitted he called Depp an "idiot in planning" in his deposition.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Kate Moss to testify Wednesday about infamous staircase rumor

Supermodel Kate Moss will testify Wednesday on behalf of Johnny Depp about a staircase rumor in his bombshell defamation trial against Amber Heard, a source close to the actor told Fox News Digital.

Moss, 48, is expected to testify via live video link, the source said. The cat walker and Depp, who dated in the 90s, have remained good friends the source said. 

Moss got dragged into the case May 5 when Heard told jurors the only time she had ever "landed a blow" was during a fight with Depp over his alleged infidelity in March 2015, when she thought he was about to push her sister down the stairs.  

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's defamation trial against Amber Heard breaks for lunch

Redirect of psychiatrist David Spiegel, Amber Heard's medical expert, is expected to begin at 1:53 p.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp to take stand again Wednesday

FIRST ON FOX: Johnny Depp will be called to testify again on Wednesday in his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard, a source close to the actor told Fox News Digital.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star is expected to be called as a rebuttal witness.

Depp has already spent four days in the witness box sharing his side of the warring pair's toxic marriage, which has been put under a microscope during the trial in Fairfax County Circuit Court, in Virginia. 

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's behavior consistent with a 'perpetrator' of domestic violence, psychiatrist says

Psychiatrist David Spiegel testified Monday as a defense witness for Amber Heard's legal team.

"Mr Depp has behaviors that are consistent with someone who has substance abuse disorder as well as someone who is a perpetrator of intimate partner violence,” said Spiegel, an expert in addiction and intimate partner violence also know as domestic violence.

Spiegel said that Depp's alcohol and cocaine abuse has impacted his attention span and memory so much so that the actor has his lines fed to him in an earpiece.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp told his personal doctor that Amber Heard cut off his finger

Jurors heard for the first time Monday that Johnny Depp told his personal doctor that he lost his finger tip after Amber Heard threw a vodka bottle at him.

Dr. David Kipper was providing emergency treatment for the injury in the driveway of Depp's rented home in Australia back in March 2015 after the blowout fight.

 "In forming your opinion did you consider...[that] Mr. Depp told him that his finger was injured when Ms. Heard threw a vodka bottle at him?" asked Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez during cross-examination of Dr. Richard Moore Jr.

"I don’t recall that from the deposition," replied Moore, an orthopedic surgeon with a speciality in hands.

He testified on direct that Depp's finger injury was not caused by a vodka bottle based on medical records and the actor's own testimony.

Vasquez also showed Moore photos of the bar area, where a house manager later found the detached digit.

There is shattered glass on the floor and blood. Moore said he had not seen these photos before forming his opinion, but they did not change his conclusion that Depp didn't injure his finger from a vodka bottle shattering on his hand.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Orthopedic surgeon admits on cross 'can't rule out that a vodka bottle caused the injury'

Amber Heard's medical expert, Dr Richard Moore Jr., conceded on cross that he "can't rule out that a vodka bottle caused the injury" to Johnny Depp's finger tip.

He added that he can rule out that the injury was caused "by the mechanism described by Mr. Depp in his deposition," as Depp rolled his eyes and smirked.

Moore did not personally examine Depp but relied on medical records and the actor's testimony.

The doctor has been an expert witness in two other cases for Heard's legal team, and earns $5,000 a day for his testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Orthopedic surgeon says Johnny Depp's story about vodka bottle injury doesn't add up

Dr. Richard Moore Jr. told jurors Monday that Johnny Depp has a "crush injury" that didn't occur from Amber Heard hurling a vodka bottle at him.

"Based on your analysis, did Mr. Depp's injury happen as result of a vodka bottle being thrown at him?" Heard's lawyer asked.

"No," Moore replied. Depp testified that his hand was resting palm down over a bar when Heard threw the bottle and it struck his hand, slicing off the tip of his right middle finger.

But gruesome photos of the injury show that the nail on Depp's middle finger was completely intact, and there was no blood under the nail bed.

Moore said that if a bottle struck the outside of Depp's hand, the nail should show signs of trauma.

X-rays of Depp's finger show that the bone had splintered, and Moore said this is not consistent with a bottle shattering on Depp's hand.

If the bottle smashed his hand, as Depp testified, there should be "other lacerations," he said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's team calls orthopedic surgeon

Amber Heard's team called as their first witness Monday an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Richard Moore Jr., who has a speciality in hand surgery.

He said he's performed thousands of hand surgeries -- including hundreds similar to the one Johnny Depp required after a brawl with Heard in 2015 in Australia.

Depp has alleged that Heard threw a vodka bottle at him, slicing off the tip of his finger. Heard has said that Depp injured his finger by bashing his hand on a wall-mounted phone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's exes from Winona Ryder and Kate Moss to Amber Heard

Johnny Depp's $50 million defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard has sparked a renewed interest in the actor's headline-grabbing love life from a fling with Ellen Barkin to a turbulent romance with Kate Moss.

Here's a look at Depp's dating history stretching back four decades.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Emmett Jones

Johnny Depp is expected back on the stand Monday

Johnny Depp is expected back on the stand Monday -- but this time it is Amber Heard's legal team who will call him as a defense witness.

Depp, 58, already spent four days testifying in the defamation trial against Heard, 36, telling jurors that she was abuser in their relationship.

He testified that he lost the tip of his middle finger after Heard threw a vodka bottle at him that shattered on his hand during a 2015 brawl in Australia.

Heard said during the infamous fight down under, Depp allegedly raped her with a liquor bottle.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard is both 'the mom and the dad' to baby girl Oonagh Paige Heard

Amber Heard announced on Instagram in July 2021 that she had secretly welcomed baby girl Oonagh Paige Heard via surrogate to whom she's both "the mom and the dad."

A photo accompanying the news shows Heard lying down on a white bed with Oonagh curled up asleep on her chest.

"Four years ago, I decided I wanted to have a child," she wrote July 1 of last year. "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. I hope we arrive at a point in which it’s normalized to not want a ring in order to have a crib." 

Continue reading here.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp speaks to fans in iconic Jack Sparrow voice outside of trial

Johnny Depp engaged with fans in the voice of one of his most iconic characters, Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, as he was being chauffeured from the court where he is facing off against ex-wife Amber Heard in a $50 million defamation case.

Fans greeted Depp and expressed their support as the actor was leaving the court in his SUV. Depp waved to fans and even showed off his ponytail when a fan exclaimed, "We love your hair!"

And one fan can be heard shouting, "You’ll always be our Captain Jack Sparrow," to which Depp responded in the voice of the slightly-drunk sounding British character.

Continue reading here.

Posted by Landon Mion

Amber Heard's talent says her career cratered after alleged smear campaign

Testimony wrapped Thursday with pre-recorded deposition from Amber Heard's talent agent Jessica Kovacevik.

Although Heard played Mera in the film"Aquaman," which the agent described as "the most successful movie of all time," her client's career cratered.

She attributed Heard's inability to get roles after the blockbuster movie to an online smear campaign that the actress says was orchestrated by her ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Heard's role in "Aquaman 2" was minimized and an advertisement she shot for TOD's, a clothing brand, was scrapped, the agent said.

"Obviously, 'Aquaman' was the biggest thing she had ever been a part of," Kovacevik said. There was an expectation that the movie offers would flood in but that didn't happen ,and the agent blamed the decline in her professional prospects on the negative online publicity.

The trial resumes Monday.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp may have had 'bipolar,' his psychiatrist testifies

Dr. Alan Blaustein had 18 sessions with Johnny Depp beginning in October 2014, according to a pre-recorded deposition played in court Thursday.

"Do you recall having a conversation about whether Mr. Depp had bipolar?" asked Amber Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn.

"There was some question about bipolar disorder diagnosis, but I can’t remember any specifics about that discussion," he replied.

He said Depp had patience, anxiety and anger issues. He described Depp's relationship with Heard as "chaotic" and "high intensity."

Blaustein read from his notes and said that Depp called his relationship with Heard and Vanessa Paradis, the mother of his children, as characterized by "rage and chaos."

Depp allegedly reported arguments with Paradis about "visitation or access to the children.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He's just a jealous man, controlling,' Ellen Barkin says of Johnny Depp

Actress Ellen Barkin, 68, did not mince her words in a pre-recorded deposition played Thursday for jurors, calling ex-Johnny Depp "controlling" and "jealous."

She said their friendship turned sexual some time in the 90s. Depp, 58, broke up with her when she left him to make a two-day visit to Los Angeles, she said.

"He didn't want me to go," Barkin testified in the 11-minute recording. "I never heard from him again after that."

The attorney asked Barkin what he had said to her that showed possessiveness.

“He’s just a jealous man, controlling," she said. "'Where are you going? Who are you going with? What did you do last night?' I had a scratch on my back once that got him very angry, very angry, because he insisted it came from me having sex with a person who wasn’t him.”

Depp and Barkin appeared together in the1998 film "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."

"Did there come a time Mr. Depp acted in a way that was out of control with you?" Heard's lawyer asked.

"Mr. Depp threw a wine bottle across the hotel room in Las Vegas when we were shooting," she said. "A fight was going on…between Johnny Depp and his friend in the room, the assistant. Honestly I don’t remember.”

He hurled the bottle in her direction and it hit a wall, she said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Ellen Barkin testifies against Johnny Depp in defamation trial

A pre-recorded deposition of Ellen Barkin from November 2019 was played for jurors Thursday in court.

Johnny Depp and Barkin became friends in 1990 and the relationship turned sexual in 1994 for about three to six months.

“After I moved to Hollywood, he switched the buttons," she said of the shift. "The friendship went from purely platonic to a romantic one.”

Barkin said Depp was always drinking or smoking a joint. He also took hallucinogens and cocaine.

The actress said Depp referred to his assistant at the time as "the pig."

Posted by Emmett Jones

'He called me a b----' Amber Heard's lawyer says of Johnny Depp

In a pre-recorded deposition, Amber Heard's attorney, who was negotiating her post-nuptial agreement with Johnny Depp in 2015, testified that she got a disturbing call from the "Black Mass" actor.

“My recollection was that he was very mean, that he called me names, and that he fired me on behalf of Amber,” said Michele Mulrooney of the March 2015 conversation. "He called me a b----."

Depp testified on direct that he and Heard got into a blowout fight in Australia that left him missing a piece of his finger over a post-nuptial agreement he said his then-wife didn't want to sign.

Heard allegedly told him that Mulrooney, who Depp's team hired, had been rude to her, so he called the lawyer up and fired her.

Mulrooney said Depp sounded drunk on the phone, and she ended the call after a few minutes.

"He was slurring his words and his speech pattern was similar to my children’s speech pattern when they were young," Mulrooney testified. "I was just extremely rattled by the call.”

Heard claimed that the Australia argument erupted after Depp accused her of an affair, then allegedly sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle. Depp has denied the allegation.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'AmberTurd' hashtag spikes after alleged defamatory statement, forensic expert says

Forensic social media expert Ron Schnell testified Thursday that negative hashtags related to Amber Heard spiked after Johnny Depp's lawyer allegedly defamed her in statements to the press.

Attorney Adam Waldman called her allegations an abuse hoax in statements to the press in 2020. Heard is countersuing Depp for $100 million over the alleged defamatory statements made by Waldman.

Schnell analyzed negative tweets about Heard from April 2020 to January 2021 and found approximately 2.28 million -- a majority of them used the hashtags "AmberTurd, "WeJustDon'tLikeYouAmber," "AmberHeardisanAbuser" and JusticeforJohnnyDepp."

He testified that over 25 percent of the tweets contained the term Waldman or WaldMignon. Heard's team has accused Depp and his attorney of launching a smear campaign against her.

On cross-examination, Schnell conceded that he could not definitively tie the negative tweets to Waldman's statements.

The "AmberTurd" hashtag started years earlier after Depp accused her or a friend of leaving feces in their marital bed in 2016 as a prank.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's team calls social media forensic expert Ron Schnell

After lunch, Amber Heard's team called social media forensic expert and computer programmer Ron Schell to the stand.

Schnell said his former business partner in a software project was Sylvester Stallone. The child genius also worked on Rand Paul's 2016 presidential election.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez smiles as she arrives at court Thursday

Johnny Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez arrived at court Thursday morning wearing a smile -- as rumors swirled of a possible romance with her famous client.

A source close to Depp told Fox News Digital that the online chatter is "100%, entirely, unequivocally not true."

Depp and Vasquez hugged Tuesday in the courtroom, sparking unfounded speculation the pair had more than an attorney-client relationship.

Posted by Emmett Jones

LAPD detective says patrol officers should have filled out domestic violence report

Detective Marie Sadanaga said in a pre-recorded deposition played in court Thursday that the patrol officers who responded to Amber Heard's penthouse apartment May 21, 2016, should have filled out a domestic violence incident report.

Sadanaga, the Los Angeles Police Department domestic violence coordinator said that even if Heard was uncooperative, the responding officers should have filled out this document.

Police were called to the apartment after Johnny Depp allegedly bashed Heard in the face with a cellphone.

The two responding officers testified in pre-recorded depositions that they observed no injuries on Heard and closed out the call as a verbal dispute.

Another set of officers showed up several hours later after receiving a second 911 call over the same incident, and they also testified that Heard had no injuries.

Heard, with a visible bruise under her right eye, went to a Los Angeles courthouse six days later and obtained a restraining order against Depp, citing the cellphone fight.

After Sadanaga's testimony, court broke for the lunch break.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer, Adam Waldman, testifies

Johnny Depp's lawyer Adam Waldman, who Amber Heard has accused of helping the actor launch a "smear" campaign against her, testified Thursday in a pre-recorded deposition.

Waldman is central to Heard's $100 million countersuit against Depp for calling her allegations an elaborate "hoax."

Waldman made three statement to the media in 2020, accusing Heard of lying about the abuse, and the actress's team says it was at Depp's instruction.

But Waldman, who is still Depp's lawyer, has dodged most of the questions from Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft by invoking attorney-client privilege.

Bredehoft couldn't elicit an answer from Waldman on whether Depp told him to issue the statements or ever requested he retract them.

Heard's team must show that Depp was behind Waldman's statements to prove their defamation case.

Heard testified that the accusation hurt her career and caused her serious distress.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

It was 'excessive consumption' Johnny Depp's ex-business manager says of actor's spending

Johnny Depp's former business manager Joel Mandel described his spending habits as "excessive consumption" including blowing more than $300,000 a month on three full-time assistants.

Depp fired then sued Mandel and his company, The Management Group, in 2017, for alleging stealing millions from him. They countersued and the adversaries later settled.

Mandel said in a pre-recorded deposition played for jurors Thursday that Depp had profligate spending habits that "required incredibly high income to be maintained."

Mandel said Depp was in "dire financial straights" by 2015.

The actor paid addiction doctor, David Kipper, and his medical entourage, over $100,000 a month. He paid his three full-time assistants $300,00 a month and his late head of security, Jerry Judge, $10,000 a day, Mandel testified.

It has previously been reported that Depp spent $2 million a month in 2015 to maintain his extravagant lifestyle.

The excessive spending did not include substantial checks to charity, the ex-manager added.

Depp has accused TMG of failing to pay his taxes for 17 years and stealing millions -- both allegations that Mandel denied in the deposition.

Depp earned $650 million in the 13-year period before Depp fired Mandel, the business manager testified.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's sister tells all about alleged staircase fight

Amber Heard's sister Whitney Heard Henriquez testified Wednesday that Johnny Depp hit her during the pair's now-infamous staircase fight in 2015. 

"I’m standing up there with my back to the stairs. That’s when Johnny runs up the stairs," she told jurors of the March 23 altercation over Depp's alleged infidelity. "He comes up behind me, strikes me in the back. I hear Amber shout don’t hit my f--king sister. She smacks him, lands one."

At that point, Depp grabbed the "Aquaman" actress by the hair and repeatedly punched her in the face, Henriquez said. That's when his security guard allegedly stepped in.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'His star had dimmed,' said Johnny Depp's ex-talent agent

Johnny Depp's former talent agent, who he axed in October 2016, testified that the actor became "the biggest movie star in the world" under her management.

But by the time Tracey Jacobs was fired three decades later, "his star had dimmed due to it getting harder to get him jobs due to his lateness and other things."

She described Depp as "extraordinarily talented" and attributed his rise to stardom, in part, to her expertise at matching him to appropriate roles.

The statement elicited an annoyed smirk from Depp as he watched the pre-recorded deposition in the courtroom.

During the last decade of their professional relationship, she said Depp became more difficult to work with due to his "unprofessional behavior."

She said he showed up late "consistently on virtually every movie." The agent had to fly to Australia twice in 2015 where he was filming "Pirates of the Caribbean" to discuss the issue with him, she said.

She added that he began abusing alcohol and drugs with greater frequency.

Jacobs said she didn't know why Depp fired her.

"All I know is he terminated essentially every one in his life, so I was along for the ride I guess,” she testified.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'It's deep-rooted issues he's dealing with,' ex-friend says of Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp's ex-friend Bruce Witkin said he observed a bruise on Amber Heard's arm once but didn't know how she got it.

He said that over time Depp's drug addiction became increasingly out of control, and he was once asked to find him while on a bender with Marilyn Manson.

“It’s deep-rooted issues he’s dealing with," he said. "It has nothing to do with Amber.”

The attorney asked Witkin what his relationship is like with Depp now, and he said the actor completely cut him off in 2018 without explanation after he was deposed and testified about his drug use.

“My daughter even got married and he ignored it," Witkin said. "I think there are some people behind the scenes talking shit about me.”

He added, “It’s a strange thing around people like him, everybody wants something."

Posted by Emmett Jones

Johnny Depp's ex-friend Bruce Witkin says actor has 'jealous streak'

Jurors watched a pre-recorded deposition Thursday of producer Bruce Witkin, who said Johnny Depp's jealousy issues go back to his first wife.

Depp, 58, has known Witkin since 1982 but the pair had a falling out in 2018 when the record producer was deposed in one of the actor's lawsuits.

Witkin said the friendship ended after he testified about Depp's drug use. "I wasn't going to lie," he said.

His sister-in-law Lori Anne Allison was Depp's first wife whom he married in 1984.

"Have you ever seen Mr. Depp experience jealousy when he's been in a relationship?" asked an attorney in the deposition taken Feb. 17, 2022.

"Yes," he said. "It goes all the way back to my sister-in-law. He definitely has a jealous streak in him."

He said when Depp was younger he was jealousy of Nicolas Cage because his sister-in-law knew him.

Witkin said that Depp had gotten jealous with the mother of his two kids, Vanessa Paradis.

"He brought up a few with Vanessa, which were ridiculous," he recalled. "A lot of it was in his head and not in reality."

Depp had also expressed concern to Witkin a few times about Heard filming movies with other men.

Witkin was called as a defense witness for Heard.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Court begins late Thursday due to a late juror

Court began 30 minutes later Thursday due to a late juror.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard told acting coach of alleged 'liquor-bottle' sex assault in 2019

Amber Heard's acting coach Kristy Sexton said the actress told her for the first time in 2019 that Johnny Depp had allegedly sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle in Australia.

Heard, 36, had already been sued by Depp, 58, and asked Sexton if she would testify on her behalf in the case.

After Sexton agreed, Heard divulged details of the alleged sex attack that occurred during a vicious brawl in Australia in March 2015 that left Depp missing a piece of his middle finger.

"This was the first time Ms. Heard had told you that Mr. Depp had allegedly penetrated her with a bottle in Australia?" an attorney asked her in the pre-recorded deposition taken in December 2019.

“Yeah, she told me about the assault with the bottles, being hit with the bottle, the broken glass and everything," Sexton said. "Then, this time she started crying and sobbing and telling me about the [sexual] assault.”

Heard testified that Depp physically and sexually assaulted her in a drug-fueled rage over three days in Australia.

Depp took the stand and told jurors it was Heard who had abused him on that trip, hurling a vodka bottle at his hand that sliced off the tip of his middle finger.

Court broke for the day after Sexton's testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He called it a whore part' acting coach said of Johnny Depp disparaging Amber Heard

Acting coach Kristy Sexton said in a pre-recorded deposition that she worked with Amber Heard from 2010 through 2017.

The coach had more than 300 sessions with Heard. As time went on, Johnny Depp began voicing his opinions about her movie roles, she said.

"'Why would you want to do that kind of role,'" Sexton recalled Depp saying. "'My woman isn’t going to play that type of role.' I heard that a few times from him.”

Sometimes Depp called roles he didn't want Heard to play "a whore part or trash part," she said in the deposition recorded in December 2019.

"Early on they were incredibly lovey," she recalled. "I would see less and less of them together and I would hear a lot of muffled arguments through the wall."

Sexton said Heard arrived at more than 80 percent of their sessions weeping further into the couple's relationship and had to build in buffer time to account for it.

“She’d be sobbing at the beginning of sessions and we couldn’t work,” she said. “Ironically, she has a little difficulty crying acting wise, which a lot of us do, so yeah, we’d have to work when we were doing it acting wise.”

Both Depp and Heard changed for the worse during their relationship, she said. Sexton also testified that she saw bruises on Heard's arms and face and cuts on her forearms.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'No interest in continuing relationship' makeup artists says of Amber Heard

Amber Heard's former makeup artist and friend said she chose to end their relationship.

"I told Amber I wished her well, I just had no interest in continuing a relationship either work wise or friendship wise,” Melanie Inglessis said in a deposition recorded in February 2021 and played for jurors Wednesday.

The awkward conversation occurred about a month earlier, she said. "It was always, it was always some conflict, some fight," she said of Heard and Depp's relationship. Inglessis supported her during her public split from Depp.

"There always was a problem," she testified. "It was a very consuming friendship…that's why I decided not to continue it.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Witness says Amber Heard had injuries morning of James Corden show

Makeup artist Melanie Inglessis said she observed injuries on Amber Heard's face Dec. 16, 2015, hours before she went on "The Late Late Show with James Corden."

The night before, Heard, 36, has alleged that Johnny Depp, 58, head-butted her, yanked a chunk of her hair out and choked her unconscious.

Inglessis said that Heard had blue discoloration under her eyes, a swollen nose and a split lip.

"We covered the discoloration or bruises with slightly heavier concealer with a little peach," she testified in the deposition recorded in February 2021. The peach does cancel blue so did that under the eyes."

She added that Heard's signature look is red lipstick but that night they had no other option "to cover up the injury on her lip."

At one point, Ignlessis, who was also at one point good friends with Heard, removed her glasses and broke down in tears.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp fans camp outside courthouse overnight

FAIRFAX, Va. – Over 100 people, including many Johnny Depp fans and some from overseas, camped outside the Fairfax County Circuit Court overnight into Wednesday hoping to see the celebrity's defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. 

"We've been here since 8:30 p.m. last night," Gabrielle, a Depp fan who drove in from North Carolina, told Fox News on Wednesday. Other groups, some holding sleeping bags, arrived around similar times. 

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp 'strikes me on the back' Whitney Henriquez testifies of infamous staircase fight

Whitney Henriquez was living rent-free in one of Johnny Depp's penthouse apartments in Los Angeles in March 2015 when Amber Heard burst in.

“I woke up to Amber in my bedroom saying, 'Can you believe he’s cheating on me?'” Henriquez testified.

She told Heard to stay in her apartment while she went to talk to Depp in the kitchen of his penthouse. He admitted to the affair and allegedly said "Amber made me do it."

A few moments later, Heard showed up and was on an upper level mezzanine and the two began shouting at each other.

Henriquez went upstairs to comfort her along with his nurse Debbie Lloyd. Henriquez said Depp hurled a can of Red Bull at Lloyd, which struck her in the back.

“I’m standing up there with my back to the stairs. That’s when Johnny runs up the stairs," she told jurors. "He comes up behind me, strikes me in the back. I hear Amber shout don’t hit my f--king sister. She smacks him, lands one."

At that point, Depp grabbed Heard by the hair and was repeatedly punching her in the face, Henriquez said. That's when his security guard allegedly stepped in.

Several witnesses -- including Depp and Heard -- have given differing accounts of the staircase incident. Depp and his security guard testified that Heard instigated the physical altercation by clocking Depp in the face.

Heard said she hit Depp because she thought he was about to push her sister down the stairs like he did to ex-girlfriend Kate Moss. There is no evidence that Depp ever shoved the supermodel down a staircase.

After the bodyguard separated them, Depp allegedly rampaged through a room Heard used as a closet, tearing down shoe and clothing racks.

Jurors were shown photos that Henriquez took of the destruction. Henriquez said that even after she believed Depp was abusing her sister, she tried to help them reconcile.

"That's what she wanted," she said of Heard, calling her sister's relationship to Depp, "nuanced" and "complicated."

Shortly after the staircase incident, Henriquez moved out of the penthouse. Depp had accused her of selling stories about him to the press.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp called Amber Heard a 'f--king used up trash bag' sister testifies

Whitney Henriquez testified Wednesday that Johnny Depp called her sister a slew of awful names.

"‘He called her a f--king used up trash bag, slimy whore, sagging whore, f--king c--- was thrown out a bunch just horrible things like that, ” she said.

Over time, Henriquez noticed cuts, bruises and redness on Heard. In March 2013, she said Depp flew into a jealous rage over a photo that was taken of Heard with another woman in France.

He thought she was cheating on him. Later that day in a car on the way to a photo shoot, she said Depp dangled their teacup yorkie, Pistol, out the window.

"He brought the dog back into the car and he was just laughing," Henriquez said. "[Depp] then made some joke about putting [Pistol] in the microwave," she said.

Henriquez said she and Depp had frequently snorted cocaine together.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's sister Whitney Henriquez takes the stand, calls Johnny Depp controlling

Whitney Henriquez took the stand Wednesday and described how her sister Amber Heard became increasingly more isolated and unhealthy during her relationship with Johnny Depp.

"In hindsight, it was like watching a slow motion gun shot,” she said of her sister. "She was so physically unwell [at the end] that she maybe weighed 100 pounds soaking wet."

Depp started by allegedly controlling her clothing then her friends and finally even her medical care, Henriquez said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard 'catotonic' after fight, witness says

Josh Drew, Raquel Pennington's ex-husband, testified in a pre-taped deposition that he saw Amber Heard after the May 21, 2016, fight when Johnny Depp allegedly bashed her in the face with a cellphone.

He and Pennington, Heards ex-best friend, were living rent-free in one of Depp's penthouse apartments at the time.

In the deposition taken in November 2019, Drew was shown photos of Heard's face after the altercation.

“I do distinctly remember there being a red mark and a small bruise on her cheekbone and red marks just above her eyebrow," he recalled.

He said Heard was "catatonic like a 1,000-year stare" and looked "like a ghost."

Drew said he hadn't spoken to Heard since his divorce two years prior until she reached out a few months before his deposition. She called to "make amends" and told him she and Pennington "hadn't spoken for some time."

After the cellphone fight, he said Depp stormed into the apartment.

“Open this f--king door. Get me in here," Depp allegedly yelled, Drew testified. After the door flung open, Depp marched toward Drew.

"He caught eyes with me right away, beelined toward me, screaming, cursing, spitting in my face," Drew said of the actor allegedly standing a foot from his face before kicking him out.

During Drew's testimony, he recounted other times he had observed injuries on Heard.

Heard's lawyer asked whether Drew, his ex-wife or anyone else had manipulated the photos of Heard's injuries as Depp's team has alleged.

He denied the claim. Drew's testimony also backed up Heard's statements that one of the couple's teacup yorkies, Boo, had bowel problems.

In fact, he said both dogs regularly relieved themselves all over the apartment.

"There was pee and poop on everything: couches, sofas, chairs the bed, you name it," Drew said.

Depp has accused Heard or one of her friends of pooping in their marital bad as a sick prank in April 2016.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Is Johnny Depp dating his attorney Camille Vasquez?

Rumors have been swirling online that actor Johnny Depp is dating one of his attorneys, Camille Vasquez, who grilled Amber Heard on cross-examination.

"Hi Camille, the people want to know, are you dating Johnny Depp?" the videographer asked, eliciting a hearty laugh but no answer from the seasoned attorney.

"It's all over the internet. Can you set the record straight?" the videographer pressed, as Vasquez shook her head, smiling, and strolled by the cameraman with the rest of Depp's legal team.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Emmett Jones

A Fox News Digital video taken Wednesday showed a crowd of over 100 people cheering Johnny Depp as he arrived Wednesday to the the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Virginia.

Depp waved to the supporters from his black SUV, as they chanted "Johnny! Johnny!"

His ex-wife Amber Heard didn't receive a similar reception. As she pulled up in a truck, the crowd booed her.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's ex-BFF backs up the actress's abuse claims

Rocky Pennington backed up Amber Heard's abuse claims Tuesday in a pre-taped deposition played for jurors at Johnny Depp's defamation trial against the actress.

After Depp allegedly bashed a cellphone into Heard's face on May 21, 2016, Pennington, who was living next door, rushed over to the apartment.

"She was calling for help and that had never happened before," said Pennington, who was frequently emotional and tearful during her testimony.

She put herself in between Depp and Heard, who was on the couch crying.

"He was yelling, yelling, and I put my hands up on his chest, and I was like stop, just stop, just trying to calm him down," she recalled. "He hit my hands away."

Pennington said Depp was yelling at Heard to quit crying and get up, as he stepped closer and closer.

"I remember thinking there was this big orange, ceramic ashtray on the coffee table, and I was thinking if he gets any closer I’m just going to pick up that ashtray and hit him with it," she said.

Bodyguards for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star entered the apartment and told him it was time to leave.

Depp and Heard had't seen each other since the housekeeper found excrement on his side of their marital bed.

He stopped by the penthouse to pick up some items, and the two began arguing over who was responsible for the malodorous deposit.

Six days later, Heard went to a Los Angeles courthouse, with a bruise under her right eye and accompanied by her publicist, and obtained a restraining order against Depp.

Her ex-husband's legal team has accused Heard of making up the physical abuse allegations against him.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I was scared for Amber,' says Raquel Pennington in emotional testimony

Amber Heard's former best friend testified in a pre-taped deposition that she became worried as the actress's relationship with Johnny Depp became increasingly more volatile and violent.

I was scared for Amber," Raquel Pennington testified in the deposition played for jurors Wednesday. "I was also sad for Johnny because he was my friend too, and I really wanted them to be able to get it together." Pennington's eyes welled with tears and she dabbed them with a tissue.

"In the beginning, I wasn’t worried," she said. "Towards the end when the physical abuse was more evident I was worried. I was worried for her physical safety. I was worried that when he turned, he might actually do something that was worse than he ever intended.”

After Depp allegedly beat up Heard Dec. 15, 2015, Pennington took photos of Heard's alleged injuries and the damage to the apartment. Heard's lawyer asked Pennington to describe one of the images.

"It's a photo of Amber's face with two black eyes and a swollen nose and bottom lip," she said.

Pennington also documented the damage to the apartment -- including a busted platform bed, an overturned lamp and shattered glass.

Heard testified that she confronted Depp over alleged infidelity, sparking the vicious altercation. The actress said Depp allegedly yanked out a chunk of her hair, repeatedly punched her and choked her unconscious.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actress Ellen Barkin's pre-taped deposition may be played as early as Wednesday

Amber Heard's team has a line-up of witnesses scheduled for Wednesday -- including Ellen Barkin's pre-taped deposition.

Barkin, who dated Johnny Depp in 1997 when they filmed "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," is testifying on behalf of Heard.

Barkin, 68, is expected to tell jurors about an incident in Depp's hotel room during their brief romance that did not end on good terms.

She offered a preview of her potential testimony in Depp's 2020 UK defamation trial against The Sun newspaper for calling him a wife-beater. In that case, Barkin testified that Depp threw a wine bottle across a hotel room during an argument he had with his assistants. It did not hit anyone, she said. Depp lost the UK case. 

Other potential witnesses whose pre-taped depositions may be played Wednesday include Raquel Pennington's former fiancé, Heard's makeup artist Melanie Inglessis, her acting coach Kristy Sexton and former staffer at the Eastern Columbia Building Cornelius Harrell.

Heard's sister, Whitney Henriquez, is the only defense witness who may testify in-person Wednesday in the explosive defamation trial in Fairfax County Circuit Court, in Virginia.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's best friend says she saw injuries on actress on return from Australia

Jurors were played a pre-taped deposition of Amber Heard's former best friend Raquel Pennington.

In the video, recorded in January, Pennington said she observed "very, very deep long cuts on the back of [Heard's] forearms" the day the actress returned from Australia.

Heard allegedly also showed her friend injuries on her feet that she told her were from broken bottles.

"They were smaller cuts than the ones on her arms," Pennington said.

Heard testified that ex-husband Johnny Depp abused her for three days in Australia in March 2015 in a drug-fueled rage, allegedly raping her with a liquor bottle, repeatedly punching her and dragging her nude body across broken glass. He has denied the allegations.

Depp told jurors Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him during the brawl that shattered on his hand, severing the tip of his middle finger.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

iO Tillett Wright called as Amber Heard witness: What Wright said on day 17 of defamation trial

The first witness after Amber Heard stepped off the stand Tuesday recalled a conversation about a defecation incident during a pre-recorded deposition to the court.

In a taped deposition from March 2022, iO Tillett Wright — an author, producer and longtime friend of Heard, 36 — testified during the ongoing defamation trial that he received a phone call from Heard on May 21, 2016, asking him to clear up the infamous fecal matter incident.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Julius Young

Court breaks for the day

The rest of Raquel Pennington's deposition is expected to be played for jurors Wednesday morning.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's former best friend Raquel Pennington says they once got into a physical fight

Raquel Pennington testified Tuesday in a pre-recorded deposition on behalf of Amber Heard.

She said she hadn't spoken to her former best friend in more than six months at the time the deposition was taken Jan. 20.

"I wouldn't consider her not a friend," she said. "We don't speak. We are not enemies." Pennington said they met in 2003 and had recently grown apart. The last conversation they had was about Heard's baby.

Throughout Heard's testimony, she referred to Pennington as her "best friend."

In response to questioning by Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez, Pennington said that she and Heard once got into a physical altercation.

They were preparing for Thanksgiving, looking for some glasses or dishes, she said.

"We couldn’t find them anywhere and then she finally found them in a place that I thought I had looked," Pennington said. "She thought that I wasn’t looking hard enough." Pennington shoved her, and Heard responded by hitting her on the cheek.

Pennington lived rent-free in one of Depp's Los Angeles penthouses up until the couple split up.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

iO Tillett Wright recalls explosive fight over origin of feces in marital bed

iO Tillett Wright received a phone call from Amber Heard May 21, 2016, asking him to clear up the infamous defecation incident.

Johnny Depp had swung by the penthouse to pick up some items about a month after he found what he described as human excrement in their marital bed after a massive fight.

"She said, 'Johnny thinks that you and I together defecated on his pillow,'" he recalled. "I think the words used were sh-t on his pillow so I started laughing." He and Heard guffawed, enraging Depp.

Wright tried to explain that he wasn't at the apartment on the morning in question, then he heard a loud noise. Wright mimicked the sound by smacking his closed fist into his hand.

"The phone dropped and he said to her, 'You think I hit you? You think I f--king hit you? what if I peel your f--king hair back?" Wright testified in a pre-recorded deposition. "I remember her screaming and I hung up the phone," he said, as his eyes swelled with tears.

He called her best friend, Raquel Pennington, who lived next door then called the police.Heard testified that Depp smashed her cellphone into her face.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Friend of Amber Heard corroborates her allegations of abuse

iO Tillett Wright corroborated several of Amber Heard's allegations of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of ex-husband Johnny Depp.

He said he visited Heard's apartment after Depp allegedly beat her up Dec. 15, 2015 during a fight over the "Black Mass" star's alleged infidelity.

Wright said he observed the injuries Heard had allegedly sustained -- including a bruise on her scalp and temple and a split lip.

Months earlier, Wright attended their wedding celebration in February 2015 and Depp allegedly made a disturbing remark, he said.

“He said, 'We’re married now. I can punch her in the face and no one can do anything about it,'” Wright recalled.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's pal recalls Johnny Depp's bender with rocker Marilyn Manson

iO Tillett Wright said in a pre-recorded deposition that he recalled a time when Amber Heard was out of town and Johnny Depp and Marilyn Manson drank heavily and "partook in a lot of cocaine."

He said actor Paul Bettany was also present. "He really resented having to be sober. He didn't want to be," Wright said of Depp.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star allegedly showed him a marijuana closet with "tens and tens of pounds of weed."

When Depp was high, he could be extremely cruel, Wright said.

After Depp and Heard had a fight, Wright said he told him,“All she’s got is her looks and she has no talent and when her tits start to sag and her face gets wrinkly, nobody is going to be interested in her for anything so she better figure out another way to survive."

Jealousy and Depp's drug addiction were recurring themes in prior relationships -- including with Winona Ryder, the actor allegedly told Wright.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

iO Tillett Wright testifies on behalf of Amber Heard in pre-recorded deposition

iO Tillet Wright was the first witness the defense called after Amber Heard stepped off the stand.

In a pre-recorded deposition, Wright testified that he met Heard in Los Angeles in late 2011 and they struck up a friendship. Wright said he later also became close with Depp -- a relationship that ended in December 2015.

He also said he hadn't spoken to Heard in over a year, suggesting the two were no longer on good terms.

“Johnny when sober was lovely and magical and very funny," Wright said. "I felt a kindred connection with him and a shared perspective on the world that I’ve shared with very few people in my life." He described Depp as extremely generous.

But added that Depp could also be "incredibly mean and vicious especially when drunk or high."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He's guilty,' Amber Heard tells jurors of why Johnny Depp won't look her in the eye

After a grueling cross-examination, Amber Heard remained on the witness stand for a brief redirect by her attorney Elaine Bredehoft.

The lawyer asked her why her ex-husband Johnny Depp won't look at her -- even once -- during the trial.

“Because he’s guilty," she answered defiantly. "Because he knows he’s lying otherwise why can’t he look at me? I survived. I survived that man, and I’m here and able to look at him.”

Depp, without looking up, smiled and whispered to one of his lawyers, Ben Chew.

Bredehoft also asked Heard about the video of her and actor James Franco in an elevator riding to the apartment she shared with Depp in Los Angeles the day before she filed for divorce.

"What did Mr. Franco do in the elevator before laying his head on your shoulder," the lawyer asked.

"He touched the side of my face and responded to what he saw," she replied, referring to a bruise under her right eye that she said she sustained after Depp allegedly bashed her in the face with a cellphone.

Heard was on the witness stand for four days.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Camille Vasquez wraps up cross-examination with damning evidence

Camille Vasquez questioned Amber Heard Tuesday during a grueling cross-examination about her arrest for allegedly hitting her ex-girlfriend Tasya van Ree in 2009.

"You committed domestic violence  against Ms. van Ree during your relationship didn’t you?" asked Vasquez.

"No, I did not," she replied. 

"You assaulted her at a Seattle airport in 2009 didn’t you?" the attorney pressed.

"That’s not true," Heard insisted. Vasquez went on to read a news article about the incident.

Two officers allegedly witnessed Heard smack van Ree in the arm and yank her necklace off, and she was arrested.

But prosecutors declined to pursue the case. News of the altercation didn't emerge in the press until 2016, and van Ree publicly defended Heard who accused Depp of planting the article.

"So Mr. Depp is not the only domestic partner you’ve assaulted?" Vasquez inquired.

"I’ve never assaulted Mr. Depp or any other person I was romantically linked to, ever,” Heard replied.

"No further questions, your Honor," Vasquez said, wrapping up a day and a half of cross-examination.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard laughs and munches on a snack in video deposition about domestic violence incident

Jurors Tuesday watched a clip of Amber Heard's videotaped deposition from the UK libel case that Johnny Depp brought against The Sun newspaper for calling him a "wife-beater." He lost the case.

In the 2016 deposition, Heard munches on a snack, rolls her eyes and laughs as she listens to an audio recording of her and Depp discussing a physical fight.

Depp told her in the recording that she hit him on the head with a door and punched him in the jaw, which she doesn't dispute.

After playing the clip, Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez asked heard, "Is there something amusing to you about punching your husband in the jaw?"

Heard replied, "No, that is not what I was smiling about, and I don’t think it’s amusing."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I can't promise you I won't get physical,' Amber Heard tells Johnny Depp

Camille Vasquez played a series of audio recordings of Amber Heard admitting she hit Johnny Depp.

Although jurors had already heard the evidence, this was the first time it was presented in succession.

"I can't promise you that I won't get physical but sometimes I get so mad I just lose it," she told her alleged abuser, who she has accused of beating and sexually assaulting her.

In another clip, Depp said, "You f--king hit me last night."

Heard called Depp a "f--king baby" in another audo clip for complaining of her attack. "I’m sorry I hit you like this," she can be heard saying. "I did not punch you. I did not f--king deck you."

Later in the recording, she admitted, "I did start a physical fight."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Camille Vasquez confronts Amber Heard with a slew of negative headlines

Camille Vasquez confronted Amber Heard with a slew of negative headlines about her personal life and toxic marriage to Johnny Depp.

The line of questioning is intended to undermine Heard's $100 million counterclaim alleging that Depp and his former lawyer Adam Waldman conspired to defame her by calling her abuse allegations a hoax. She said the accusations hurt her career and caused her emotional distress.

But Vasquez argued that most of this negative publicity didn't stem from Waldman's statements.

Heard called the bad press "a smear campaign" by Depp's sophisticated PR team.

"Ms. Heard, you’re not aware of any career opportunities you lost as a result of Mr. Waldman's statements, are you?" Vasquez asked.

"It’s kind of hard to point to the jobs you aren’t offered, the gigs you don’t get," she replied, adding that she lost a L'oreal campaign and her role in "Aquaman II" was minimized.

They released me from my contract. I fought to stay in it. I just don’t know how much I’m in  the final cut," she told jurors of the forthcoming film.

Heard also admitted to engaging Waldman on Twitter.

“Yes Mr. Waldman, I may be wearing makeup on this occasion but on every occasion you will still be short," she tweeted.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Court back in session after lunch break

Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez continued cross-examination of Amber Heard.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer accuses Amber Heard of 'enhancing' photos of her injuries

Camille Vasquez accused Amber Heard of enhancing photos of her alleged injuries during cross-examination.

Vasquez displayed side-by-side shot of Heard's face after Johnny Depp allegedly bashed her with a cellphone May 21, 2016.

"Didn't you change the saturation to look more red?" Vasquez asked Heard.

"That's not true," she replied. Vasquez reminded Heard of the numerous witnesses who testified that they observed no injuries on her face in the days after the alleged attack -- including Depp's friend Isaac Baruch, doorman Alex Romero and four police officers.

Vasquez also questioned Heard about two more images a friend took of her at a Los Angeles courthouse May 27, 2016, when she went to file for a restraining order.

The images show a downcast Heard wearing no makeup and sporting a blue bruise under her right eye.

"Are you having a photoshoot inside the courthouse while you're getting a TRO?" the attorney asked sarcastically.

"I would not characterize it that way, Ms. Vasquez," the actress replied. She asked Heard whether she used a color correction kit to hide the bruise to which Heard replied it was the only day she hadn't.

On direct, Heard testified she wanted to get the TRO privately but when she emerged from the courthouse, "there was a sea of photographers."

Vasquez implied that Heard had tipped off the media.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Could Amber Heard go to jail?

The chances of Amber Heard going to prison as a result of the defamation case ex-husband Johnny Depp brought against her is unlikely, experts told Fox News Digital. 

"You don’t go to jail as a result of a civil finding," said First Amendment attorney George Freeman of the Media Law Resource Center.

"The only way what happened so far in Virginia could lead to jail is if she’s accused and convicted of perjury, which there has been no official accusation of and which seems quite remote."

In Freeman's more than four decades as a First Amendment attorney, he has never seen a person charged with perjury in a civil case, he said.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors see James Franco visit Amber Heard night before she filed for divorce

Jurors were shown video Tuesday of Amber Heard escorting James Franco into an elevator to the penthouse apartment she shared with then-husband Johnny Depp one day before she filed for divorce.

The May 22, 2016, visit at about 11 p.m. was one day after Heard alleges that Depp bashed her in the face with a cellphone. They both have their backs to the camera and their heads bowed in the footage. At one point, Franco affectionately rested his head on her neck.

Depp has accused Heard and Franco of having an affair during their marriage -- an allegation they've both denied.

Attorney Camille Vasquez suggested that it was odd Heard would invite Franco to the apartment she shared with Depp who she has described as violent and jealous.

Heard testified that she was so scared of Depp returning to the apartment in a rage that five days after Franco's visit she got a restraining order against her ex-husband.

"You knew that Mr. Depp was out of town May 22, 2016, didn't you?" Vasquez asked Heard.

"I didn't know his schedule," she replied.

Vasquez also said that Heard knew Depp was out of town and that she wasn't in any imminent danger when she went to a Los Angeles courthouse May 27, 2016, to obtain the restraining order.

"I'm not sure what I understood of his schedule at that time," Heard replied calmly.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp repeatedly smiles and laughs during Amber Heard's cross-examination

As Depp's lawyer grilled Amber Heard Tuesday during cross-examination, Johnny Depp frequently smiled, laughed or smirked without looking in her direction.

Posted by Emmett Jones

'You're a joke, you're a joke,' Amber Heard tells Johnny Depp, as she cackles in recording

Attorney Camille Vasquez played a disturbing audio recording of a fight between Amber Heard and her ex-husband Johnny Depp.

She repeatedly told Depp to "suck my d---" as he responded, "I don't want to."

“Go be a real married man," Heard mocked him. "Go deal with your sh-t the way a man does. Go run to the next house.”

Depp shot back, “You’re a f---king ridiculous clown. You’re the most spoiled f—king brat” as Heard can be heard chortling in the background.

Heard ridiculed Depp's role as heartthrob Tom Hanson in the TV series "21 Jump Street."

"You don't even know what movies I've done," Depp said to which she retorted, "You're a joke. You're a joke."

"I'm the joke in the industry, Amber?" Depp asked referencing her role in "Aquaman," as Heard continued laughing. "21 whatever it was, no one cares," she said.

At one point, Depp can be heard saying on the recording, "Your jealousy is so tragic."

Vasquez then questioned Heard about her most successful role yet, Mera in "Aquaman."

"He got you that role in 'Aquaman' didn't he?" asked the attorney, referring to Depp.

"No, Ms. Vasquez, I got that role by auditioning," she replied in a haughty tone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard questioned about alleged sexual assault in Bahamas

Johnny Depp's lawyer pressed Amber Heard about the details of an alleged sexual assault on her ex-husband's private island in the Bahamas in December 2015.

On direct, the actress told jurors that she got angry at Depp in front of his son, Jack, after he spilled wine on her three times while nodding off.

The ensuing fight allegedly resulted in Depp following her to the bathroom and violently shoving his fingers inside her.

Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez accused her of inventing the sexual assault allegation after the island's property manager, Tara Roberts, submitted a witness statement in the UK libel case.

Roberts said that she observed Heard chasing and clawing at Depp during the altercation. Vasquez then played a recording of Heard and Depp discussing the incident. Depp told her that her yelling at him over the spilled wine had upset his son.

“Meet a woman who wouldn't jump up and scream if she has been spilled on three times in a row," Heard shot back.

Vasquez then asked Heard, "You didn’t mention Mr. Depp sexually assaulting you in this recording?"

"That wasn't the point of this conversation," she replied. 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Raven-Symoné disses Amber Heard in video that resurfaced amid Johnny Depp legal woes

Raven-Symoné appears to have taken sides more than a year ago in Johnny Depp's war with Amber Heard, according to a video posted online that resurfaced amid the former couple’s messy defamation trial.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. Listen, we are charging our Tesla right now, and I swear to God, the girl next to us, right now, is Amber Heard and her lesbian lover," Raven-Symoné sarcastically gushed as her wife, Miranda Pearman-Maday, laughed.

The clip was posted April 22, 2021, on the couple’s YouTube channel "8 PM" and is playfully titled "Is Amber Heard going to sue us!?!"

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's new PR rep David Shane accused of sexual harassment: report

Amber Heard's new head of PR has a checkered past and left two jobs after sexual harassment claims were leveled against him, according to a new report.

Angered over a slew of negative headlines, Heard abruptly fired her PR team mid-trial and replaced them with David Shane, 49, of Shane Communications to push a narrative of ex-husband Johnny Depp as an alleged drug-addled wife-beater.

But Shane, it turns out, has been dogged by impropriety allegations, according to an exclusive report from the DailyMail.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard grilled about alleged sexual assault in Australia

Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez showed Amber Heard a picture of the bottle she previously testified that her ex-husband used to allegedly rape her.

"This is the Maker's Mark bottle that Mr. Depp sexually assaulted you with?” Vasquez asked.

"I was never sure it was, but it was that shape, it felt like that shape," she replied.

Vasquez questioned why Heard didn't seek medial treatment after she thought she was raped with what was possibly a broken bottle and suffered bleeding -- even though her doctor was at the house the next day. Heard also said that she sustained cuts on her feet and forearms.

Vasquez pointed out that Heard previously testified that Depp had smashed the tip of his finger off by punching a wall-mounted phone.

But the house manager, who took photos of the damage, said there was no wall-mounted phone in the the bar area.

Depp testified that Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him that severed the tip of his middle finger.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I wasn't worried he was going to stab me' Amber Heard says of gifting knife to Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez asked Amber Heard about the large knife with a teal handle that she gifted her ex-husband for his birthday in 2012 -- the same year she testified that he started hitting her.

"It was during this cycles of violence that you gave Mr. Depp a knife?"

"I gave him a knife," she replied, as a court deputy pulled the blade from the sheath and showed it to jurors. "I wasn't worried he was going to stab me with it," Heard added.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp cheered by fans; Amber Heard booed

Johnny Depp was cheered by more than one hundred fans gathered outside the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse, in Virginia, where he's suing his ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation. "Johnny! Johnny! Johnny!" the crowd chanted as he waved.

Heard, on the other hand, was loudly booed by his supporters as she pulled up. It is the second day of Heard's cross-examination by Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez and her fourth day on the stand.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's lawyer catches Amber Heard in major discrepancy

Jurors were played a clip of Amber Heard telling a Dutch talk show host that she had donated the entirety of her $7 million divorce settlement to charity.

“$7 million in total was donated," she said on "RTL Late Night," which aired in October 2018. "I split it between the ACLU and the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. I wanted nothing.”

After the split in 2016, Heard publicly promised to donate the settlement to her two favored charities. But there was one problem.

"But you hadn’t donated your entire $7 million settlement to charity at this point?" asked Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez.

"That’s incorrect," Heard replied. "I pledged the entirety."

Vasquez pressed her again. "Try to answer my question, sitting here today, you have not donated the $7 million divorce settlement to charity?" the attorney asked.

"I use pledge and donation synonymous with one another," Heard shot back testily to which Vasquez replied, "I don't."

Heard told the jury that she had not fulfilled the pledge yet because Depp sued her. But Vasquez pointed out that she had received all the money 14 months before her ex-husband filed the $50 million defamation lawsuit in Virginia.

"I disagree with your characterization of that," Heard said in response.

Vasquez also confronted Heard with her testimony from the UK libel case, where she made the same claim.

Court broke for the day and Heard is expected to return at 9 a.m. Tuesday for the continuation of cross.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Photos of Amber Heard's unmarked back shown to jurors day after alleged fight

Jurors were shown photos of Amber Heard's unmarked back at a movie premiere the day after she testified that Johnny Depp kneeled on her back and viciously beat her in a Tokyo hotel room.

"You'd agree there are no bruises or physical marks?" asked Depp's defense lawyer Camille Vasquez.

"Not that I can see," she replied.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says covered nose injury with makeup

Johnny Depp's lawyer showed Amber Heard a series of photographs taken of her at an event the night after she testified her ex-husband hit her so hard she may have had a broken nose.

"Your nose doesn't appear to be injured in any of these pictures, does it Ms. Heard?" asked Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez on cross-examination.

"I'm wearing makup," she replied haughtily.

"And makeup covers up swelling?" press the attorney.

“Makeup will not cover up swelling but ice will,” Heard replied. “Normally the swelling after that kind of injury is not as bad as you would imagine.”

Heard testified that in May 2014, the couple attended the Met Gala and Depp accused her of flirting with another woman. After whacking her in in the face, she said she had a swollen, discolored nose.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

The reason Johnny Depp hasn't looked at Amber Heard once in court

At the beginning of cross-examination, Johnny Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez asked her if she had noticed that her ex-husband won't look at her.

"You know exactly why Mr. Depp won't look at you. He promised you he would never see your eyes again, is that true?"

"I don't recall that," Heard replied.

Vasquez then played an audio recording of Heard and Depp's final meeting at a hotel in San Francisco in the summer of 2016 after she filed for divorced and obtained a restraining order against him.

Heard tried to give Depp a hug but he refused. "Please I just want to hug you and say bye," she tearfully told him. Depp refused.

"I am nothing to you, and I will always be nothing to you," Depp said. “You will not see my eyes again."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I have a baby, I want to move on,' Amber Heard says

Amber Heard wrapped up her direct testimony on the witness stand trying to bolster her $100 million countersuit against ex-husband Johnny Depp over statements he made through his former lawyer calling her abuse allegations a hoax.

Heard said she was dropped from a L'Oreal campaign and her role in "Aquaman 2" was significantly paired down after Depp accused her of lying about the abuse claims. She said she received $1 million for "Aquaman" and $2 million for the second installment -- despite her role as Mera being minimized.

She has only acted in one independent film since for which she earned $65,000, she said.

"Every time I look at it which is everyday, I am set back, I have to re-live it," she said of the comments Depp's attorney made to media outlets. "I have to have the worst most painful things I've ever gone through - and narrowly survived at times - embarrassing intimate details that I never wanted to be public and to have them used every single day to call me a liar."

She added: "I have a baby I want to move on. I want Johnny to move on, too. I want him to leave me alone."

After the 10-minute break, cross-examination of Heard will begin.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says op-ed wasn't about Johnny Depp, it's about her

Amber Heard's 2018 op-ed in the Washington Post was about her, not Johnny Depp, she told jurors Monday.

Depp, 58, is suing Heard, 36, for defaming him by calling herself a victim of domestic abuse.

"None of it's about Johnny," she said in an impassioned and angry voice. "The only one who thought it was about Johnny is Johnny. It’s about what happened to me after Johnny. It’s about what happened to me after I escaped my marriage.”

She said she endured two years of vitriol from the press and Depp fans.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I didn't care about the money,' Amber Heard says of $7 million divorce settlement

Amber Heard's lawyer asked the actress why she agreed to take $7 million after their brief marriage.

"I didn’t care about the money," she said. "If I didn’t agree to a number, it would be overturned. I took far less than what they were offering and what I was entitled to."

All she cared about in the settlement, she said, was the pair releasing a joint statement that acknowledged she hadn't lied about the allegations.

"All I have is my name," she told jurors. "I come from nothing. All I have is my integrity. All I have is my name, and that’s exactly what he promised to take from me."

She agreed to donate the $7 million equally to Children's Hospital Los Angeles and the ACLU -- but said she couldn't fulfill the pledge after Depp sued her in 2019.

"I have spent over $6 million..." she said before Judge Penney Azcarate sustained an objection from Depp's lawyer.

Depp's business manager testified that by the end of 2018, Depp had already paid her the full $7 million.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors hear audio of Amber Heard begging Johnny Depp to stop his 'smear' campaign

About two months after Amber Heard filed for divorce and a restraining order against ex-husband Johnny Depp, she asked to meet him California.

In the audio-recorded conversation, Heard can be Heard telling Depp that people were turning on her after she made allegations against him, calling her a liar. The actor had a sophisticated PR team that was conducting a smear campaign, she said.

She told Depp she hadn't filed criminal charges because the evidence against him would be so overwhelming, and she couldn't stop a prosecution once it started.

"It would be evidence, tons of it and it would be through years and it would be unbelievable, unbelievable to imagine a secret fight club or that I had been plotting to do this for three years...no one is going to believe that,” she told him during the June 2016 meeting, which was in violation of the restraining order she obtained against him for allegedly bashing her in the face with a cellphone.

Her lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, asked her to explain the comments.

"I was trying to point out how absurd it would be for him to keep making me prove this by calling me a liar," she said, fighting back tears. "I was trying to get him to not call me a liar because everything I had said to date ,everything I have said now, is the truth."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard addresses makeup kit controversy

Amber Heard said she used a color-correction kit to conceal bruises and other facial injuries -- but clarified it was not the Milani product her attorney held up during opening statements.

In a now viral TikTok video, Milani said the company didn't manufacture the product until 2017 -after Heard's relationship with Johnny Depp had already ended.

On the stand Monday, attorney Elaine Bredehoft handed Heard the Milani color-correction kit. As Heard held it up, she said,"This is, obviously, not the exact one I used to carry but I used to carry it with me all the time."

Bredehoft showed the compact to jurors during opening statements. "This was what she used," the lawyer said. "She became very adept at it. You're going to hear the testimony from Amber about how she had to mix the different colors for the different days of the bruises as they developed."

Heard explained on the stand that she used the color-correction kit -- in addition to her regular make-up when she had bruising or redness.

“Bruising on your face tends to heal a lot faster," she added. "Lips are the hardest because they crack and bleed, of course, but easy to hide if you wear lipstick."

Several witnesses have testified that Heard almost never wore makeup and they hadn't observed bruises or other injuries on her.

Bredehoft asked her about this claim. "They just don't know what they're talking about," she shot back. "I always wear makeup."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I wanted to protect Johnny,' Amber Heard said of why she didn't report alleged abuse

Two officers showed up after Johnny Depp allegedly bashed a phone into then-wife Amber Heard's face.

They both said they didn't observe any marks on her and closed out the incident as a "verbal dispute." Another set of officers came later that night and also said they didn't observe any injuries.

But Heard, 36, testified Monday that one of the first officers who responded pressured her to file a complaint, gesturing to her face, but she refused.

“I wanted to protect Johnny,” she said. "I did not want them to arrest Johnny. I did not want this to happen. I did not want any of this to happen."

Depp's team has accused Heard of faking her injuries from the May 21, 2016, cellphone fight that began over who pooped in their marital bed.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard recounts fight with Johnny Depp that led to restraining order

Amber Heard said that she hadn't seen Johnny Depp in a month when he came by their penthouse apartment the day after his mother passed away.

"He starts talking about this feces again, this prank that one of my friends had left for him in his bed," she said of the May 21, 2016, altercation that started with an argument over the infamous defecation incident.

“My friends wouldn’t do that, that’s not something a bunch of 30-year-old women thinks is funny.”

After the couple got into a fight on her 30th birthday in April, Depp's housekeeper found a large stool in their marital bed. Heard testified that Depp's teacup yorkie, Boo, was responsible, but Depp has insisted that only a human could produce excrement of that size.

During the argument over the origin of the poop, Heard said she called her friend iO Tillett Wright to prove to Depp they didn't do it. But Depp, she said, grabbed the phone out of her hand and began raging at Wright, "You dyke b---!"

Wright allegedly told Heard to get out of the house because it wasn't safe further setting Depp off, Heard testified.

"He pulls his arm back with the phone and throws it at my face and hit me," Heard told jurors. As she's weeping on the sofa, Depp alleged whacked her on the top of the head with his "heavy ringed hand" then yanked her off the couch by her hair.

Her friend, Raquel Pennington, who was living next door, came over and stepped in between them, she said.

"He’s screaming at me to get the f--k up. 'Amber, get the f--k yup Amber get the f--k up,'" she testified. "Every single time he said it, he's screaming it louder and louder and louder."

Depp's security guards entered the apartment and pulled Depp away. He allegedly rampaged through the apartment, using a magnum wine bottle to smash picture frames and overturn boxes.

Jurors were shown photos of the red marks on Heard's face and extensive damage to the apartment.

Six days later, Heard walked into a Los Angeles courthouse and obtained a restraining order against Depp.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says she met Elon Musk at the Met Gala after Johnny Depp stood her up

Amber Heard said that Johnny Depp stood her up at the met Gala in May 2016 and that's when she met billionaire Elon Musk.

Heard and Depp hadn't seen each other since their blowup on her 30th birthday in April. She thought he might still show up to the Met Gala, where they were guests of Ralph Lauren -- but he didn't.

“I got out of the car and walked the red carpet by myself," she recalled. "I was standing in line right in front of a gentleman. It was Elon."

The Tesla titan was there with his mother and the pair started chatting. They had met briefly once before, she said.

"He seemed like a real gentleman, really nice," she added. "We got to speaking that night and eventually became friends." They later went public with their relationship and dated about a year.

Depp has accused Heard of starting a torrid affair with Musk while they were still married.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'That's disgusting,' Amber Heard says of allegation she or pal pooped in marital bed

Amber Heard blamed the infamous defecation incident on Johnny Depp's teacup yorkie Boo.

Depp had stormed out of their apartment morning after another blow up over him not showing up on time for her 30th birthday dinner. She told jurors he violently attacked her and sexually assaulted her during the April 2016 altercation.

She left Boo in her bed while she and her friend packed for their trip to Coachella.

“[Boo] had eaten Johnny’s weed when she was a puppy and had bowel control issues," Heard told jurors. "We regularly had to take her to the vet to figure out what was wrong with this dog."

Boo sometimes had accidents on the floor and in their marital bed but she didn't notice anything amiss that morning, Heard said.

After she and her friend left the apartment, a housekeeper found a sizable stool in the bed that Depp has described as so substantial it could only have come from a human.

"Did you commit any kind of prank?" asked the actress's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft.

"Absolutely not," she replied. The question was in reference to testimony from Depp's chauffeur, who said Heard admitted to him it was a "horrible prank gone wrong."

Bredehoft asked Heard why she wouldn't be behind the vulgar stunt.

“First of all, I don’t think that's funny," she answered. "I don’t know what grown woman does. I was also not in a pranking mood. My life was falling apart."

She added of the allegation she or her girlfriend defecated in the bed as a joke, "I don’t think that’s funny period, that’s disgusting.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard recounts alleged sexual asasult on her 30th Birthday

Amber Heard testified Monday that she and ex-husband Johnny Depp had a huge fight on her 30th Birthday after he didn't show up on time for her dinner.

Depp, 58, previously testified he was at a business meeting where he found out he was in serious financial straits.

After Heard's guests left, she allegedly confronted Depp. They fought and eventually he wrestled her down to the bed and "grabbed me by the pubic bone area," she said.

She continued, "As best I can describe it, he kind of just pushed me down, held me down by it and asked me, taunting me, if I was so f--king tough."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I get so mad I f--king lose it,' Amber Heard says on recording

Amber Heard admitted on the recording that she hit ex-husband Johnny Depp.

"I was hitting you, I was not punching you," she said on the recording from September 2015 that was previously played in court. "I did start a physical fight."

She later said during the same conversation, "I get so mad I f--king lose it."

Heard explained away the admission.

It’s almost more reassuring to take accountability for it than to accept the senseless nature of the violence," said Heard, waring a gray jacket and her hair pulled up in a loose bun. "No matter what I did, no matter what I did he still hit me."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors shown photos of Amber Heard's injuries from alleged attack

Jurors were shown photos of Amber Heard at a movie premiere for "When I Live My Life Over Again" in April 2015 -- a month after she says Johnny Depp sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle in Australia.

The photos show scars on her forearms that she testified were from Depp dragging her across broken glass during the vicious brawl.

That same month, she returned to Australia with Depp and they stayed at the same rented mansion, where she alleged he had brutally beaten, strangled and raped her with a Maker's Mark bottle on March 8, 2015.

“We were in a really beautiful peaceful period, it was wonderful," she said of that trip. “We went back to a very cleaned up version of that home. Same walls, same structure but looked a bit different.”

Her lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, asked her how she felt returning to the same house.

“The home. The home isn’t the problem," she replied. "If you’re living in domestic violence, you don’t just not go home."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says she was mistaken about the first date Johnny Depp physically abused her

Actress Amber Heard returned to the stand Monday after a one week break in the trial.

She said she was mistaken about the first date of domestic violence when Depp allegedly hit her during an argument about his "Wino Forever" tattoo that referenced his ex-girlfriend Winona Ryder.

Heard initially testified it was 2013 but said Monday it was actually in 2012.

“You never forget the first time someone hits you like that I just got the date wrong," she told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

What to expect at Johnny Depp v. Amber Heart trial after week-long hiatus

Johnny Depp’s $50 million defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard is set to resume Monday after a weeklong recess.

When the trial reconvenes May 16 in Fairfax, Virginia, Depp's legal team will cross-examine Heard about her tumultuous 15-month marriage to Depp.

Depp's business manager, Ed White, told the jury of six men and three women Depp paid over $14 million in their divorce settlement after Heard’s financial demands "continually increased" during negotiations. 

Click here to read more.

Posted by Julius Young

Trial breaks for the day; won't resume until May 16

The Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard defamation trial will go dark for one week.

Heard is due back on the stand to continue her direct testimony on May 16.

The one-week hiatus was prescheduled.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says Johnny Depp sexually assaulted her on a Christmas vacation

Amber Heard told jurors that she joined Johnny Depp for a Christmas vacation on his private Bahamian island in December 2015.

The trip was planned before he allegedly yanked out chunks of her hair and gave her two black eyes days earlier.

Several of her friends and family members, who were supposed to accompany them, backed out after they saw the injuries on her face.

Once on the island, the couple was relaxing in the living room. Depp kept nodding off and accidentally spilt red wine on Heard twice, she said. His son, Jack, asked if she needed anything, and she made a snide response, noting that Depp hadn't offered to help.

Heard said he shoved her up against a wall and barked, “If you ever embarrass me again in front of my kids I’ll f--king kill you.” It was unclear if Jack was nearby.

She tried to escape into the bathroom, but Depp followed her and allegedly pushed her up against the wall. "But this time he grabbed my vagina,” she told jurors before looking down in silence for several seconds. “I was wearing this peach kind of netted styled swimming suit underneath.. [He] shoved his fingers inside me through my bathing suit."

Depp allegedly asked her if she was so "f--king tough" as he jerked her around.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard went on TV one day after alleged beating

One day after Johnny Depp allegedly left Amber Heard with two black eyes and a split lip, she went on the "Late Late late Show with James Corden" to promote her film "The Danish Girl."

Heard's makeup artist used heavy makeup and matte red lipstick to cover up her injuries, she said.

“I went on the show and did what I always do, told people I had an accident,” she told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors shown photos of Amber Heard with two black eyes and split lip

Jurors were shown a series of photos of Amber Heard with two black eyes, a busted lip and what she said was a broken nose after an explosive fight in December 2015.

The photos also showed a clump of hair on the floor, a close up of Heard's injured lower lip and a splintered bed frame.

“I thought this is how I die. He’s going to kill me now," Heard testified. She said that Depp repeatedly hit her and head butted her during the alleged Dec. 15 beating. He dragged her to their bed and allegedly kneeled on her back.

"I f--king hate you, I f--king hate you," she said he allegedly railed.

"I remember trying to scream, and I couldn’t scream. I was suffocating in this pillow top," she told jurors. The bed splintered during the struggle.

She lost consciousness and didn't come to until she heard her best friend's voice. Depp had allegedly written messages in Sharpie pen on the countertop.

"Why be a fraud? All is such bullsh-t," the message said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says first time hit Johnny Depp was to protect her sister

Amber Heard said she punched Johnny Depp for the first time during a fight in March 2015.

The couple were brawling over his alleged infidelity. They were on a mezzanine in their Los Angeles apartment when Heard's sister, Whitney, tried to separate them.

"She threw herself in the line of fire," Heard told jurors. "Her back was to the staircase and Johnny swings at her."

Heard continued, "I don’t hesitate. I just, in my head, think of Kate Moss and the stairs and I swung at him."

The "Aquaman" star said in prior litigation, she had heard rumors that Depp had shoved his ex-girlfriend, supermodel Kate Moss, down a flight of stairs.

Jurors were previously shown injuries to Depp's face that his security guard took after the blowup.

The actress said that she had endured years of physical abuse, and this was the first time she "landed a blow."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard alleges she caught Johnny Depp cheating after wedding

Amber Heard and Johnny Depp reconciled a little over two weeks after she alleges he sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle in Australia.

After Depp fell asleep at their apartment in Los Angeles, Heard said she saw a text message exchange on his iPad with a woman he had been dating around the time they met.

"I recognized the name but the date was right after the wedding," Heard told jurors. "I saw he had gone to her house after we got married. Upon touching down in Los Angeles, I think it was the next day, he went to this woman’s house."

They got into a screaming match.

"I freaked," she said of the March 23 fight. "I didn’t care if in that moment he killed me, which was likely at that stage." 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I'm a terrible painter but I'm not that bad,' Amber Heard says

Amber Heard was shown photos depicting the aftermath of her fight with Johnny Depp at a rented home in Australia.

The actress said she awoke to find mashed potatoes and spinach smeared on the walls, and pieces of raw steak wrapped up in torn pieces of her burgundy nightgown.

The mirrors and walls had messages scrawled in a mixture of blood and paint.

As jurors were shown photos of the destruction, Heard said one painting in the house had "a penis painted on" and that several of her paintings were defaced.

Her attorney asked if she played a part in destroying her paintings. "I'm a terrible painter but I'm not that bad," she replied. Heard denied that she had participated in the impromptu graffiti.

Before security whisked Depp away on the third day of the epic fight, Heard said the "Black Mass" actor allegedly "started peeing outside the house, saying he had more messages for me."

The "London Fields" actress implied that Depp had injured his finger after bashing a phone on his hand in between beating her.

Depp testified that his ex-wife hurled a vodka bottle at him that smashed his hand, severing the tip of his middle right finger.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp smirks repeatedly as Amber Heard testifies about alleged sexual assault

At one point as Amber Heard described the alleged sexual assault, she broke down in tears and said, "I don't want to do this."

Johnny Depp smiled slightly then leaned over to whisper to his lawyer, Ben Chew.

"Johnny had the bottle inside of me," she said.

Her lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, showed her a a picture of a liquor bottle and Heard grew agitated. She said she didn't recognize the bottle he had allegedly used until the defense turned over a photo a few days prior that depicted it.

"I felt my stomach tighten up, and I was going to be sick when I saw," she said.

Although she hadn't seen the bottle that he allegedly used, she said she recognized it from its square shape because she had felt it.

The photo appeared to show a bottle of Maker's Mark whiskey with red wax on the top.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard sobs as she recounts alleged sexual assault with liquor bottle

Amber Heard cried hysterically Thursday as she recounted a three-day fight with Johnny Depp in Australia.

On the second day, Depp, in a drug- and alcohol-fueled rage, continued beating her, she said.

“At some point he’s on top of me," she told jurors."I’m looking in his eyes and I don’t see him anymore, and I don’t see him anymore. It wasn’t him. It was black, I’ve never been so scared in my life."

Depp allegedly tore off her nightgown, dragged her across the broken glass naked and repeatedly punched her.

The next thing she remembered was being bent over on the bar with her chest up and something inside her.

"I thought he was punching me. I felt this pressure. I felt this pressure on my pubic bone," she told the jury. She looked around and saw all the broken glass on the floor.

"I didn’t know if the bottle he had inside me was broken," she said. "Please God, I hope it's not broken."

She said she went to the bathroom and vomited then took two sleeping pills. When she awoke, Depp was writing on the walls with his injured finger.

Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft asked her later what Depp was saying to her during the alleged sexual assault.

"'I’ll f--king kill you.' He said it to me over and over again," Heard told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He told me he'd carve up my face!' Amber Heard says of infamous Australia fight with Johnny Depp

During the infamous 2015 Australia fight that left Johnny Depp missing a piece of his finger, he allegedly threatened to carve up Amber Heard's face.

“He’s got a bottle in his hand and he threw it at me," she said. At some point he had a broken bottle up against my face, neck area, my jawline, and he told me he’d carve up my face.”

Heard said when she arrived to rejoin her husband after not seeing him since their wedding, Depp accused her of cheating on him with her co-star Eddie Redmayne.

He then whipped out a bag of MDMA, also known as ecstasy, and said they should do it together.

Heard said she was irate over the suggestion.They had a fight and he allegedly shoved her "across the parquet floors" then grabbed her by the throat.

Three days of physical and sexual abuse ensued while Depp stayed up all night drinking and doing drugs, Heard said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard took mushrooms and drank wine at wedding

Amber Heard told jurors Thursday that she and Johnny Depp were married in an intimate ceremony at his mother's house.

The next day, they flew to Depp's private island in the Bahamas for their second wedding ceremony in February 2015.

The night before she walked down the aisle, she and her girlfriends had a "cuddle puddle" where they ate mushrooms and drank wine.

The next day, she walked down the aisle with Depp in a beach ceremony in front of about 15 people as paparazzi circled above.

The festivities were brief, as she had to return to London to wrap up filming of "The Danish Girl."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I was checking for bruises' on the 'red carpet,' Amber Heard says after fight

Johnny Depp allegedly thrashed Amber Heard in a hotel room in Tokyo in July 2015. Heard said she said something snotty to Depp and he attacked her.

“By the time I made it into the closet, he had me by the hair," she said. "I felt like he was just wailing on me but in a really sloppy way, hitting the back of my head."

He allegedly dragged her to the floor, put his knee on her back and kept hitting her.

They later went to the premiere of of his movie "Mortdecai."

After they walked the red carpet, she said, "I remember in the car checking my phone obsessively for pictures because my dress was backless."

She wiped her eyes with a tissue as she spoke. "I was checking for bruises," she explained.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp would nod off mid-sentence, Amber Heard says

Johnny Depp was preparing for detox from roxycodone with his addiction doctor while wrapping up the filming of "Black Mass" in Boston.

Amber Heard joined him there and said his behavior had drastically changed.

He would nod off mid-sentence and vomit at night. Dr. David Kipper had prescribed a maintenance dose of the narcotic until he had finished shooting and could complete the full detox.

Eventually she figured out that Depp was taking double the amount he regularly used. “I realized then he had been lying to [Dr. Kipper] and me about the amount so he could get extra high before he had to detox,” she said.

Jurors were shown a photo Heard took of Depp passed out in a chair. She later joined him on his private island to help him kick his roxycodone habit.

During his detox, he allegedly slapped her while hallucinating.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I didn't want him to think I was this slut,' Amber Heard says

In October 2014, Amber Heard was in Georgia filming "Magic Mike XXL" after Johnny Depp gave her permission to work on the movie about the escapades of a male stripper.

"He reluctantly agreed to me working on this movie," Heard said. "I wasn’t going to play a sexualized character. I wore no makeup or minimal makeup in the movie. No sexy clothing." She added that she had no kissing or sex scenes.

She has repeatedly described how she alleges Depp tried to control her career. After she set up a meeting with Clive Barker, a sci-fi writer, Depp went nuts Dec. 17, 2014.

"It was not very long before I was accused of having this other plan to sleep with this writer in order to get this part," she told jurors. "I didn't want him to think I was this slut he thought I was all the time."

The two had a fight, and Depp allegedly hit her, leaving a visible bruise. The next day he sent her a text apologizing -- although he did not say he had smacked her in the message.

“I’m sorry for being less..For your disappointment in me…For my behavior…I’m a f--king savage…Gotta lose that…Gonna Lose that!!! The Devil is all around,” he wrote.

Heard said the words he used after "particularly violent episodes" were monster, devil and savage.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Nothing I did could make him stop hitting me,' Amber Heard says of ex-Johnny Depp

Amber Heard told jurors Thursday that as the alleged abuse escalated, her relationship with Johnny Depp grew more toxic.

By December 2014, she said she had started fighting back. "I would push him off of me. I would try to hit his hands away," she said, her face twisted with emotion. “I would yell at him I would scream at him. I called him ugly names. I’ m so ashamed of the names we called each other. "

Jurors have heard numerous audio recordings of Heard and Depp sparring verbally and using shocking language.

"I felt so angry this was happening to me. It just felt so unfair," she said of him allegedly beating her. "Nothing I did made him stop hitting me. Nothing.”

The trial broke for lunch. Heard is due back on the stand this afternoon.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard makes dig at Johnny Depp's manhood

The couple were on his private Bahamian island while he detoxed from prescription narcotics in August 2014.

"He wanted to have sex a lot, which is just not like Johnny at all," Heard told jurors, eliciting a subtle smirk from Johnny Depp, who has barely looked at Heard once since she began testifying.

Heard made the comment as she described Depp's instability as he came off roxycodone. "“The behavior really wasn’t okay. He was up down," she said. 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He was embarrassed and sorry,' Amber Heard says of Johnny Depp after plane fight

Johnny Depp allegedly slapped, kicked and berated Amber Heard on a flight from Boston to Los Angeles in May 2014 over suspicions she was having an affair with co-star James Franco.

Heard, 36, said she stayed in a hotel with friends after the flight then returned to New York where she was filming.

"I cried a lot," she recalled. "I tried to surround myself with my friends and resolved to leave him."

But Depp allegedly promised to change and apologized profusely, telling her he had blacked out.

"What he did remember, he was ashamed of," he allegedly told her. "He begged me to forgive him." She took him back. He was working with an addiction doctor and nurse to get off roxicodone, which he was allegedly mixing with alcohol, marijuana and other drugs.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp allegedly flips out over Amber Heard sex scene with James Franco

Amber Heard was filming "Adderall Diaries" in New York with James Franco while Johnny Depp was on set in Boston for "Black Mass," she said.

She picked him up in Boston in his private plane to head back to Los Angeles May 24, 2014.

"I just knew in every cell of my body something was wrong," she recalled, saying Depp was drunk and high. "He reeked of weed and alcohol. His breath smelled so bad."

The two had argued the night before over the sex scene she had filmed with Franco.

Depp started interrogating her about her kissing scenes and the sex scene in very explicit language.

As she tried to move away from him, he allegedly followed her around the plane, calling her a "go-getter," a "slut" and an "embarrassment."

"He slaps my face," she said, choking back tears. Depp's security and friends on the plane witnessed the assault. "I just felt embarrassed because he did that to me in front of people," Heard told the jury.

As they were exiting the plane, Depp told her to hurry up. "I feel this boot in my back. He just kicked me in the back. I fell to the floor," she recalled. "No one said anything. No one did anything."

During the flight she said she recorded audio of Depp "howling like an animal" to remind him of what he'd done. A clip of the audio was played for jurors.

Depp was so sick from the bender, he allegedly stayed home while Heard took his daughter, Lily-Rose, to dinner at Benihana to celebrate her birthday.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He hated, hated James Franco,' Amber Heard said of ex-Johnny Depp

Amber Heard said that Johnny Depp was constantly accusing her of having an affair with her co-star James Franco.

"It was a nightmare," she said.

Heard and Franco starred in "Pineapple Express" and, in 2015, Heard started filming "Adderrall Diaries" with him, enraging Depp.

"He was mad at me for taking the job," she said. "He hated, hated James Franco."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Met Gala fight: 'He whacks me in the face,' Amber Heard says of Johnny Depp

Amber Heard told jurors Thursday that Johnny Depp accused her of flirting with another woman at the Met Gala in 2014.

When they returned to their hotel room, Depp allegedly grabbed Heard by the neck in a jealous rage. After she pushed him back, he allegedly chucked a bottle in her direction that narrowly missed and broke a chandelier.

Depp then shoved her onto the sofa. “At some point, he whacks me in the face," she said."I think that was the first time I was like, 'Is this a broken nose?'...I suspected I had a broken nose."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Prenup was my idea, Amber Heard tells jurors

After the engagement, Amber Heard said she asked Johnny Depp for a prenuptial agreement.

"I wanted to eliminate any doubt in his mind, in other people’s mind, so I brought it up to him," she said, adding that Depp didn't want it.

“Johnny said he would tear it up," she recalled. "'If you ever brought one up to me or I saw one, I’d tear it up. The only way out of this is death. The only way out of this is death,'" she recalled him saying.

In March 2014, they had a large engagement party, but Depp disappeared to do drugs with her dad.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard gets 'enormous diamond' in second proposal

Amber Heard recounted Johnny Depp proposing a second time in front of both their families in November 2013.

"He surprised me," she said. "He got down on one knee and I cried and hugged my mother and hugged his mother, and he gave me this enormous diamond ring. It was a nice time."

The first proposal a few months earlier in London did not involve a ring. Heard said she had grown very close to his children -- even though she had only met them that year.

“These kids, I found them to be these beautiful, wildly intelligent little weirdos in the best way," she told jurors. "I was falling in love with them." She admitted that she felt protective over them and interfered with Depp's parenting.

Depp, she said, "got really mad and said it wasn't my place."

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

It was 'rock bottom,' Amber Heard says of Johnny Depp partying in 2013

Amber Heard testified that she thought Johnny Depp had hit rock bottom in late July 2013 when he was filming "Mortdecai" with Paul Bettany in London.

"There were days when he wouldn’t come home, or they couldn’t get him up on set," she said. "He’d be asleep in his trailer."

Heard was living in Depp's rented home in London at the time. After he didn't come home one night, she found out he was staying in a hotel with Bettany, she said.

The next day, he returned. “One of his security guards carried, carried Johnny like a baby into the house," she recalled. "His boots were hanging over the security guard's arm.”

He was severely ill for two days. She said she thought he had reached "rock bottom" and this had to be a turning point in his addiction.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp was jealous and controlling, Amber Heard tells jurors

Amber Heard was in London filming the widely panned movie "London Fields" when the couple got engaged in September 2013.

Before accepting the role, she said she had to get Johnny Depp's approval. While shooting, she even sent him photos of her wardrobe fittings for him to sign off.

"Every scene that involved sexuality or romance I would look at that on the page, and I would feel my gut tighten because I knew it was going to be an issue," she said.

In the film, Heard plays femme fatale Nicola Six who has torrid affairs with three men to determine her killer.

After Depp left London, Heard wanted to attend a concert with some of her cast mates. She asked for Depp's permission.

"He said if I accept the invitation, the engagement is off," Heard said. "I was foolish and naive for thinking people could invite me to a concert in a platonic way." 

The pair fought for hours by phone and text over the issue, she said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard describes romantic proposal from Johnny Depp

Amber Heard teared up as she recounted the moment Johnny Depp proposed to her in a London hotel.

The pair were in London working on project and staying in the same hotel they had consummated their relationship during "The Rum Diary" press tour.

"He got down on one knee and said 'I want you to be my girl, be my girl forever, my woman, my girl, I want you to be the rest of my life, say, yes, to me,” Heard recalled. "I felt like the luckiest woman in the world."

Depp then flew out her best friends and her father to celebrate.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors shown photos of Johnny Depp passed out

Amber Heard, 36, says she began taking photos of Johnny Depp when he was high or drunk.

Her lawyer Elaine Bredehoft showed jurors two pictures that Heard snapped of Depp passed ou The first was of Depp in a chair on his private Bahamian island and the second after a "several day bender."

After a period of sobriety, he began using again partly fueled by his friendship with Paul Bettany, she said.

A third photo taken in Tokyo, where his kids were staying in an adjoining room, showed Depp, fully dressed, curled up on the floor of their hotel room. They were in Japan on a press tour for Depp's movie "Lone Ranger" in 2013.

It was Heard's second day on the stand.

Posted by Haley Chi-Sing

Johnny Depp, 58, arrived Thursday to a cheering throng of supporters. He waived from the rear passenger side of his Cadillac Escalade as Bob Marley blared from the car stereo.

Amber Heard, 36, arrived a few minutes later, wearing a cream-colored dress and her hair pulled back in a sleek bun. She's expected to return to the stand Thursday for her second day of testimony.

A sign posted Thursday outside the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia, informs spectators that they can cannot form a line to get into the courtroom until 1 a.m, according to a tweet from Law&Crime's Jesse Weber.

The notification comes after the crowd, predominantly Depp fans, started queuing up at 11 a.m. Monday night to snag a seat in the courtroom for Tuesday.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Behavioral analyst says 'Amber was the aggressor' in relationship

Behavioral analyst Susan Constantine, who specializes in reading body language and detecting deception, says she does "not believe" Johnny Depp "was abusive with" his ex-wife, Amber Heard, based on both of their testimonies during Depp's defamation trial against Heard.

The "Aquaman" actress, 36, took the witness stand in a Fairfax, Virginia, courtroom for the first time Wednesday after the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor, 58, completed his testimony on Tuesday.

They have both accused each other of physical and emotional abuse."[T]he question is, was he abusive with Amber? I do not believe that he was abusive with Amber," Constantine told Fox News Digital. "I think that Amber was the aggressor … 100%."

Click here to read more.

Posted by Audrey Conklin

Yacht trip: Johnny Depp allegedly chokes Amber Heard

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, accompanied by his then teen kids, went on a trip in July 2013 to his private Bahamian island.

Heard met Lily-Rose and Jack about a month earlier, and they were all going to the island to say "goodbye" to Depp's yacht, which he was selling to JK Rowling.

Depp, she said, was drinking liquor out of a coffee cup and his daughter, then 14, had noticed and was agitated.

Then, in a playful way, Depp threw himself off the boat like a "dead fish" and it scared Lily-Rose, who broke down in tears. Depp entered the room, where she was comforting his daughter, and he ordered the teen to leave.

He then accused Heard of telling Lily-Rose that he had been drinking.

"He slams me up by my neck and holds me there for a second and tells me he could f--king kill me and I was an embarrassment," she recalled. "I was very, very, very much in love with this whole family now, and he's saying I'm embarrassing."

A helicopter came to pick up Heard and Depp from the island, while Jack stayed behind.

Depp didn't appear to look at Heard a single time during her afternoon on the witness stand. But he did occasionally smirk in response to her testimony or lean over to his lawyer, Ben Chew, to whisper in his ear.

The "London Fields" actress is expected back on the stand at 10 a.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He'd pass out in his own vomit,' Amber Heard says of Johnny Depp

Amber Heard was already contemplating leaving Johnny Depp by mid-2013, torn by the two versions of her "soulmate."

She called him the love of her life.

"When it was good, it was so good," she said, adding that there was this other side to him that was awful."It would come out and take over and I couldn't see the Johnny I loved," explained.

Heard said that Depp's dark side came out when he did drugs and drank, and he was in denial about the severity of his addiction.

"He'd pass out in his own vomit. He'd lose control of his own body," she said. "This man would lose control of his bowels and I'd clean up after him. His security would clean up after him."

Afterwards he would walk around saying he "didn't have a problem."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

After emotional testimony from Amber Heard, court breaks for the day

Amber Heard's testimony is expected to continue Thursday at 10 a.m.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp, Amber Heard do ecstasy with flight attendant

Amber Heard said she and Johnny Depp took ecstasy on a flight to Russia in 2013. They shared the drug with a flight attendant. But Depp soon felt that the flight attendant became too friendly with Heard.

"He grabbed her by the wrist, slammed it down on the table and told her he could break her wrist," she recalled. The flight attendant started crying. Heard alleged that Depp made the same threat to another woman he felt was inappropriate with her.

When Heard and Depp got to their hotel, he allegedly beat her up, giving her a bloody nose, she said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He ripped my dress,' Amber Heard said of alleged sexual assault by Johnny Depp

Amber Heard testified Wednesday that ex-husband Johnny Depp did a "cavity search" on her while looking for his cocaine.

They were staying with friends at a "fancy trailer park" in 2013. Depp allegedly thought another woman, who had taken ecstasy, had hit on her. Heard, who was high on mushrooms, and Depp went back to their trailer. The actor was screaming and tearing everything apart, she said.

“He ripped my dress," she recalled, fighting back tears. "He rips my underwear off and then he, he proceeds to do a cavity search. He said he was looking for his drugs, his cocaine, his coke."

She said he shoved his fingers insider her. "I just, stood there staring at the stupid light. I didn’t know what to do," she recalled. "I just stood there while he did that. He twisted his fingers around." 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Jurors shown photo of bruise on Amber Heard's left arm

Amber Heard, then a brunette, texted her mom a selfie showing a bruise she sustained during an argument with ex-husband Johnny Depp in March 2013.

Depp slapped her and she walked away. Heard said she "could tell" he was going to hit her again so she  threw a vase at him.

He then allegedly grabbed her by the arm and held her on the floor. "I don't know how many times he hit me in the face," she said. "I remember thinking, 'How could this happen to me again.'"

In an earlier fight, he had accused her of sleeping with a musician and another friend in Spain. 

She said he smacked her in the face with a ringed hand and her lip went into her teeth and blood splattered on the wall.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard describes cycles of abuse

Amber Heard said she started to learn that Johnny Depp's behavior changed depending on the drugs he was on.

"Johnny on speed is very different from Johnny on opioids, Johnny on opioids is very different to Adderall and cocaine Johnny - but I had to get good at paying attention to the different versions of him,” she told jurors.

By 2012, she was "walking on eggshells" but didn't know what she'd done wrong. Depp would grab her by the hair, backhand her and slap her in cycles of abuse. There were constant accusations of infidelity, then "explosions."

Heard said she confided in her therapist and her mother.

“I felt safe talking to my mom because I knew that she understood these dynamics and she wouldn’t judge me for staying with him, for loving him," Heard said of her mom, who has since passed away.

Heard's father was physically abusive toward her mother.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'He slapped me across the face,' Amber Heard testifies

Amber Heard told jurors the first time Johnny Depp allegedly hit her was at her apartment in Los Angeles early in their relationship.

He was drinking and there was a jar of cocaine in front him. She made a comment about his tattoo "Wino Forever." He had changed it from "Winona Forever" after he split from "Stranger Things" actress Winona Ryder.

"He slapped me across the face," she recalled. "I laughed. I laughed because I didn’t know what else to do." The "Black Mass" star then hit her two more times, and she fell on the ground.

He dropped to his knees, sobbing, and promised it would never happen again, she recalled. "I put the monster away," he allegedly told her.

"I knew I had to leave him," Heard said. "That’s what broke my heart because I didn’t want to leave him.”

Before the first assault, Heard said that Depp had thrown a glass at a wall near her. He would also hassle her about her clothes and her disparage her acting career.

“That’s really what you’re wearing, kid?" he'd ask her if she put on an outfit he found too revealing. He'd refer to other actresses as "worthless whores" and "fame hungry" in a bid to discourage her from pursuing the profession, she said.

The physical abuse escalated with Depp often triggered by suspicions she was having an affair -- including with her ex-wife.

"He said he had proof," she recalled of one incident. "He slapped me across the face."

Heard did not cry but appeared as though she was fighting back tears.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'It was beautiful,' Amber Heard says of relationship with Johnny Depp

Amber Heard said she started dating Johnny Depp secretly at first.

"It was beautiful," she said. "I felt like this man knew me and saw me in a way that no one else had. I felt he understood me, I felt he understood where I came from.WhenI was around Johnny I felt like the most beautiful person in the world. I felt seen it made me feel like a million dollars."

He lavished her with gifts -- including a Colt horse. But he would also disappear for days and be unreachable, she said.

Heard visited Depp while he was shooting "Lone Ranger," and she would cook for him.

"I suppose I took off his boots and it made an impression on him,” she added. “But if he wanted to take off his own boots, he certainly could," she quipped, referring to Depp's testimony that she got mad at him for taking off his own boots.

The comment prompted Depp to smirk, but he did not look at his ex-wife. 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Yum,' Johnny Depp tells Amber Heard on set

Actress Amber Heard told jurors she visited Johnny Depp in his trailer on the set of "The Rum Diary" in Puerto Rico with a bottle of wine in hand.

“He playfully pushed me down on this bed, sofa, that was in his trailer, playful, flirtatious and he said, 'yum' and he lifted up his eyebrows like that,” she recalled.

The pair were both in serious relationships at the time, and it went no further. But Depp sent her numerous gifts.

The two reconnected about two years later for the film's press tour. By then they had both broken up with their spouses.

One night, Depp invited her to his room for a meeting with another producer of the film. When she showed up, only Depp was there.

They drank red wine. “It felt like there was an electricity in the room," she said.

When she got up to leave, Depp stopped her. “He grabbed both sides of my face and he kissed me -- and I kissed him back,” she said. "Then we fell in love."

He later took her to his private Bahamian island for one week, where he drank tons of tea. "A lot of tea, like a lot of tea," she said.

In the beginning, their relationship was secret. Depp told Heard he had broken up with the mother of his two kids, Vanessa Paradis, but it hadn't been reported in the press.

"I had to sneak around and get brought to his house because he said everybody would blame me for the split with his ex," she told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard recalls filming steamy shower scene with Johnny Depp

Amber Heard was in Puerto Rico filming "The Rum Diary" with Johnny Depp. They had little interaction until they filmed a shower scene.

“We had a kissing scene," she said. "It didn’t feel like a normal scene anymore it felt more real.”

She explained that actors normally don't use their tongues in a kissing scene if they can avoid it.

"He grabbed my face and pulled me into him and really kissed me," she said.

"Did he use his tongue?" asked her attorney Elaine Bredehoft.

"Yes," she replied. They were both in serious relationships at the time.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard describes first meeting with Johnny Depp

Amber Heard said she got call saying that Johnny Depp wanted to meet her in-person at his office for a part in "The Rum Diary."

Heard, then 22, didn't audition for Depp, who produced the film. Instead they ended up talking for hours.

"We talked about books, music, poetry," she said. "We liked a lot of the same stuff: obscure writers, interesting books, pieces of poetry that I haven’t heard anyone else reference or know or like. He’s very well read and charismatic. I think I left the office with a few books he gave me.”

She got a call not long after. "My phone rings, I pick it up and hear this deep voice on the other end, 'You’re it kid, you’re the dream!'"

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard tells jurors about her upbringing

Amber Heard grew up in the small town of Manor, Texas, where she helped her dad broke horses.

"I was the son he never had," she said. She lived with her mom and her sister, who is 16 months younger.

She said of breaking horses that, "The key thing is to not to show fear, to not be intimidated, to be tough, to stay calm.”

Heard attended a private Catholic school in the wealthier part of town on a scholarship she said. She also worked at soup kitchen for about four years, she said. The actress said she taught herself sign language when she was 12.

Her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, didn't appear to raise his gaze in her direction for the first several minutes of Heard's testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard begins testimony

Amber Heard, wearing a black blazer over a blue and white striped shirt, stepped into the witness box Wednesday to share her side of her toxic marriage to ex-husband Johnny Depp.

The 36-year-old actress wore almost no make up for her debut on the witness stand. 

“I am here because my ex-husband is suing me for an op-ed that I wrote,” she said. Her attorney, Elaine Bredehoft asked how she felt about this.

“I umm, I struggle to have the words," she said. "I struggle to find the words to describe how painful this is. This is horrible for me to sit here for weeks and relive everything." 

She continued, "This is the most painful and difficult thing I’ve ever gone through for sure."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Court breaks for lunch; Amber Heard due on the stand this afternoon

Amber Heard's psych expert wrapped up her testimony Wednesday morning. Judge Penney Azcarate called the lunch break early. Heard is due to take the stand next.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's psych expert admits Johnny Depp suffered abuse too

Johnny Depp's attorney cross-examined Dr. Dawn Hughes, a psych expert hired by Amber Heard, who testified that the actress was a victim of domestic violence.

"You cannot testify that Johnny Depp was not abused, can you?" asked Wayne Dennison in his final question.

"I can testify that he had physical acts of violence perpetrated upon him as well as psychological aggressive acts perpetrated upon him," Hughes conceded.

"No further questions," Dennison said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

James Franco and Elon Musk crop up again

Johnny Depp's attorney asked Amber Heard's psych expert if the actress ever discussed the days leading up to the restraining order she took out against her ex-husband on May 27, 2016.

"Did Ms. Heard ever tell you that James Franco spent the night with her at the Eastern Columbia Building between May 21 and May 27 [of 2016]?"

"I do recall she did see him at some point," replied Dr. Dawn Hughes. Heard alleges Depp bashed her in the face with a cellphone May 21, which led to her obtaining a restraining order six days later.

Franco was captured on surveillance video visiting Heard at the Los Angeles penthouse at about 11 p.m. the next day.

Dennison asked whether Elon Musk also spent the night during the same week, but Hughes said she did not know.

In prior litigation, it was revealed that Heard and Musk were in text communication at the time, with the Tesla honcho offering to provide her with 24/7 security after Depp's alleged assault.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's PTSD interfered with filming "Aquaman 2", psych expert says

Psychologist Dawn Hughes -- hired by Amber Heard -- diagnosed the actress with PTSD from the sexual and physical abuse she alleges she suffered at the hands of ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Hughes determined that Heard's PTSD had interfered with her ability to work.

"She’s literally performing at the highest level of her profession," Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison said of Heard filming "Aquaman 2."

"She had a number of PTSD symptoms while she was filming "Aquaman 2," Hughes replied.

Dennison then rattled off Heard's latest interests and pursuits, including cooking, hanging out with friends, exercising every day and completing level 3 sommelier training.

"She did all of these things and you’ve made a determination that she is impaired with respect to her occupational function?" asked Dennison.

"[PTSD] does not stop her from doing what she needs to do but it does interfere," Hughes explained.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Psych expert weighs in on Amber Heard gifting Johnny Depp a large knife

Dr. Dawn Hughes -- who was hired by Heard -- testified that the actress was a victim of domestic violence.

Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison showed the psych expert a photo of a large silver knife with a turquoise handle that Heard had gifted Johnny Depp during their relationship. The blade is engraved with the Spanish phrase "hasta la muerte" or "until death."

A woman that is "afraid for her life gives her intimate partner a large knife in which she has inscribed 'until death,' that’s your testimony?" asked Dennison.

"Well, there's context," replied Hughes. On redirect, the psychologist said that the phrase referred to Depp's alleged comment that he didn't want a prenuptial agreement because the only way out of their relationship was death.

The forensic psychologist also acknowledged that Heard had perpetrated acts of violence against Depp -- but testified it was in reaction to his abuse.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Did Amber Heard have an affair with James Franco?

Psychologist Dawn Hughes, who is being cross-examined by Johnny Depp's team, was questioned about a note that lists James Franco and Elon Musk under the heading "Intimate Relationships."

Next to "JF," it states that Amber Heard, 36, said she "got close" to Franco in December of 2015 but "really wanted to be with Johnny." Heard and Depp didn't split up until May 2016.

Under cross-examination, Hughes said the heading "Intimate Relationships" didn't necessarily mean that Heard had told her that her relationship with Franco was sexual.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Intimate Relationships:' James Franco and Elon Musk

Johnny Depp's defense lawyer asked Dr. Dawn Hughes about handwritten notes she took while evaluating Amber Heard that reference actor James Franco and Tesla titan Elon Musk.

Hughes testified Wednesday that Depp accused Heard of having affairs with all her co-stars, including Franco with whom she starred in "Pineapple Express."

Under a heading "Intimate Relationships," Hughes wrote the names James Franco and Elon Musk, according to the note shown to jurors by Depp's lawyer Wayne Dennison.

The note states that Heard and Franco got close in December 2015, but Heard "really wanted to be with Johnny."

Heard has denied she had an affair with Franco during her relationship to Depp, which ended in May 2016.

Heard met Musk at the Met Ball in May 2016, according to the note.

"I was heartbroken, my soul was dead, felt nothing then," Hughes wrote, referring to Heard's statements to her, with an arrow pointing to the Musk entry. The note says the pair split in March 2018.

Both Heard and Musk have denied that their romance began prior to the end of her marriage.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Dr. Dawn Hughes testimony continues

Amber Heard reported alleged sexual assault at the hands of Johnny Depp to two therapists-- only after her ex-husband had sued her for defamation, Dr. Dawn Hughes acknowledged Wednesday during cross-examination.

Hughes, a psychology expert for Heard, said on Tuesday that the actress's allegations of sexual assault -- including that Depp allegedly raped her with a liquor bottle -- were corroborated by statements she made to the therapists.

The forensic psychologist testified that she did not interview the couple's therapist, Dr. Laurel Anderson or Heard's personal nurse, Erin Falati. Hughes didn't agree with Anderson's conclusion that there was "mutual abuse" in the relationship.

"Dr. Anderson didn’t believe Ms. Heard to be a victim of spousal abuse?" asked Depp's lawyer.

"I believe those were her words," Hughes replied.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are back in the courtroom

It is the second day of Amber Heard's defense case, and her psychologist expert, Dawn Hughes, is expected back on the stand Wednesday morning for cross-examination.

Heard is expected to climb into the witness box next.

Meanwhile, Depp fans began lining up outside the courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia, at 11 p.m. Tuesday night to try to snag a seat in the courtroom for the explosive testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Trial ends for the day

The trial wrapped up for the day with Dr. Dawn Hughes expected back on the stand Wednesday morning for cross-examination. Amber Heard's testimony is likely to follow.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Psychologist details Amber Heard's shocking sexual assault allegations

Johnny Depp allegedly tried to rape ex-wife Amber Heard and forcibly performed a cavity search on her, psychologist Dawn Hughes testified.

“When Mr. Depp was drunk or high, he threw her on the bed, ripped off her nightgown and tried to have sex with her," said Hughes, referring to alleged abuse Heard had reported to her. "There were times when he forced her to give him oral sex when he was angry at her."

On one trip, Depp allegedly accused a woman of hitting on Heard. When the couple returned to their trailer, Hughes said that "Mr. Depp performed a cavity search" with his fingers to look for cocaine he thought she was hiding inside her.

The worst alleged incident of sexual assault occurred in Australia when Depp claims Heard smashed his hand with a vodka bottle, severing a piece of his finger, in 2015.

“He was beating her and choking her and telling her I am going to f--king kill you," Hughes said. "He grabbed a bottle that was on the bar and penetrated her with that bottle.”

 Hughes said Heard had described dissociating from her body.

“The only thing she was thinking is, 'I hope it’s not the broken one,'” the psychologist testified. Depp has denied physically or sexually assaulting his ex-wife.

Hughes also described Depp as controlling and jealous, accusing Heard of having affairs with her co-stars -- including Billy Bob Thornton and James Franco.

The "London Fields" actress reported some of the alleged assaults to her therapists, and Hughes said she reviewed their notes.

Heard dropped more than 20 pounds and deteriorated psychologically during the relationship, according to the expert.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard was 'raised in a family of violence,' expert testifies

Amber Heard was physically abused by her father and witnessed him beat her mother, Dr. Dawn Hughes testified.

"Her father was very explosive and had violent outbursts," the psychologist said, as Heard bowed her head.

Hughes told jurors that Heard's parents also struggled with drug addiction, and the actress was forced to become a caretaker at a young age. As the doctor described her difficult childhood, Heard's eyes appeared to water and her lower lip trembled.

The dysfunctional family dynamic played a role in her relationship with Depp, said Hughes, the first witness called by Heard's team.

“She learned she could love someone who hurts her," the doctor explained. "She knew people who hurt her could also love her.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard was at risk of 'lethal domestic violence,' psychologist says

Defense expert Dr. Dawn Hughes said that the abuse Amber Heard allegedly suffered at the hands of ex-husband Johnny Depp put her at risk of "lethal domestic violence."

“Mr. Depp threatened to kill her. The increase in severity of the abuse, the forced sexual activity, the choking  behavior, his obsessive jealousy, the control aspect and his threatening suicide, to kill himself," were factors that played into this determination, she said, prompting Depp to respond with an expression of surprise. “This means a woman is at risk for more serious, more lethal domestic violence," Hughes testified.

Depp has denied Heard's allegations of abuse. Hughes also concluded that Heard was not faking her symptoms, a finding that differed from Depp's expert witness, Dr. Shannon Curry.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard suffers from PTSD due to Johnny Depp abuse, psychologist says

Amber Heard suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder caused by "intimate partner violence by Mr. Depp," Dr. Dawn Hughes told jurors.

Hughes is the first witness in the defense case against Depp, who is suing his ex-wife for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she wrote alleging she was a victim of domestic abuse.

"Ms. Heard's report of intimate partner violence and the records that I reviewed are consistent with what we know in the field about intimate partner violence characterized by physical violence, psychological aggression, sexual violence, coercive control and surveillance behaviors,” she said.

She reached her conclusion after spending 29 hours interviewing Heard. She also interviewed Heard's two therapists, her mom and reviewed evidence from this case and prior litigation.

Hughes said that Heard has suffered "clear psychological and traumatic effects" from statements "Depp made through his attorney," bolstering the actress's $100 million countersuit alleging her ex-husband conspired with his former lawyer to defame her.

Depp's expert witness, psychologist Shannon Curry, watched the testimony in the gallery, which appeared to throw off Heard's attorney, Elaine Bredehoft, who repeatedly called Hughes "Dr. Curry."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Doctor explains 'cycle of violence' to set stage for Amber Heard's testimony

Dr. Dawn Hughes told jurors Tuesday that domestic violence victims become trapped in a pattern of abuse.

In the first phase, the abuser may slam the fridge door a little harder, throw an object or scream before graduating to physical abuse, she explained in response to questions from attorney Elaine Bredehoft.

Amber Heard, 36, wore a pained expressed and bowed her head for several seconds during Hughes' testimony. The psychologist said after the violent outburst phase comes contrition. The abuser apologizes and promises not to do it again, then the cycle recurs.

“You’re stuck in this vicious cycle of how can I be with this man who hurts me yet I love him so much,” Hughes testified.

The expert added that it is not unusual for a victim to yell at her partner or become violent and fight back.

"Anger is a very normal emotion to having been abused," she said. "She can also be afraid but they don’t have to be mutually exclusive.”

Hughes said that men, too, can be victims of domestic violence but said this has to be put into perspective. Women are much more likely to be killed and sexually assaulted by their partners, she added.

The expert conceded that Heard had also perpetrated violence and verbally abused Depp but called it "more mild."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's defense case kicks off with first witness

Amber Heard's defense team called forensic and clinical psychologist Dawn Hughes Tuesday afternoon as their first witness.

Hughes, who is based in New York City, is an expert in intimate partner violence, sexual assault and traumatic stress.

She described intimate partner violence as the use of manipulation, fear and control to establish dominance. The abusive behaviors occur over time and are interspersed with periods of happiness and normalcy.

"It’s this interposition of the violence with the love and the care that makes it very difficult for a victim to extricate herself from the situation or relationship,” Hughes told jurors.

Heard, wearing a black blazer over a white blouse, listened to Hughes' testimony attentively without taking notes. During most of Depp's case, Heard was often seen scribbling furiously on a notepad.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's spokesperson issues statement after resting case

Johnny Depp's spokesperson issued a statement Tuesday that summed up the last two weeks of testimony after the actor rested his case.

"Over the last 3 1/2 weeks, we’ve seen and heard from nearly 30 witnesses who have attested to and supported Mr. Depp’s claims that Ms. Heard defamed him in her 2018 op-ed," according to the statement. "Ms. Heard’s reckless op-ed in turn caused him to lose a $22.5 million deal with Disney for 'Pirates of the Caribbean' 6, resulting in an overall loss of earnings of over $40 million since December 18, 2018."

The spokesperson added that, "Numerous witnesses have testified that Ms. Heard engaged in psychological, verbal and physical abuse towards Mr. Depp."

Depp's team was pleased with Judge Penney Azcarate's ruling rejecting the defense's bid to dismiss the case, according to the statement.

"We stand confident in the future of the case and for the truth to be continued to be shared," the spokesperson said.

The first witness in the defense case is expected to be forensic and clinical psychologist Dawn Hughes, who is an expert in domestic violence.

Hughes' testimony is expected to take the remainder of the afternoon. The "London Fields" actress will likely take the stand on Wednesday, according to a source close to her team.  

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Judge denies Amber Heard's request to dismiss case

Amber Heard's legal team asked a judge Tuesday to dismiss the case -- minutes after Johnny Depp rested.

Attorney Ben Rottenborn argued that Depp had not met his burden of proof and asked for summary judgement.

He said that Depp's team had not proven Heard had acted with "actual malice" and that if Depp abused Heard even once -- including "non-physical abuse" -- she wins.

Depp's lawyer Benjamin Chew countered that Heard is the "abuser in this courtroom." He referred to her May 2016 temporary order of protection as "a scam" to get $7 million that she swore she gave to the ACLU and the Children's Hospital Los Angeles but instead had pocketed.

Chew spent about a half hour reviewing the evidence presented so far to argue that Heard had acted with "actual malice" meaning she knew what she wrote in the 2018 op-ed was false or suspected it might be and didn't care.

Rottenborn was asked to respond. “ I can only assume Mr. Chew wrote that argument for those outside the court because he didn’t address my argument, but he spent 30 minutes of the court’s time," Rottenborn fired back.

Judge Penney Azcarate denied the defense's motion to strike as to two of the statements Heard made in the op-ed but said she'd reserve her decision as to one of them.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp lost $40m due to ex-wife Amber Heard's op-ed, forensic accountant says

Johnny Depp's final witness, forensic accountant Michael Spindler, testified that the actor lost $40 million in earnings from Dec. 18, 2018 to October 31, 2020 due to Amber Heard's op-ed alleging she was the victim of domestic abuse.

Spindler analyzed the "Black Mass" star's accounting records, contracts and transcripts and determined that he earned $17.5 million in 2017 and that was a typical year.

Depp getting cut from the sixth "Pirates of the Caribbean"movie cost him $22.5 million minus agent fees, Spindler said. He also testified that Depp lost out on other film roles and endorsements.

But the expert conceded during cross-examination that he did not evaluate whether anything other than the op-ed could have led to the loss of revenue, such as Depp's lawsuit against The Sun newspaper in London for calling him a "wife-beater."

Spindler also acknowledged that Depp had earned more in 2020 than in 2016. After Spindler wrapped up his testimony, Depp's legal team rested their case.

Between 2009 and 2019, Depp earned about $459 million.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard admitted she was high for 24 hours at Coachella

Amber Heard was high for 24 hours after taking mushrooms, ecstasy and drinking at Coachella in April 2016, her private nurse, Erin Falati, wrote in her notes.

"Client admits to illicit drug use during the trip -- ingested mushrooms and MDMA simultaneously and also consumed alcohol and said she was high for 24 hours straight," according to the entry.

Falati reminded Heard that the medical staff would not tolerate illicit drug use, and it could react adversely with her other medications.

“Client laughed" and reported using "mushrooms and MDMA May 9th, 2016, at home with a high-profile acquaintance," the note read. "Client reported that her husband was not aware of the male visitor or her illicit drug use."

In Falati's pre-recorded deposition played for jurors Tuesday, she was questioned about the entries.

The nurse first met Heard in 2014, and the actress told her of a prior history of substance abuse "including an addiction to cocaine and liquor.'

Heard said she hadn't used cocaine in years but admitted drinking one to three glasses of wine a night, according to Falati's notes.

The nurse described Heard's coping mechanism as "impulsive anger and yelling."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp allegedly wanted Amber Heard to end her acting career

Amber Heard allegedly told her former private nurse, Erin Falati, that Johnny Depp wanted her to end her acting career.

“Client verbalized feeling of confusion as she feels fiancé would like her to decrease/eliminate acting career and stay home,” Falati wrote in the Aug. 29, 2014, entry.

The trial began Tuesday with jurors watching Falati's pre-recorded video deposition.

In another note, Heard allegedly expressed having anxiety over Depp's absence.

“Nervous about being alone while husband is working on movie set in London and expressed she has difficulty dealing with feelings of insecurity and jealousy when not in the presence of her husband,” Falati wrote.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp is expected to rest his case Tuesday

Johnny Depp's legal team is expected to rest Tuesday after nearly two weeks of testimony.

Amber Heard's lawyers will call their first witness, a forensic psychologist, who is an expert on intimate partner violence.

Video posted to Twitter Tuesday by reporter Angenette Levy shows a typical scene outside the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Virginia when Depp arrives.

The 49-second video, filmed Monday, shows more than 100 fans cheering the actor as he waves from the backseat of a black Escalade. Rock music can be heard blaring from the SUV.

As Depp steps out, fans yell, "Johnny, I love you!" according to the footage. Heard, who typically arrives at least 10 minutes before Depp, is usually booed.

The trial resumed Tuesday with jurors watching a pre-recorded deposition of Amber Heard's private nurse, Erin Falati.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard texted private nurse photos of her battered face

Amber Heard sent her private nurse Erin Falati photos of her bruised face May 22, 2016 -- a few hours after she alleges that Johnny Depp bashed her in the eye with a cellphone.

Falati said in a pre-recorded deposition played for jurors Monday that Heard sent her four photos at 12:36 a.m. showing red marks around her right eye.

But the nurse did not include any information about the texts in her treatment notes, Heard's lawyer Adam Nadelhaft pointed out during questioning.

Depp's legal team has accused Heard of faking her injuries in retaliation for him wanting to end their marriage.

"Client states she cannot deal with the negative media publicity she has received from the divorce she requested from JD," Falati wrote in a medical note memorializing a text from Heard requesting the sleeping aid Ambien.

By the next month, Falati had stopped treating Heard and started treating Depp. He allegedly told her on April 7 that he was blindsided by Heard filing for divorce.

"Client states that he was not aware that AH [Amber Heard] wanted a divorce and expresses confusion that AH [Amber Heard] wants to terminate the marriage,” Falati wrote in her notes.

The alleged statement by Depp appears to contradict his testimony on the stand.

He told jurors that he requested the divorce May 20, 2016, the day his mother died -- but was taken aback when he learned that Heard had beaten him to the punch and filed three days later.

The rest of Falati's deposition, which was recorded on Feb. 4, is expected to be played Tuesday morning when court resumes.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Expert says Johnny Depp wasn't viewed negatively before domestic abuse allegations

A licensing and damaging expert testified that Johnny Depp's online reputation took a major hit after Amber Heard accused him of domestic abuse in 2016 and again after the publication of her op-ed in 2018.

Douglas Bania performed an analysis using various tools, including Google trends and historical Google search results, to evaluate the impact of Heard's accusations on Depp's online reputation.

“My analysis shows that prior to the 2016 abuse allegations, Mr Depp was not portrayed in a negative connotation," said Bania, explaining that most of the searches focused on his career.

But this shifted dramatically in 2016 with searches that focused on the alleged abuse and his drinking and drug use, Bania said. His online reputation dipped again after the 2018 op-ed.

Bania also evaluated Depp's Q Score -- the measure of a brand or celebrity's appeal. After the 2016 and 2018 allegations, there was a decline in the number of people who liked Depp and a spike in the number of people who disliked him, Bania told the jury.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Expert says Amber Heard got Johnny Depp 'canceled' in Hollywood

Entertainment lawyer Richard Marks, who testified as a forensic expert for Johnny Depp's legal team, said Amber Heard's op-ed got her ex-husband "canceled" in Hollywood.

“The op-ed damaged Mr. Depp, created a cancel situation if you will, harmed his reputation and his ability to get work in the Hollywood industry,” Marks told jurors.

Depp is suing Heard for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she wrote alleging she was the victim of domestic abuse and calling out Hollywood for supporting her abuser. Although she didn't name Depp, it was clear she was referring to him.

Marks, who has worked in Hollywood for 50 years, said that after the #MeToo movement, there was a major shift where the victim gets the benefit of the doubt in the industry "until there's too much doubt."

He called Heard's op-ed "devastating" to Depp. "It’s the type of Me Too claim of sexual violence, domestic abuse, that has canceled a list of actors," he testified, referencing the downfalls of Chris Noth, Kevin Spacey and Harvey Weinstein.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Petition to remove Amber Heard from "Aquaman" 2 garners more than 3m signatures

A petition to ax Amber Heard from the "Aquaman" sequel has garnered 3,073,623 signatures.

Jeanne Larson started the petition on change.org in 2020 calling for DC Warner Bros and DC Entertainment to cut Heard's role as Mera-- but the effort has gained steam with Johnny Depp's defamation trial.

"Men are victims of domestic abuse, just like women," Larson wrote. "This must be recognized, and action must be taken to prevent a known abuser from being celebrated within the entertainment industry."

Heard played Mera in the first "Aquaman," which was released in 2018, and it was her most successful role to date. The movie grossed more than $1 billion, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Meanwhile, Depp supporters gathered outside the courthouse, including one man dressed as the actor's most famous character, Captain Jack Sparrow.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard will not be the first witness called by the defense

The first witness in Amber Heard's defense case will be Dr. Dawn Hughes, a clinical and forensic psychologist, according to a source close to the "Aquaman" actress's team.

Hughes, who could be called as early as Tuesday, is an expert in intimate partner violence, sexual assault and traumatic stress.

Initially, Heard was slated to be the first defense witness.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp couldn't land a studio movie after ex-wife Amber Heard's op-ed, agent says

CAA talent agent Jack Whigham, who testified Monday via video link from Los Angeles, began representing Johnny Depp in October 2016.

At the time, the "Black Mass" actor had three films in the works: "City of Lies," "Murder on the Orient Express" and "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald."

In total, Depp was paid about $31.5 million for those three movies that were filmed in 2017. Depp also picked up an indie film called "The Professor," for which he got an additional $3.5 million.

That same year, the agent said he had wrapped up negotiations for the sixth "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie, for which Depp would get $22.5 million once filming began.

But, in December of 2018, Depp's ex-wife Amber Heard penned an op-ed for the Washington Post, referring to herself as a survivor of domestic abuse.

"With respect to Johnny, it was catastrophic," Whigham said of his client's acting career. Disney promptly dropped Depp from the sixth Pirates movie, Whigham testified.

“After the op-ed, it was impossible to get him a studio film," the agent said.

On cross-examination, Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft pointed out that Depp had filed a libel lawsuit in June 2018 against the U.K. newspaper The Sun over an article that branded him a "wife-beater."

Bredehoft implied that it was this article and the publicity surrounding the lawsuit and 2020 trial that harmed Depp's career. The actor lost the case.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard slugged Johnny Depp in the face, bodyguard says

Amber Heard allegedly slugged Johnny Depp in the face as a security guard tried to separate them during a wild brawl in Los Angeles March 23, 2015.

Heard had already chucked a can of Red Bull at Depp, hitting him in the back, and spat on him, according to Depp's bodyguard Travis McGivern.

"'You’re f--king washed up, you’re a f--king c---,'" Heard allegedly railed at him. "Mr. Depp was giving as good as he got at that point," said McGivern, clarifying that he was referring to verbal abuse.

Heard left the apartment and Depp "rearranged" her closet, ripping down every rack of clothes and shoes, the security guard recalled.

Heard returned and was very "agitated" and McGivern stepped in between them.

“At that point, out of the corner of my eye, I see a fist and an arm come across my right shoulder, and I heard and I saw a closed fist contact Mr. Depp in the left side of his face," said McGivern.

The punch left Depp with a "shiner," said McGivern, who insisted they leave immediately.

"I let him get hit by a Red Bull can, I let him get punched," he said. "My job is to ensure the safety and well being of my clients, and I felt like I hadn’t done that."

McGivern told jurors that the pair fought frequently. "There was a lot of verbal vitriol from both of them," he said.

Heard has admitted she decked Depp during the argument -- but has claimed it was only after he shoved her sister, Whitney Heard.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's bodyguard says Amber Heard mocked his job

The first witness Monday was one of Johnny Depp's security guards, Travis McGivern, who testified live via video from Los Angeles.

McGivern said Depp and Heard fought frequently and he often tried to extricate the "Black Mass" actor from the situation. This angered Heard and she went off on a tirade against McGivern, he said.

“She basically demeaned my career choice," he recalled. "Called me a f--king yes man, and honestly, there were parts of that where she was like, 'How would you feel if someone was involved in your relationship?' which I sympathized with. She definitely threw some shade on me and my chosen career.”

McGivern picked up Heard from the airport when she returned from Australia March 9, 2015, after she and Depp had a blow-up fight.

She has alleged he beat and sexually assaulted her during what she has described as a "three-day hostage situation." Depp testified that Heard was the aggressor, chucking a vodka bottle at him and slicing off the tip of his finger.

McGivern said he observed no injuries on Heard upon her return.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard fires her PR team over negative publicity

Actress Amber Heard is slated to climb into the witness box this week in Johnny Depp’s explosive $50 million defamation trial to offer her side of their doomed marriage -- just days after axing her PR team.

She abruptly fired Precision Strategies Thursday over a slew of negative headlines -- and hired crisis management firm Shane Communications, according to the New York Post.

Her new PR team has battled Depp before. CEO David Shane was hired by The Management Group after Depp sued the business firm for negligence, fraud and breach of duty.

Click here to read more.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Depp-Heard defamation trial: A look at the celeb witnesses still set to testify

As witnesses continue to take the stand or testify via video in the ongoing Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial, it was recently revealed that two celebrities — James Franco and Elon Musk — will no longer be testifying in the case. 

The witness list for the trial, which is expected to last six weeks, originally included Musk and Franco. However, Musk's lawyer confirmed to Fox News Digital that the Tesla CEO would not take the stand. A source with knowledge of the trial confirmed to the New York Post that Franco also would not be testifying.

On Monday, Depp concluded a grueling four days on the witness stand, calmly telling jurors he filed his libel lawsuit against his ex-wife because it was his best chance to reclaim his reputation. The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star filed the suit over a 2018 op-ed.

With Franco and Musk out, there are still a few Hollywood figures who may take the stand, including Ellen Barkin and Paul Bettany. Heard is also set to testify. 

Click here to read more: Depp-Heard defamation trial: A look at the celeb witnesses still set to testify

Posted by Lauryn Overhultz

Amber Heard called defecation incident a 'practical joke,' witness says

Amber Heard allegedly called the infamous defecation incident a "practical joke" to Johnny Depp's longtime chauffeur Starling Jenkins III.

Jenkins drove Heard to Coachella April 22, 2016, the same day staff found human feces in the couple's marital bed.

"We had a conversation pertaining to the surprise she left in the boss's bed," he recalled. Jenkins testified that Heard told him, "It was a horrible practical joke gone wrong." The "Justice League" actress has claimed that the sizable package was left by one of her teacup Yorkies.

That morning when Jenkins arrived to pick up Heard, she allegedly told him that she and Johnny had a fight, and she threw his phone and wallet over the balcony into the street.

Jenkins said he used the Find My iPhone app to track Depp's cellphone to a homeless man in Skid Row who had found it. As a reward, Jenkins gave the man $420, chicken tacos, apples and a bottle of Fiji water, he said.

On cross-examination, Jenkins admitted that Depp had thrown Heard's phone off the roof before she chucked his property in the street. Jenkins was the final witness Thursday, and the trial is slated to resume Monday.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I can see bone, it's smashed,' bodyguard says of Johnny Depp's finger

Bodyguard Malcolm Connolly told jurors Thursday that he showed up at a rented house in Australia after Amber Heard and Johnny Depp had an explosive fight that left the actor without part of his finger.

"It’s chaos, there’s screaming and shouting," he said of the March 8, 2016, blow up. "[Heard]'s screaming f--k off, you f--king coward." Depp, he said, was yelling back. The bodyguard, who still works for Depp, said he saw no cuts or marks on Heard.

Connolly took Depp back to his apartment. "His finger, it’s just a mess," Connolly testified via video from Sussex, England. "It’s flopping around. I can see the bone. It’s smashed a bit, he’s wincing as I’m trying to wash his hand.”

Depp was later taken to the hospital for treatment, and his finger had to be reconstructed. The actor alleges that Heard hurled a vodka bottle at his hand, slicing off the tip of his middle right finger.

Heard has accused Depp of sexually assaulting her with a liquor bottle and beating her during the trip. She says Depp injured his own finger after smashing it with a phone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Amber wanted to wear the pants,' Johnny Depp's bodyguard testifies

Johnny Depp's bodyguard, Malcolm Connolly, who has known the actor for more than 20 years, said that “Amber was lovely, charming" at first but it didn't last.

"Amber started to change," he testified via video from Sussex, England. "Amber started to get a bit more feisty, demanding. I could see that Amber wanted to wear the pants in the relationship. It was quite obvious.”

Over time, he said, Johnny got quieter. Connolly also said he noticed bruises, scratches and swelling in increasing frequency on the left side of Depp's face during the turbulent romance.

Once Heard launched a can of soda from the mezzanine of the couple's apartment, which hit the mechanical arm of a TV and sprayed all over the wall, he said.

Although Depp drank alcohol and smoked marijuana, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor only appeared intoxicated to Connolly twice.

“I think Jack Sparrow is more drunk than Johnny Depp to be honest,” the bodyguard quipped of Depp's most famous character, as the courtroom erupted in laughter.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's business manager implies that Amber Heard blew thousands on wine

Johnny Depp's business manager Ed White told jurors Thursday that he paid off a $160,000 tab at Twenty Twenty Wine Merchants after the actor split from Amber Heard.

"His wine bill has shrunk to virtually zero," White testified. "He does not consume that much in the way of wine."

He said that Heard was particularly fond of a Vega Cecilia wine that cost $500 a bottle.

A total of 13 bottles of her favored libation were served at Heard's 30th Birthday party April 21, 2016 -- the night Depp learned he was in financial crisis, White testified.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp paid $14 million in divorce, witness testifies

Actor Johnny Depp's business manager, Ed White, told jurors Thursday that the actor paid a total of $14,250,000 in the divorce settlement.

White said Heard's financial demands "continually increased" during negotiations, starting at $4 million and eventually growing to the sizable figure.

"She demanded that the payment be made free of tax liability," said White, indicating that Depp had to earn $30 million to satisfy the settlement.

The sum included $6.8 million paid directly to Heard, $200,000 to the two charities she had designated, $500,000 to her lawyers and approximately $7,250,000 in "community liabilities" the pair acquired during the marriage, White testified.

Heard publicly announced in 2016 that she would donate her entire $7 million cash payout from Depp to the American Civil Liberties Union and the Children's Hospital Los Angeles. But she only coughed up $350,000 directly to the ACLU.

Elon Musk ponied up another $500,000 in her name, Depp sent a check for $100,000 and an undisclosed donor provided another $350,000. It wasn't immediately clear how much of the promised sum has been paid to the hospital.

The ACLU's chief operating officer testified that Heard said she could not satisfy the remaining balance of her pledge to the charity in 2019 due to financial difficulties.

But Depp had already paid $6.8 million directly to Heard when she made the claim, according to White's testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

ACLU executive accidentally calls Amber Heard's 2018 op-ed an 'ad'

American Civil Liberties Union COO Terence Dougherty mistakenly referred to Amber Heard's 2018 op-ed about surviving domestic abuse as an "ad."

Doughtery made the error during a pre-recorded deposition played in court Thursday, as he described a series of emails among the charity's communication specialists.

"These are further communications among employees, staff members in the development department, regarding the placement of Amber’s ad and the finalization of the op-ed piece. Not ad, I’m sorry,” said Dougherty.

The slip up came after the ACLU executive recounted how a team of staffers came up with the idea for the op-ed, drafted it with Heard's input and shopped it to the Washington Post.

When ACLU staffer Stacy Sullivan pitched the article to the newspaper, she wrote in an email, "wondering if we might interest you in a piece by Amber Heard (who, as you may recall, was beaten up during her brief marriage to Johnny Depp), on what the incoming Congress can do to help protect women in similar situations."

The ACLU also timed the publication to coincide with the release of "Aquaman" to capitalize on the publicity from Heard's latest film, Dougherty said.

Heard had become an ambassador for the charity after pledging to donate $3.5 million of her divorce settlement -- but only coughed up $350,000 directly.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

An ACLU staffer wrote Amber Heard's 2018 Washington Post op-ed

An America Civil Liberties Union staffer penned Amber Heard's 2018 Washington Post op-ed describing herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse."

"I tried to gather your fire and rage and really interesting analysis and shape that into an op-ed form," wrote ACLU communications strategist Robin Shulman in an email to Heard, with the first draft of the op-ed attached.

At least three other staffers were involved in drafting and revising the piece, testified ACLU COO Terence Dougherty in a pre-recorded deposition played in court Thursday.

The earlier drafts included direct references to Depp, which her lawyers had removed. Heard had signed a nondisclosure agreement as part of her $7 million divorce settlement barring her from speaking publicly about the relationship.

Heard requested that the op-ed be published shortly after the release of her movie "Aquaman" to capitalize on the publicity, according to emails introduced at the trial.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp greeted by adoring fans outside courthouse

Actor Johnny Depp was greeted by cheering fans Thursday when he arrived at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Virginia.

Depp, 58, stepped out of his black Cadillac Escalade, as supporters hollered. The "Black Mass" actor turned toward the crowd, cracked a smile and said "thank you" before entering the courthouse. 

Heard, who usually shows up at least 10 minutes before her ex-husband, received little fanfare. The actress hurried into the building wearing a stoic expression contrasted by Depp's upbeat disposition.  Earlier this week, Depp fans booed the "Aquaman" actress.

The exes entered a courtroom Thursday packed with spectators — many of whom are Depp supporters. 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard hasn't made a payment to the ACLU in 3 years

Actress Amber Heard hasn't made a single payment to the American Civil Liberties Union in three years due to "financial difficulties," the charity's chief operating officer testified in a pre-recorded deposition.

Heard, 36, publicly announced in 2016 that she would give the ACLU $3.5 million -- half of her divorce settlement from Johnny Depp. A total of $1.3 million was credited to her, at least $500,000 of which was paid by her ex-lover, Elon Musk, on her behalf.

“We reached out to Ms. Heard starting in 2019 for the next installment of her giving, and we learned that she was having financial difficulties," Terence Dougherty said in the deposition.

Heard claimed in a 2020 statement that was part of Depp's libel lawsuit against The Sun newspaper that she had donated her entire $7 million divorce settlement to the ACLU and the Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

Lawyers for The Sun argued that Heard had not lied about the donations because she had pledged to pay the sum over 10 years.

Depp sued the UK newspaper for branding him a wife beater in an article and lost.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Elon Musk likely gave $500,000 to ACLU on Amber Heard's behalf

Actress Amber Heard announced in 2016 that she would give the entirety of her $7 million divorce settlement from Johnny Depp to the America Civil Liberties Union and the Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

But the ACLU's Chief Operating Officer Terence Dougherty testified in a pre-recorded deposition played Thursday in court that Heard has only paid $350,000 directly of the $3 1/2 million pledged.

He said based on an email exchange between Elon Musk and ACLU executive director Anthony Romero, the Tesla honcho donated $500,000 on Heard's behalf via a Vanguard fund. Another $350,000 came from an undisclosed donor and Depp sent a check for $100,000.

Musk also communicated directly with Romero on Heard's behalf, indicating in an email that she planned to pay the pledged amount over 10 years.

Dougherty, whose deposition was taken Dec. 21, 2021, said to date the ACLU had credited Heard with paying $1.3 million of the promised funds.

The ACLU's communication team helped Heard draft the 2018 Washington Post op-ed after she became the charity's ambassador for women's rights, Dougherty testified.

At least four staffers worked on the piece in which Heard identified herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Elon Musk won't testify at Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard defamation trial

Elon Musk won't testify in the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard defamation trial. 

While Musk has been subpoenaed to hand over any and all communication he had with Heard about the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star, the tech boss will not be taking the stand on Heard's behalf. 

To read more, click here.

Posted by Julius Young

Depp-Heard trial to resume Thursday morning

Judge Penney Azcarate adjourned a Virginia courtroom Wednesday in Johnny Depp's ongoing defamation trial against his ex-wife, Amber Heard.

The day closed after jurors heard pre-recorded testimony from Laura Wasser, Depp's divorce attorney. During her testimony, Depp's legal team presented exhibit to the jury from Heard’s divorce attorney, Samantha Spector.

The exhibit was a letter from Spector alleging that Depp "violently attacked" Heard at their apartment on May 21, 2016, and requesting a "private and amicable resolution to all matters."

It then a list of financial and property requests Heard demanded during their divorce. The items included use and possession of a Black Range Rover and Depp's continued payments to cover the cost of the vehicle, the exclusive use and possession of three of his downtown Los Angeles penthouses and Depp's continued mortgage payments, $100,000 for legal feels and $25,000 for forensic accounting costs.

The trial will resume on Thursday morning.

Posted by Audrey Conklin

Former talent agent says Johnny Depp lost 'Pirates' deal over abuse allegations

Christian Carino said in a pre-recorded deposition that Johnny Depp was cut from "Pirates of the Caribbean" six after Amber Heard accused him of domestic violence.

The agent said he had numerous conversations with movie executives -- including "Pirates" producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

“The nature of it was that the studio (Disney) was having difficulty employing him,” Carino said in the deposition, recorded Jan. 21, 2021.

Carino conceded that Bruckheimer didn't explicitly state that Heard's allegations were the reason but it was clear from the context.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's former talent agent testifies

Talent agent Christian Carino, who represents Johnny Depp and a long list of other celebrities, testified Wednesday in a pre-recorded deposition.

Carino, who was once engaged to Lady Gaga, said that beginning in 2016, as Depp became embroiled in numerous lawsuits, it negatively affected the actor's reputation. Depp sued his lawyer, business manager, the Sun newspaper and Amber Heard -- but Carino said it was his ex-wife's allegations of domestic abuse that were most damaging.

“My opinion is that Amber’s  accusations would have had the most dramatic impact on his off-screen reputation,” Carino testified in the Jan. 21, 2021 deposition.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp doorman says he saw 'no marks, bruises' on Amber Heard

The couple's doorman, Alejandro Romero, testified Wednesday in a pre-recorded deposition that he interacted with Amber Heard four days after the infamous cellphone fight and saw "no marks or bruises" on her face.

Heard, 36, alleges that Johnny Depp, 58, bashed her in the face with a cellphone on May 21, 2016, after an explosive fight inside their penthouse apartment. Although Romero was not on duty, he saw Heard four days later.

She and her friend, Raquel Pennington, saw scratches on the front door and asked Romero to make sure there wasn't an intruder in the apartment.

“In my head, I’m like, you really think someone is trying to get into your apartment," he recalled. "The scratches are four inches above your floor. That was the dog." But they were so afraid, he went upstairs and checked every room in the house.

"Really, I didn’t understand why they wanted me to do it,” he grunted in annoyance, eliciting laughter from the courtroom.

He said he was just three feet from Heard when they spoke in the lobby, and he didn't see any injuries.

"I just don't remember seeing any marks, bruises or anything," he testified, acknowledging that he didn't know if Heard was wearing makeup.

Two days later, Heard went to a Los Angeles courthouse, with dark bruising on her face, to obtain a temporary restraining order against Depp over the alleged violent confrontation.

Romero previously testified at Depp's UK trial against The Sun. He said Elon Musk stopped by late at night to visit Heard in 2015 always when Depp wasn't home.

Musk and Heard have denied that their romantic relationship began before the end of her marriage to Depp.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Couple's exasperated doorman says he's 'tired' of dealing with case

Doorman Alejandro Romero said in a pre-recorded deposition Wednesday, "I'm tired, I just don't want to deal with this court case anymore."

“I know you guys sent me the papers to review, and I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to review them because it’s been so long,” Romero told attorneys in the video, recorded on Jan. 22, 2021.

"I’m tired. I don’t want to deal with this court case anymore. Everybody’s got problems," he added, eliciting a soft chuckle from Johnny Depp.

Romero previously testified at Depp's UK libel trial against the Sun newspaper, which the actor lost.

The doorman, puffing on a vape pen, appeared to be in a car for the deposition. He worked at the Eastern Columbia building in downtown Los Angeles, where Heard alleges Depp bashed her in the face with a cellphone May 21, 2016. Romero was not on duty that day.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Video shows police respond to Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's penthouse after 911 call

Jurors Wednesday were shown body-camera video of officers entering Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's luxurious Los Angeles apartment after the couple had a fight May 21, 2016.

Los Angeles Police Officer William Gatlin and his partner responded to a 911 call of a domestic dispute about two hours after a pair of officers had already responded and closed out the case.

Gatlin said in a pre-recorded deposition that a second call came in, and he and his partner had to make sure there wasn't a new incident.

"Just coming in to make sure everything is OK," one of the officers can be heard saying.

The video shows Gatlin and his partner enter a sumptuous penthouse apartment in the Eastern Columbia building in downtown Los Angeles as two small dogs circle.

The police briefly chat with three women, one of whom is Heard, and a man before leaving. The man appears to be Heard's friend Josh Drew.

Gatlin said the room was dimly lit, but he did not see any injuries on her face -- the same observation made by the first pair of responding officers.

Heard's lawyer, Elaine Bredehoft, pointed out on cross-examination that the right side of Heard's face was covered by her hair in the video.

Six days later, the "Aquaman" actress showed up to a Los Angeles courthouse, sporting bruises under her right eye, and filed for a restraining order against Depp over the alleged attack. She said Depp had bashed her in the face with a cellphone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's trial fuel: candy

Johnny Depp points to a generous pile of red, yellow and clear candies Wednesday in a Virginia courtroom.

The sweets were at the plaintiff's desk where Depp sits during the live-streamed defamation trial he brought against ex-wife Amber Heard.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp doodles on a notepad in court

Actor Johnny Depp used a purple marker to doodle in a sketch book Wednesday in a Virginia courtroom.

The latest drawing comes after a video Tuesday went viral on TikTok showing the actor pass what appears to be an elaborate sketch on a Post-it note to his attorney Ben Chew.

The lawyer pulls out his glasses and appears to admire the miniature portrait. The video, which has garnered 4.5 million views, was posted by dangiaplumbing4life with the headline TEAM JOHNNY!!!.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's net worth

Actor Johnny Depp is reportedly worth $100 million -- despite having earned a whopping $650 million from 2003 to 2016, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

Depp, 58, blew through as much as $2 million a month to maintain an extravagant lifestyle, it was revealed during a messy lawsuit he brought against his former business manager, accusing him of "gross mismanagement" and "outright fraud."

Heard, 36, has a net worth of $8 million -- including $7 million she got in a divorce settlement from Depp after a 15-month marriage, according to Celebrity Net Worth.

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star is suing Heard for $50 million, alleging she defamed him. She is countersuing for $100 million. It is the 10th day of testimony in the lives-streamed defamation trial.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard had no 'visible injuries' after fight with Johnny Depp, LA officer says

Los Angeles Police Officer Tyler Hadden said in a videotaped deposition that Amber Heard had no "visible injuries" when he and his partner responded to a 911 call at the couple's penthouse.

Heard has alleged that Depp chucked a cellphone at her face, striking her right cheek and eye May 21, 2016, six days before she obtained a restraining order over the incident. When she showed up to a Los Angeles courthouse with reporters and photographers in tow, she had bruises on her face.

Hadden and his partner determined the domestic call was a "verbal dispute" and closed the case that night.

"Ms. Heard refused any medical treatment and had no visible injuries," he testified in the deposition that was recorded in March 2021. There was no sign of struggle, and the witness that was there that I spoke with was uncooperative as well."

The officers left a business card, and Heard later called one of them.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard to be first witness in defense case, source says

Actress Amber Heard will be the first witness when the defense case begins next week in the live-streamed defamation trial, according to a source.

Court TV's Chanley Shá Painter was the first to report Heard's imminent appearance in the witness box.

Meanwhile, Heard and Depp separately arrived at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse, in Virginia, on Wednesday morning for the 10th day of testimony in the sensational $50 million libel trial.

Elon Musk, Heard's former lover, and actor James Franco may also testify for the defense.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

LA officer who responded to 2016 call from Depp-Heard apartment says there were no signs of DV

Los Angeles Police Officer Melissa Saenz said in a videotaped deposition from March 31, 2021, that she did not see physical signs of a domestic violence incident at Amber Heard and Johnny Depp's penthouse when she responded to a 911 call on May 21, 2016.

Heard and her attorneys have alleged that Johnny Depp threw a cellphone at her face, hitting her right cheek and eye, on that day.

Saenz testified that she did not see any signs of a crime or domestic violence in the penthouse during a protective sweep. The officer also said that despite asking Heard to answer questions about the incident, Heard did not respond to Saenz.

Posted by Audrey Conklin

LA officer did not see signs that Amber Heard was hit with cellphone

Los Angeles Police Officer Melissa Saenz said in a videotaped deposition from March 31, 2021, that she did not see physical signs on Amber Heard's face indicating that she had been hit with a cellphone when she responded to a 911 call on May 21, 2016.

Heard and her attorneys have alleged that Johnny Depp threw a cellphone at her face, hitting her right cheek and eye, on that day.

Saenz said Heard's face looked "flushed" and "consistent with crying," but it did not show any signs that she had been struck with a phone, Saenz testified.

The officer's testimony, which happened two months after the incident, has been criticized because she did not take notes while responding to the incident.

When Depp lost his U.K. libel case against a British media outlet for labeling him a "wife beater," Judge Andrew Nicol said: "It is notable that the officers took no contemporaneous notes. While it is not for me to criticise the methods of another police force, the absence of contemporaneous notes means that their evidence does not carry the same weight as it would otherwise."

Posted by Audrey Conklin

Amber Heard 'intentionally' engaged in 'extreme levels of exaggeration,' says forensic psychologist

The alleged exaggerations were made on psychiatric tests administered to Amber Heard.

“On an objective test of trauma, there is a scale specific to intentional exaggeration, and Ms. Heard was in the 98th percentile, meaning that she had engaged in extreme levels of exaggeration,”

Dr. Shannon Curry testified on redirect. Curry, who was hired by Johnny Depp's legal team, diagnosed Heard with borderline personality disorder and histrionic personality disorder.

She said that her role as a forensic examiner is very different from a therapist "who is an advocate for their client."

It's considered extremely unethical for a treating provider to convey any sort of opinion -- including about whether a crime or abuse occurred, she said.

On cross-examination, Heard's lawye asked Curry a series of questions about the conclusions that the actress's treating psychologists had reached about her abuse allegations against Depp -- including that he was the primary aggressor.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Forensic psychologist who evaluated Amber Heard had dinner and drinks with Johnny Depp

Forensic psychologist Shannon Curry said she never reached a determination that Amber Heard's abuse allegations against Johnny Depp were untrue.

"You have never arrived at the opinion that Ms. Heard exhibits patterns of behavior that suggest her allegations of abuse against Mr. Depp are false?” asked Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft on cross-examination.

"Correct," replied Curry, who said that was not her task. Bredehoft suggested that Curry was a star-struck expert who had dinner and drinks with Depp before she was hired on the case.

Curry clarified that she ate and may have had one drink during the three-hour meeting at Depp's home with his legal team. She said she had agreed to the dinner at his house due to the high-profile nature of the case and privacy concerns.

"You understand that if you found favorably to Ms. Heard and negatively to Mr. Depp, you wouldn’t be here. You wouldn’t be testifying?" asked Bredehoft but Judge Penney Azcarate sustained an objection from Depp's lawyer.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard doesn't have PTSD from alleged abuse by Johnny Depp

A forensic psychologist testified Tuesday that Amber Heard doesn't have post-traumatic stress disorder from alleged abuse by ex-husband Johnny Depp.

Dr. Shannon Curry spent 12 hours with Heard, reviewed her prior psychiatric records and administered a slew of diagnostic tests to the "Aquaman" actress.

"Ms. Heard did not have PTSD, and there were also pretty significant indications that she was grossly exaggerating symptoms of PTSD when asked about them,” Curry told jurors.

On an assessment, Heard claimed she suffered from 19 of 20 PTSD symptoms. "[That would not be] typical of someone suffering from even the most disabling form of PTSD," Curry testified.

Curry diagnosed Heard with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and histrionic personality disorder (HPD), which she described as "two sides of the same coin" that feature "dramatic, erratic and emotional" behavior.

BPD involes intense instability and an overwhelming drive to avoid abandonment, Curry explained. With HPD a need to be the center of attention and "drama and shallowness" are key characteristics.

When a person feels they are not the center of attention, they often make up stories or take on a victim role, Curry said.

"Characteristically, people with this disorder are very, very interested in looks, but more importantly, they utilize their looks to get that attention, to get that respect they're seeking," she said of HPD.

Heard's defense team is expected to cross-examine Curry after the lunch break.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard allegedly slapped her friend and engaged in self-harm

Amber Heard allegedly slapped her ex-best friend Raquel Pennington "out of the blue" and has engaged in self-harm, a forensic psychologist testified Tuesday.

Dr. Shannon Curry offered examples from Heard's past that supported a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder.

"[There was a] story about how they were shopping for Thanksgiving," she said of Heard and Pennington. "Ms. Heard struck her in the face sort of out of the blue."

She added that Heard had disclosed to another psychologist that she had "cut her arm" in an act of self-harm. Heard's defense team Monday presented photos of the actress's forearms with scratches that they allege were caused by Johnny Depp.

Curry testified that with borderline personality disorder relationships start very intensely with a pattern of idealizing then devaluing their lovers and friends.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Forensic psychologist delivers damning assessment of Amber Heard

Dr. Shannon Curry delivered a damning assessment of Amber Heard's personality Tuesday in a Virginia courtroom, as the actress scribbled notes and softly shook her head in disagreement.

Curry rattled off Heard's negative traits: "externalization of blame, tending to have a lot of inner hostility" and "a tendency to be very self righteous but also to deny that self righteousness and judge others critically. " She added that Heard was "very full of rage" and had an intense fear of abandonment. 

Borderline personality disorder, which Curry diagnosed Heard with, involves "explosive anger when somebody needs space."

People with this disorder are "concerned with their image, very attention seeking" and are often very attractive, Curry said.  

The diagnosis can be predictive of a person who is abusive to her partner, the doctor added.

“That temper or being hot headed is really characteristic of borderline personality disorder as is being very charming, a personable nature," Curry testified. "This is a disorder of contradictions.”

Curry was hired by Depp's defense team.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard has 'borderline personality disorder,' psychologist testifies

Actress Amber Heard has "borderline personality disorder" and "histrionic personality disorder," a forensic and clinical psychologist testified Tuesday.

Dr. Shannon Curry said she met with Heard, 36, for 12 hours as well as reviewed her medical, legal and psychiatric records to reach her diagnosis. She was not asked to provide a psychological evaluation for Johnny Depp.

Curry described Heard as having an "overly dramatic presentation" consistent with histrionic personality disorder.

"It tends to be very flowery, it uses a lot of descriptive words like 'magical,' 'wonderful' and yet it really lacks any substance, so at the end you’re left wondering what was just said," the doctor testified. "That occurred a number of times [with Heard]," she said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's estate manager admits she doesn't know how actor got nose gash

Johnny Depp's estate manager for his private Bahamian island admitted on cross-examination, she did not know how the actor sustained a gash on his nose during a December 2015 trip.

Depp has alleged that ex-wife Amber Heard chucked a can of mineral spirts at his face.

The manager, Tara Roberts, also said she did not know whether Heard had covered up bruises she had with makeup. Roberts said on direct that she observed no injuries on Heard during the trip.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard allegedly called Johnny Depp a 'fat, ugly old man' after bashing his nose

Johnny Depp had a gash on his nose after he and Amber Heard got into a fight, the actor's estate manager for his private Bahamian island testified Tuesday via live video.

Tara Roberts, who earns about $10,000 a month running the island, said Heard, Depp and some friends visited in December 2015.

One night, Depp showed up at the island's office "agitated" and Heard came a few minutes later to take him back to their house. Roberts was concerned and drove with another staffer to the modest bungalow to make sure he was OK, she said.

When they arrived, they heard the "Aquaman" actress yelling.

"Amber was telling him he was a washed up actor, he was going to die a fat, ugly old man," she recalled. "You heard Johnny say, 'You hit me with a can' then he came down the steps."

Heard pursued Depp and begged him to return the house, apologizing and telling him she loved him as she "viciously tried to pull him back,"Roberts said.

The manager later got ice and put it on the gash on the bridge of Depp's nose. After the couple left the next day, Roberts cleaned the bungalow. She noticed a "liquid on the deck with a can of mineral spirits next to it, which had leaked out onto the deck." There were also paintbrushes scattered around.

Her testimony corroborated Depp's claim that Heard flung a can of mineral spirits at his face.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

First witness Tuesday is Tara Roberts, the estate manager of Johnny Depp's private island

Tara Roberts testified Tuesday via live video about her duties as the estate manager of Johnny Depp's private Bahamian island.

She said that when Amber Heard started joining Depp on his trips, island life changed.

“We then had a chef come to cook," she said. "It was more of a formal island with chefs, housekeepers and things like that.”

She added that there was more luggage, more requests. "Things evolved and kind of mushroomed a bit," she told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Public waits hours to get into Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard trial

Dozens of people waited in line early Tuesday to get into the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard trial in Virginia, video posted to Twitter shows.

"Good morning from Fairfax. Co. Courthouse! Arrived at 6 a.m. to get into the courtroom and here's the line," tweeted Law&Crime's Angenette Levy next to a video of the queue that snakes down the length of the building.

The outside of the courthouse has become as much of a spectacle as the courtroom, with one Depp supporter bringing a pair of llamas -- one wearing a sign that read "Justice for Johnny."

Other fans have shown up dressed as Depp's most famous character Jack Sparrow of "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Meanwhile, Heard arrived Tuesday wearing a white pantsuit for the ninth day of testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

House manager says he saw no injuries on Amber Heard after Australia blow up

House manager Ben King testified that he didn't observe any injuries on Amber Heard after she had a ferocious brawl with Johnny Depp in 2015 in Australia.

Heard has called the trip a "three-day hostage situation" and accused Depp of attacking her and sexually assaulting her with a liquor bottle. When King arrived at the house Sunday March 8, he said Heard was crying hysterically, but he saw no marks on her. Depp was missing the tip of his middle right finger.

The next day, King said he accompanied Heard on a flight back to Los Angeles and noticed "long, kind of uniform, evenly spaced, thin marks" on her arms.

On cross-examination, Heard's attorney showed King and jurors photos of scratches on Heard's arms and asked Mr King if those were the same marks he observed. He said, yes.

The rented house was wrecked and it cost about $70,000 to repair it, King said. He added that the couple bickered frequently, and Heard had a pattern of starting spats with Depp then following him around the house when he tried to disengage.

King, who was paid by Disney, said he never directly witnessed Depp or Heard behave violently toward each other.

The house manager was the final witness Monday before court wrapped for the day.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard admits to house manager she 'lost it' on Johnny Depp

The couple's former house manager said he accompanied Amber Heard back to Los Angeles after the she had an explosive argument with Johnny Depp in Australia that left him missing part of his finger.

On the flight, Ben King asked Amber Heard what happened.

"She didn’t give much explanation if any," King explained. "'Ben, have you ever been so angry with someone you just lost it with them?' And I sort of said no, actually, I’m a pretty calm, even-tempered guy."

Heard looked incredulous, he said, and repeated the statement. That was the end of the discussion. King returned to Australia to repair the extensive damage to the property -- including a shattered TV, blood smeared all over the house and messages scrawled on mirrors and lampshades.

Depp said on the witness stand that he suffered a nervous breakdown and had used his bleeding digit to write some of the messages in blood.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Former house manager testifies he found Johnny Depp's fingertip

The couple's former house manager testified Monday that he found Johnny Depp's severed fingertip in the bar area of a house in Australia.

After Amber Heard and Johnny Depp had a ferocious blow up in March 2015, Ben King was called to come over on a Sunday.

Depp's lawyer asked where he found the finger tip.

"Downstairs in the bar area," he replied. King corroborated Depp's testimony, saying he found the digit at the end of the bar on the floor near a shattered bottle of vodka and puddles of liquid that smelled like alcohol. Depp has accused Heard of hurling the bottle at him, which he says shattered on his hand, slicing off his fingertip.

King also said that he didn't see a damaged phone in the house. Heard has said that Depp injured his finger after slamming a phone on it.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard guzzled as much as two bottles of red wine a day, says former house manager

Actress Amber Heard gulped down as much as two bottles of red wine a day, according to a former employee.

Ben King said he was a house manager for the couple first for one month in London and later four about four months in Australia, where Johnny Depp was filming "Pirates of the Caribbean" in 2015.

He said he was responsible for ordering wine for the household. "I regularly bought red wine for Ms. Heard which she consumed in the same amount as in London," he told jurors. "One or two bottles a day."

King said he did not observe Depp drink regularly. King was working for the pair when they had their infamous blow up in Australia. Heard alleges that Depp sexually assaulted her with a liquor bottle.

Depp has accused her of severing the tip of his middle finger after hurling a vodka bottle at him.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Bombshell audio recording played at close of Johnny Depp's testimony

Johnny Depp's attorney Jessica Meyers played a recording Monday of the actor and ex-wife Amber Heard talking after she publicly accused him of a domestic violence and obtained a restraining order against him.

Heard tells Depp that she doesn't know how to get her reputation back after she broadcast the allegations against him. Depp accuses her of bringing it on herself by telling her friend to call the cops on him.

"The last time it got really heated between us, I really did think I was going to lose my life," she replies.

"Amber, I lost a f--king finger man, come on," he shot back, referring to her allegedly slicing off the digit during a brawl in Australia over a postnuptial agreement. "I had a f--king can of mineral spirits thrown at my nose," he said in reference to Heard allegedly throwing a bottle at him during another fight.

"You can say it was a fair fight," Heard scoffs on the recording. "Tell the world, Johnny, tell them, 'Johnny Depp, I, Johnny Depp, a man, I’m a victim, too, of domestic violence.'"

"Yes, I am," Depp replies in the recording. Seconds later, he stepped off the witness stand after four grueling days of testimony.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'No way under the sun,' Johnny Depp would burn Heard with a cigarette

Johnny Depp testified Monday that there was "no way under the sun" he would have burned ex-wife Amber Heard with a cigarette.

"I can certainly say without hesitation, there is no way under the sun that I would flick a cigarette at her, or burn her with a cigarette," Depp told jurors on redirect.

His lawyer had just played a clip of an audio recording in which Heard demanded that Depp sit on the couch during a fight.

"Couch! Couch! Couch!" she barked. "Everything you’ve said is nasty and provoking and mean spirited. By the way, you just threw a f--king cigarette on me."

Depp's attorney asked him if he recognized what occurred in the recording.

"She’s certainly not screaming out in pain as if a cigarette has been put on her," he said. "That’s ludicrous." Depp said it was possible he accidentally flung some ash on her.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'Why would I start lopping off digits in my 50s?' Johnny Depp says of severed finger

Johnny Depp testified Monday that there's no way he would cut off his own finger -- especially as a guitar player.

He was asked on redirect about a dark text he sent to his addiction doctor, David Kipper, after an infamous 2015 fight with ex-wife Amber Heard in Australia.

“I have chopped off my left middle finger as a reminder I should never chop off my right middle finger again,” he quipped to Kipper in the text. But Depp said it was just his dark humor at play and insisted he was not responsible for the injury.

 “Why would I start lopping off digits in my 50s?" he asked.

“Why would I ruin the only thing that was really good in my life aside from my children," he said of his music career.

He previously testified that Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him, which shattered on his right hand, slicing off the digit. The actress has denied the allegations.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'None of it was ever intended to be real,' Johnny Depp says of grisly texts with pal Paul Bettany

Johnny Depp testified Monday that he wasn't serious when he texted pal Paul Bettany that he wanted to drown, burn then f--- his ex-wife's corpse.

"The text that is about burning Ms. Heard is – it’s directly from Monty Python in a sketch about burning witches and then drowning the witches," Depp said on redirect. "This is a film that we’d all watched when we were 10 and it’s just irreverent, and abstract humor."

He added that Heard "despised" Bettany and was intensely jealous of their close relationship. He recounted one occasion when Heard got into a debate with Bettany and his teen son.

"Ms. Heard demeaned that young man [Bettany's son] to the point of where he, where he burst into tears and walked away," Depp recalled, as Heard, donning reading glasses, studiously took notes.

The "London Fields" actress wore in court Monday a khaki skirt, a black blouse and her hair in an elegant bun.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says he wanted to star in 'Pirates of the Caribbean' six

Actor Johnny Depp said he felt his Jack Sparrow character in "Pirates of the Caribbean" deserved to have a proper goodbye.

“I thought the character had a right to end the franchise on a very good note," he said on redirect. "I planned on continuing until it was time to stop.”

His legal team has argued that he was dropped from the sixth installment after Heard penned an op-ed in 2018 for the Washington Post, alleging that she had been a victim of domestic abuse.

Depp admitted on cross-examination that he once said he wouldn't return to the franchise for $300 million and one million alpacas.

"Long before I made the statement, there was a very deep and distinct sense of having been betrayed by the people that I had  been working with," he explained.

He went on to describe the films he'd done since Heard's domestic violence allegations surfaced and how they had flopped.

"Due to all the nastiest over the last six years, that film went straight to pay-per-view," he said of one movie.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp confronted with stack of negative articles blasting his career and character

Amber Heard's lawyer handed Johnny Depp a stack of negative articles written about his floundering career, imploding marriage and financial woes.

"Thank you so much," Depp said sarcastically after receiving the compendium of critical stories. "It's a stack of hit pieces generated by Heard's team."

But Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn pointed out that some of the coverage predated the "Aquaman" actress's May 27, 2016, public accusations of domestic violence.

She had marched into a Los Angeles courthouse, sporting a bruised face and trailed by reporters and videographers, to request a temporary restraining order, alleging Depp had bashed her in the face with a cellphone.

Rottenborn read each headline, including "Johnny Depp: A Star in Crisis and the Insane Story of His Missing Millions" and "Johnny Depp's Friends and Family Seriously Concerned About Him and Here's Why."

"These are all hit pieces, these are dregs, these are pathetic attempts..." Depp chimed in, as Rottenborn cut him off to read the next one.

"'Pirates of the Caribbean': The Diminishing Returns of Johnny Depp," read Rottenborn of a Hollywood Reporter article.

After the hammering, Rottenborn asked Depp whether he understood that all the jury had to decide at this trial is whether the 2018 op-ed Heard had penned is defamatory.

The judge didn't allow Depp to answer the question, and Rottenborn soon wrapped his lengthy cross-examination.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says he hopes ex Amber Heard dies

The "Black Mass" star sent a disturbing text to his agent expressing a desire for Amber Heard's death, it was revealed Monday in court.

“I can only hope that Karma kicks in and takes the gift of breath from her,” wrote Johnny Depp.

"Did I read that right?" asked Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn Monday on cross-examination.

"You read that correctly, sir," replied Depp, who grew increasingly annoyed by Rottenborn's rapid-fire questioning.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp threatens to chomp on the nose of romantic rival

Johnny Depp appears to fantasize about chomping on the nose of a romantic rival.

"The first prick who asks about her gets a warning," wrote Depp of Amber Heard in a Feb. 10, 2016, text to one of his security guards. "Should the single-cell prick decide to push, he never forgets me and will always be remembered throughout his life as the guy who got his f--king nose bit off, chewed up and swallowed by Johnny Depp.”

Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn introduced the text during cross-examination. A trove of the actor's graphic and often gruesome messages have been shown to the panel of seven Virginia jurors deciding the defamation case.

Depp previously testified that he often used colorful and hyperbolic language to vent.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard says ex Johnny Depp put out cigarettes on her

Amber Heard accused Johny Depp of putting out cigarettes on her in an audio recording played Monday in a Virginia courtroom.

“Put your f--king cigarettes out on someone else," Heard can be heard screaming. "You f--king have consequences for your actions.”

"Shut up, fat-ss," Depp replied. Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn pointed out that Depp did not deny in the clip having burned her with cigarettes.

"I think that was a grossly exaggerated moment by Ms.Heard," said Depp, who first accused the "Aquaman" actress of stubbing out a cigarette on his face during a vicious brawl in Australia that left the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor with a severed finger. Rottenborn did not state when the recording was made.

Rottenborn played another audio recording in which Heard can be heard saying, "After you beat the sh-t out of me then a week later you show up at my doorstep."

In the clips, Depp also called his ex-wife a "f--king c---" and a " stupid f--k."

Depp has repeatedly denied ever striking heard.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Defense presents another gruesome text from Depp

Amber Heard's attorney, Benjamin Rottenborn, presented yet another text from Johnny Depp to a friend talking about Heard's theoretical "corpse."

"I hope Amber's rotting corpse is decomposing in the f---ing trunk of a Honda Civic," a 2016 text from Depp to his friend, Isaac Baruch, presented as evidence on Thursday and confirmed by Depp read.

The text was previously presented in court when Baruch testified last week.

Depp also admitted Thursday on the stand that he texted pal Paul Bettany about drowning and burning then-girlfriend Amber Heard.

"After you said, 'let’s drown her before we burn her' you said 'I will f--- her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure she’s dead,'" Rottenborn said of the June 11, 2013 text.

Posted by Audrey Conklin

'I did assault a couple cabinets,' Depp says of video Heard took

Video evidence presented by Amber Heard's attorney, Benjamin Rottenborn, on Thursday afternoon shows Johnny Depp kicking a piece of furniture and slamming cabinets in what appears to be a kitchen.

Heard took the video and can be heard asking Depp if he drank a whole bottle of wine that morning after he pours himself a large glass.

"I did assault a couple of cabinets, but I didn't touch Miss Heard," Depp said of the video, adding that "there's a possibility" he was drunk at the time.

Posted by Audrey Conklin

Amber Heard smirks as her lawyer questions Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp told his doctor and his nurse that he cut off his own finger -- contradicting his claim that ex-wife Amber Heard hurled a vodka bottle at his hand, slicing off the digit during an explosive fight in Australia.

 "We were looking to keep Amber’s name out of it," Depp testified on cross-examination of the 2015 blow up that occurred down under while the actor was filming "Pirates of the Caribbean."

As lawyer Ben Rottenborn played an audio recording introduced into evidence by Depp's team, Heard smirked then bent her head down to scribble notes.

"I'm talking about Australia, the day that I chopped my finger off," Depp allegedly said in the muffled recording, according to Rottenborn. It was difficult to make out the exact words, and Depp did not agree that he had made the statement.

It was Depp's third day on the stand.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Photo shown of message Johnny Depp scrawled on mirror with bleeding finger

Actor Johnny Depp used his sliced finger tip to scrawl messages on the mirror of a home he was renting in Australia after he and ex-wife Amber Heard had a major blow up in 2015.

"Starring Billy Bob and Easy Amber," Depp wrote on a mirror in a mixture of paint and blood. Heard had just arrived in Australia after filming the widely panned film "London Fields" with Billy Bob Thornton.

Depp also scribbled a message on an overturned lampshade.

"You write in some mixture of blood and paint 'GOOD LUCK AND BE CAREFUL AT TOP'?" asked Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn.

"Correct, I thought it was good advice," quipped Depp. There was no audible laughter in the courtroom.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp allegedly bought drugs from Marilyn Manson's assistant

Johnny Depp was confronted Thursday with a series of text messages that show he may have bought cocaine from rocker Marilyn Manson's assistant.

The actor and Manson, whose given name is Brian Warner, had partied together in 2015 in Australia.

Depp texted his personal assistant Nathan Holmes, "Have you heard from Manson's Ryan?"

Holmes reply was not read, but Depp responded Feb. 26, 2015," “Yes, and yes, and of course, yes, please, and you will pay Ryan for it?…we should have more happy pills!!!?? Can you!!"

Two days later, Depp emailed another assistant that "Manson gave you a wee package for me? Where does it reside?"

In direct testimony, Depp claimed that he had been sober for 18 months before he and his ex-wife Amber Heard had a massive blow up in Australia while he was filming Pirates of the Caribbean" on March 7, 2015.

But the email and text messages introduced during cross-examination suggest that he was using drugs prior to the vicious brawl that left Depp missing a piece of his middle right finger.

Depp testified that Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him, slicing off the digit -- an allegation she has denied.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp squirms in witness stand as Amber Heard's attorney hammers him

Attorney Ben Rottenborn challenged Johnny Depp's mild account of a quarrel he had with Amber Heard on a 2014 flight from Boston to Los Angeles.

Depp testified on direct that he was not drunk and did not physically or verbally abuse his now ex-wife on the plane after the two argued over his suspicion she had an affair with her co-star James Franco.

But Rottenborn confronted Depp with an email he had sent Heard the next day, apologizing profusely.

“Once again, I find myself in a place of shame and regret," Rottenborn read from the email. "I am sorry. I really don’t know why or what happened, but I will never do it again. I want to get better for your and for me. I must. My illness somehow crept up and grabbed me. I can’t do it again, I can’t live like that again, and I know you can’t either."

Five days later he sent a text to pal Paul Bettany, which Rottenborn read in court.

"I’m going to properly stop the booze thing, darling," Depp wrote. "Drank all night before I picked Amber up to fly to LA. Ugly, mate."

He told Bettany that he hadn't eaten for days, snorted cocaine, pounded half a bottle of whiskey, took pills and drank "two bottles of champers."

He went on to describe himself on the flight as “an angry agro engine in a f--king black out, screaming obscenities and insulting any f--k who got near. I’m done I’m admittedly too f--ked in the head to spray my rage at the one I love for little reason as well."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp trashes ex-partner Vanessa Paradis in email to pal Elton John

Amber Heard's attorney introduced the July 2013 email Johnny Depp sent to Elton John to undermine the actor's testimony that his children didn't like his ex-wife.

“On the other side of the coin, my kids have fallen head over heels in deep love with Amber, my girl, and that pressure is off my shoulders, is f--king gone, that is until the French extortionist ex c--- attempts to brainwash them against her, which I’m sure is imminent,” Depp wrote to "The Rocket Man" singer.

Heard's attorney Ben Rottenborn asked Depp if he was referring to the mother of his two children, Vanessa Paradis, to which he replied, "Yes."

Depp previously testified that later in the relationship his children despised Heard and refused to be around her.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Picture of Johnny Depp passed out with ice cream on lap shown to jurors

Amber Heard snapped the embarrassing shot of Johnny Depp when they were in Boston and he was filming "Black Mass."

"Do you recognize this picture as being one of you?" Heard's attorney Ben Rottenborn asked Depp.

"Yes, Ms. Heard kindly showed it to me the day after she took it," he replied. He told the juror he had just worked a 17-hour day and had taken roxycodone. He said that Heard intentionally asked him to hold the ice cream knowing that he was going to fall asleep and drop it.

"That was a wonderful picture to take for her," Depp said sarcastically.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Photo shows Johnny Depp's breakfast of cocaine and whiskey

Jurors Thursday were shown a photo taken in Amber Heard's house in Los Angeles in March 2013 one morning after Johnny Depp fell off the wagon.

The image shows two glasses of whiskey and four lines of cocaine next to a box with a skull and crossbones and Depp's initials on it.

"You'd sometimes drink whiskey in the morning?" asked Heard's attorney Ben Rottenborn during cross-examination.

"Isn't happy hour any time?" replied Depp, prompting a few awkward laughs in the Virginia courtroom.

Depp initially denied using the pictured box for cocaine. But Rottenborn confronted him with testimony from his 2020 libel trial against "The Sun" newspaper for branding him a wife beater, when he admitted to using the box to carry cocaine.

Depp later lost the London case.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp admits partying with Marilyn Manson

Actor Johnny Depp said he'd taken pills and cocaine with rocker Marilyn Manson on numerous occasions.

"I once gave Marilyn Manson a pill so he would stop talking so much," Depp testified, eliciting chuckles from the Virginia courtroom, where he is suing ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation.

Rottenborn repeatedly challenged Depp during cross-examination, using the actor's contradictory testimony from his 2020 London libel trial against "The Sun" newspaper.

He sued the paper for branding him a wife beater and lost.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp called then-wife Amber Heard a 'filthy w---e'

Actor Johnny Depp used shocking language to discuss Amber Heard.

"I never ever want to lay eyes on that filthy w---e, Amber," read Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn from an April 19, 2015, text. "Did I read that right?"

"Yes, you did," replied Depp, snidely.

 "When you called Amber that filthy w---e, she was your wife at the time?" asked Rottenborn.

"Correct," replied the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star.

In another text exchange, Depp called a woman an "idiot cow," a "worthless hooker" and wrote "I'll smack the ugly c--- around before I let her in, don’t worry.”

Rottenborn suggested that the messages were about Heard, but a source close to Depp said the actor was joking with his ex, Vanessa Paradis, about an unrelated topic.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's lawyer reads horrifying text Johnny Depp sent actor Paul Bettany

Actor Johnny Depp admitted Thursday on the stand that he texted pal Paul Bettany about drowning and burning then-girlfriend Amber Heard.

"After you said, 'let’s drown her before we burn her' you said 'I will f--- her burnt corpse afterwards to make sure she’s dead,'" attorney Ben Rottenborn said of the June 11, 2013 text. "Did I read that right?"

"Yes, you did," Depp replied during the uncomfortable cross-examination.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's dad slugged him once, actor says on cross-examination

Amber Heard's lawyer pressed Johnny Depp Thursday on whether his dad had ever abused him.

"Walls weren’t the only things your father punched," Ben Rottenborn said. "He punched you in the face once and knocked you down?"

Depp didn't mention the incident during his lengthy direct when he discussed his physically and emotionally abusive mother and said his relationship with Heard had the same dynamic.

"Yes, when I was 15-years-old," Depp replied. "He had asked me to take the dog for a walk or something or take out the garbage or something meaningless. I just said, no, and he gave me a quick shot. Pretty hefty. Yeah, it rattled my head, it rattled the cage."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp grilled during cross-examination

One of Amber Heard's defense lawyers, Ben Rottenborn, pressed Johnny Depp on why he never fought his ex-wife's initial domestic violence allegations.

"I was advised by my attorney not to fight," he replied. Depp is suing Heard for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she wrote for the Washington Post calling herself a "public figure representing domestic abuse."

But the actress had publicly accused him of assault two years earlier, filing for a temporary restraining order in May of 2016.

A few months later, Rottenborn pointed out, Depp signed a document as part of his divorce settlement stating that, "neither party has made false accusations for financial gain."

The "Black Mass" star has alleged that Heard's op-ed cost him a role in the latest "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise. But Rottenborn presented a news article reporting that Disney had already dropped Depp for the part.

The cross-examination of Depp continues Thursday and will mark his third day on the stand.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says he's lost 'nothing less than everything'

Johnny Depp testified Wednesday that the fallout from Amber Heard's 2018 op-ed branding him an abuser was swift.

The actor is suing his ex-wife over the piece that doesn't name him directly but identifies herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse."

"I don’t think it took Disney very long, maybe a couple of days, to announce that I had been removed from the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' films franchise," he said. "I lost nothing less than everything."

But, he said, the real damage began when she made the initial accusations.

“I will live with that for the rest of my life because of the allegations," he told the jury. It was such a big, high profile case that I lost then no matter the outcome of this trial."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp tells jurors about Amber Heard's $7m divorce settlement

Johnny Depp testified Wednesday that he agreed to payout a $7 million divorce settlement to Amber Heard in January 2017.

He said his lawyers hashed out the agreement more than seven months after Heard publicly filed for divorce and for a temporary restraining order against the actor on his daughter's birthday.

Heard later announced that she would donate the entire payout to two charities, so Depp sent subsequent payments he owed her directly to the named not for profits.

"Ms. Heard was very, very angry that I had made those first payments, and she went into kind of a tirade about how I should be charged double the $7 million, I should be charged $14 million," he said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp broke up with Amber Heard the day his mother died

Actor Johnny Depp told a jury Wednesday that he split with then-wife Amber Heard the same day his mother died.

Betty Sue Palmer passed away May 20, 2016, at Cedar Sinai Hospital, Depp said, choking back tears.

 I’ve made a decision and I think it’s the best thing, I’m going to file for divorce," he said he told Heard over the phone.

The next day, he met her for the last time at their home in Los Angeles. He testified that she pretended he was beating her while she was on the phone with a friend -- even though he was standing 20 feet away.

"“Stop hitting me, Johnny!' she’s screaming in her best freaked out, upset voice,” Depp told jurors.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp recounts infamous defecation incident

After another blow up with his the-wife Amber Heard on her 30th Birthday, Johnny Depp said he fled their Los Angeles home.

He planned to return to pick up a few items while Heard was at Coachella in 2016 -- but his security warned him against it and showed him a photograph of their marital bed.

"On my side of the bed was human fecal matter," he recalled. "I laughed. It was so outside, it was so bizarre and so grotesque that I could only laugh.” 

Depp has previously accused Heard or one of her friends of pooping in the bed. But Heard has denied it, blaming the feces on her teacup Yorkies.

"I lived with those dogs for many years," Depp said. "That did not come from a dog. It just didn't."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says Amber Heard once faked a broken nose with nail polish

Actor Johnny Depp testified Wednesday that ex-wife Amber Heard attacked him in his office then pretended he had broken her nose.

During the struggle, their heads connected, he said, but he never made contact with her face. She left the room and returned a few minutes later clutching a tissue to her nose that had a red substance on it. "Way to go, Johnny, you broke my nose," he recalled her saying.

A few minutes later, he crept into her bathroom.

“I pulled the Kleenex out of the trash bin, and I inspected it pretty closely and realized it was nail polish, nail varnish.”

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I did start a physical fight,' Amber Heard admits in a recording

Jurors Thursday heard audio of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard arguing after an altercation.

Depp, 58, had recorded the conversation and his legal team introduced it as evidence Wednesday at his $50 million defamation trial against his ex-wife.

"I did start a physical fight," she admitted. "I was hitting, it was not punching out, babe, you were not punched."

Depp replied,"Don't tell me what it feels like to be punched." She shot back, "You are such a baby, grown the f--k up, Johnny."

The pair were fighting over an incident that happened the night before. Depp said Heard had slammed a bathroom door on his head then clocked him in the face.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Heard put out a cigarette on Depp's face after severing his finger, actor testifies

Johnny Depp told jurors Wednesday that after Amber Heard hurled a vodka bottle at him, severing the top digit of his finger, she put out a cigarette on his face.

“Ms. Heard had taken my cigarette from the ashtray and stomped it out in my face," Depp recalled, as his lawyers showed the panel gory photos of his injuries.

Depp, 58, said he used what remained of his middle right finger to scrawl messages on the wall.

"In the midst of being in a nervous breakdown, I started to write in my own blood on the walls," he testified. "Little reminders from our past that essentially represented lies that [Heard] told me, lies that I had caught her in.”

Heard has denied injuring Depp's finger and previously accused him of viciously attacking her on the trip.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'I was looking directly at my bone' Depp said of his severed finger

Actor Johnny Depp said that ex-wife Amber Heard hurled an enormous bottle of vodka at him, smashing his hand and severing the tip of his right middle finger.

The pair were in Australia, where Depp was filming "Pirates of the Caribbean," and had a vicious fight in 2015 over a postnuptial agreement he had asked Heard to sign, he told jurors.

The request sent Heard into rage, and she pelted him with continuous insults, he said. After she relented, he snuck downstairs and broke his sobriety by slamming a few shots of vodka. The actress caught him and went berserk, chucking the massive bottle at him. It shattered on his hand, which was resting on the side of the bar.

"What I felt was heat. I felt heat and I felt as if something was dripping down my hand," Depp recalled. “I looked down and realized the tip of my finger had been severed. I was looking directly at my bones sticking out."

Heard's lower lip trembled and she look as though she was on the verge of tears during her ex-husband's testimony.

The "London Fields" actress has denied slicing off the tip of Depp's finger and previously claimed that he had brutally beaten her on the trip.

Depp had to have his finger reconstructed.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard didn't have a prenup

Johnny Depp said he repeatedly tried to get Amber Heard to sign a prenup before their 2015 wedding but she refused.

"There always seemed to be some reason or other that she either wouldn’t discuss it, or if we did discuss it, it turned into an issue that would spring board into unpleasantness and arguments," he said.

After the wedding that featured a night of "dinner, dancing and drugs," Depp said he tried to get Heard to sign a postnuptial agreement.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

'That was about the lowest point in my life,' Depp testifies of detox

Actor Johnny Depp said it was the "lowest point" in his life when he was withdrawing from opiates on his private Caribbean island and ex-wife Amber Heard denied him medication that could ease his symptoms.

"She looked at the clock, and she said, 'It’s not time,'" he recalled Heard saying as she chopped vegetables in the kitchen. "I hate to have to admit this but that was, I believe that was about the lowest point in my life."

He said he had rolled off the couch in pain. "I was sitting on the floor crying, tears streaming down my face, begging another human being to give me the meds that would make this go away,” he testified. Heard was instructed by Depp's medical team to give him the medication at a specific time.

Depp took a scalding hot shower to try to ease the pain. He later told his addiction doctor that he no longer wanted Heard to participate in his detox. The couple returned to Los Angeles, where Depp said he kicked his addiction to Roxycodone alone.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard didn't like Johnny Depp's 'Wino Forever' tattoo, he says

Actor Johnny Depp denied that he assaulted Amber Heard after she mocked his "Wino Forever" tattoo.

"It didn't happen," he testified Wednesday. "I've never struck Ms. Heard."

He added, "I've never struck a woman in my life."

He said that the body art once read "Winona Forever" in honor of his ex-girlfriend, and he dropped the last two letters after they split up.

Eventually, he got Amber Heard's name tattooed on his body at her urging, he said.

"Ironically, it wasn’t long after that, that everything started going sideways," Depp told the jury. "I was doing anything I could to bring a smile to her face."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard could guzzle two bottles of wine a night, Depp says

Actress Amber Heard could down two bottles of wine in a single night, Depp testified Wednesday at his defamation trial against his ex-wife.

She and her friend were particularly fond of the Spanish wine Vega Cecilia.

“Miss Heard could very easily drink two bottles of wine per night not a problem," he said, prompting Heard, wearing her hair in loose curls, to softly shake her head in disagreement.

But if he ever drank, Heard went "apoplectic," firing off a barrage of insults, he said.

"I was weak, I was a complete mess, I was an alcoholic, I was going to ruin everything," he recalled her saying to him. "Your kids are not proud of you, they can not stand what you are doing."

At one point, he asked her to show her support by getting sober with him but she refused.

"In support of me not drinking, I thought that she might stop drinking -- but she did not, she continued,” he said ruefully.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard threatened suicide when Johnny Depp tried to leave, he said

Actor Johnny Depp said that part of the reason he remained in a toxic marriage with Amber Heard so long was that she would threaten suicide.

He said Heard, 35, had mentioned killing herself several times and that terrified him.

"When I would leave sometimes, she would stop me at the elevator with the security guards, crying, screaming, 'I can’t live without you! I’m going to die!'" he recalled.

On one occasion, he escaped to another property, he said, and she showed up minutes later in her nightgown at 3 a.m. screaming in front of his house.

 "It was ludicrous, it was out of control, it was uncontrollable," he said. Another factor that kept him in the relationship was a desire not to fail, he added. The pair soon started recording each other during arguments.

It was Depp's second day on the stand, and he spoke, often haltingly, in a monologue.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard didn't want Johnny Depp spending time with his kids, he says

Actress Amber Heard tried to prevent her ex-husband Johnny Depp from seeing his two children.

“I could barely spend time with my kids because she had to have me there at all times for her own needs,” said the "Black Mass" actor, wearing a light gray suit and his hair pulled back in a ponytail.

The conflict between Heard and Depp's now adult children with ex-partner Vanessa Paradis created a rift in the couple's relationship, he told jurors in a Virginia courtroom.

"Once you realize that’s happening and there are hassles between the children and her, the situation starts to get a little more grim and little more dire,and that I was not prepared to take," he said.

He added that Heard constantly told him he was a "terrible" father. "One can only take so much of that before bits of your brain, bits of your heart, the valves shut off," he said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says he felt like he was in a relationship with his abusive mother

Actor Johnny Depp returned to the witness stand Wednesday and said he felt like he had married his abusive late mother.

"When you start to realize you’re in a relationship with your mother -- and I know that sounds perverse and obtuse, but the fact is some people search for weaknesses in people," Depp, 58, told jurors. He said that he had shared his deepest traumas from his childhood with ex-wife Amber Heard, 35, and she used that against him.

"The more that became ammunition for Ms. Heard to either verbally decimate me or to send me into a kind of a tailspin of confusion and depression,"Depp said, as Heard, wearing a white jacket with gold buttons, looked on uncomfortably.

He said the "Aquaman" actress could never be wrong about anything, and he was "suddenly wrong about everything."

The constant barrage of insults, he said, caused him to retreat much like he had in his childhood when his mother verbally abused him.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp describes first steamy kiss with Amber Heard

Actor Johnny Depp testified that the pair didn't have much interaction on the set of "The Rum Diary" until they filmed a shower scene in 2012.

"She comes into the room and she opens the shower and we kiss," he said. "That moment was um it was a, yeah, it felt like, it felt like something that I shouldn’t be feeling because she had her wife...and I had Vanessa and the kiddies."

Later that day, Heard, 35, visited Depp, 58, in his trailer and the two shared another kiss.

They didn't resume their relationship until about two years later when they reunited for a press junket for the film.

Heard had split from girlfriend Tasya van Ree and Depp had broken up with Vanessa Paradis, the mother of his two children.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp describes first meeting with Amber Heard

Actor Johnny Depp said he first met Amber Heard after a person suggested her for a role in the "The Rum Diary."

Although she had read for the part five times, the person was on the fence. Depp arranged an appointment to meet her at his office.

"I took one look at her and I thought that's the one," he said. "Yes, she could definitely kill me."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp calls his drug abuse 'grossly embellished'

Actor Johnny Depp called Amber Heard's accounts of his drug abuse "grossly embellished."

"I’m sorry to say, a lot of it is just plainly false," he testified, as Heard stared at him coldly. "I think that it was an easy target for her to hit."

He did admit that he became addicted to the painkiller roxicodone after suffering an accident on the set of the fourth installment of "Pirates of the Caribbean."

“I was bit by the snake and before you know it that monkey is on your back to stay,” he said of his nearly five-year dependence on the painkiller. After he detoxed from the drug, he never took it again, he said.

But, Depp added, "there have been no abuse of substances on film sets" or "moments where I would have been considered out of control."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp apologizes for vulgar texts, partly blames Hunter Thompson

Actor Johnny Depp apologized Tuesday on the stand for his vulgar texts -- including calling ex-wife Amber Heard a "malicious, evil and vindictive c---."

For example, with the text messages, I apologize to everyone that has had to experience [them]," he said sheepishly, as Heard, wearing a white blouse, stared directly at him.

"I am ashamed at some of the references made, I am, uh, embarrassed that at the time the heat of the moment, the heat of the pain that I was feeling, went to, went to dark places," he testified.

Depp said that his close friend Hunter Thompson inspired him to write in colorful and playful language.

"The amount of time I have spent with him has influenced me greatly," he said of the late journalist. "He became a huge hero to me."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Nicolas Cage got Johnny Depp his first break in Hollywood

Nicolas Cage suggested then-pal Johnny Depp reach out to his agent.

Depp said he only ever wanted to be a musician but needed a job. Cage's agent had him audition for director Wes Craven, and Depp, then 20, landed a part on "Nightmare on Elm Street."

He went on to get a lead role on "21 Jump Street." But it was his turn as Captain Jack Sparrow in "Pirates of the Caribbean" that launched him to another level of fame, he said.

"At our house in Los Angeles, people would be trying to climb the gates to get in to see Captain Jack Sparrow," Depp recalled. "You had people try to bust in  the gates dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow."

He called the beloved character a mix of Keith Richards and Pepe Le Pew. Depp starred in a total of five "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp calls ex-wife Amber Heard 'amazing' in beginning

The "Black Mass" actor praised ex-wife Amber Heard as "too good to be true" when they first met on the set of a movie.

“In the beginning of my relationship with Ms. Heard from what I recall, from what I remember, she was, it was as if she was too good to be true," Depp said. "She was attentive, she was loving, she was smart, she was kind, she was funny, she was understanding. We had many things in common."

He added, "It was amazing.”

Heard, 35, would sit him down on the couch when he walked in the door from work, give him a glass of wine and take off his boots.

"I've never experienced anything like that in my life," he recalled. But soon there were red flags.

“Within a year and half she had become another person,” he said.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp recounts dark, abusive childhood

Johnny Depp described his late mother Betty Sue Palmer as "violent" and "cruel" to him and his three siblings.

"There was physical abuse, certainly, which could be in the form of an ashtray being flung at you, you know, it hits you in the head or you get beat with a high heel shoe or telephone whatever was handy," Depp explained of his childhood in Kentucky. "So in our house we were never exposed to any type of safety or security."

Eventually, his father, who he said was a kind man, packed his bags and left, telling him he "can't live it anymore."

The actor said he thought his father was "cowardly" for abandoning his family but later realized he was "very wrong."

Soon after, Palmer slipped into a deep depression and tried to kill herself by ingesting a "multitude of pills." She survived but was never the same," he recalled wistfully. "She lived on the couch and weighed about 70 pounds." Palmer died in 2016.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp says the last six years have been "trying"

Actor Johnny Depp said Tuesday marked the first time he has been able to speak about his case in full.

“It has been six years of trying times," he said, with a sober demeanor. "It's very strange when one day you’re a Cinderella, so to speak, then in zero point six seconds you're Quasimodo. I didn’t deserve that nor did my children nor did the people who believed in me all these years." 

The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star said it's hard for him to air the intimate details of his life in public but necessary.

“I’m obsessed with the truth so today is the first opportunity I’ve been able to speak about this case in full," he added.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp says he's never struck a woman

Johnny Depp told jurors Tuesday at his libel trial against ex-wife Amber Heard that he never struck a woman.

"Never did I myself reach the point of striking Ms. Heard in any way nor have I ever struck any woman in my life,” Depp, 58, said in response to why he was in a Virginia courtroom suing Heard for defamation.

"Since there was no truth in it whatsoever, I felt it was my responsibility to stand up not only for myself in that instance but for my children who at the time were 15 and 16," Depp continued, referring to when Heard first publicly accused him of domestic violence in 2016.

"I thought it was diabolical that my children would have to go to school and have their friends or people in the school approach them with the infamous People magazine cover with Ms. Heard with a dark bruise on her face," said Depp.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp takes stand

Actor Johnny Depp takes the stand and denies abusing ex-wife Amber Heard.

“About six years ago, Ms. Heard made some quite heinous and disturbing, brought these disturbing criminal acts against me that, that that were not based in any species of truth," said Depp, wearing his hair pulled back in a ponytail. "It was a complete shock, it just didn’t need to go in that direction."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's pal says actor didn't kick Amber Heard over alleged James Franco affair

Johnny Depp's friend and sound technician Keenan Wyatt told jurors Tuesday that he didn't see the actor pass out or kick Amber Heard on a plane in 2014 over an alleged affair with actor James Franco.

"Wasn't Mr. Depp saying pretty horrible things to Ms. Heard?" asked the "Aquaman" actress's attorney Elaine Bredehoft during cross-examination at the Virginia defamation trial.

"I don't recall, replied Wyatt, as Bredehoft hammered him with questions. She repeated several of the vulgar insults Depp allegedly hurled at Heard over an alleged fling he suspected she was having with her "Pineapple Express" co-star.

"Did you see Mr. Depp go to the back of the plane, pass out and moan loudly?" the attorney asked.

"I don't recall that, either," replied Wyatt of the private flight from Boston to Los Angeles.

Heard has alleged that a plastered Depp verbally abused and kicked her during the trip before passing out in the plane's bathroom.

Depp is slated to take the stand as early as Tuesday afternoon. Other upcoming A-list witnesses in the defamation trial may include Franco and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Sound technician says Amber Heard "snapped" at him on private plane

Sound technician and actor Johnny Depp's pal Keenan Wyatt told jurors Tuesday that Amber Heard "snapped" at him on a plane from Boston to Los Angeles.

Wyatt, who has worked on the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, "Alice in Wonderland" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," was on a private plane with Depp, Heard and others in May 2014.

He described Heard, 35, as "giving Johnny the cold shoulder" and being "pouty."

“At one point I went up to her and said something to the effect of, you know, he cares about you, and all of sudden she snapped and started yelling at me, 'How dare you talk to me! Get away from me!'" Wyatt recalled of Depp's then-fiance. "So I went back to my seat and minded my own business."

He said he did not witness Depp abuse Heard on the flight.

The "Aquaman" actress has previously alleged that an intoxicated Depp accused her of an affair with actor James Franco on the flight, howled like an animal and attacked her before he passed out in the plane's toilet. Depp has denied the claims.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp's security guard grilled on witness stand

Actor Johnny Depp's longtime security guard returned to the stand Tuesday morning for cross examination.

Under an intense grilling by Amber Heard's lawyer Ben Rottenborn, Sean Bett admitted that he prevented people from calling the police on Depp after the "Black Mass" actor and some pals downed a couple of bottles of wine, pounded a bottle of tequila and became rowdy.

Bett said he never saw Depp, 58, get physical with Heard, 35, but acknowledged under cross that this didn't mean it didn't happen.

"Ms. Heard could have suffered injuries at the hands of Mr. Depp that you didn’t see, correct?" Rottenborn asked.

"Correct," the security guard replied.

Bett testified Monday afternoon that he had taken photos of Depp after Heard allegedly assaulted him on more than one occasion, leaving scratches and bruises on his face.

He told the jury that he had insisted on taking the photos "as evidence in case Ms Heard tried to make allegations against Depp."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp to testify Tuesday in libel case against ex-wife Amber Heard

Actor Johnny Depp is scheduled to take the witness stand Tuesday in his bombshell libel trial against ex-wife Amber Heard.

Depp, 58, alleges that Heard, 35, defamed him when she wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post saying she had been a victim of domestic abuse.

Although she didn't name him directly, Depp's legal team has argued that her false allegations injured his reputation and destroyed his career.

Heard's attorneys say she told the truth and her speech is protected by the First Amendment.

The jury trial in Fairfax County, Virginia, is in its second week and is expected to last for about six weeks. The "Black Mass" actor is suing Heard for $50 million.

About two years ago, Depp lost a libel case against The Sun, a British newspaper, for branding him a "wife beater." A London High Court judge ruled he had assaulted Heard and put her in fear of her life.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actress Amber Heard physically abused ex-husband Johnny Depp, his bodyguard says

Actress Amber Heard repeatedly attacked her husband Johnny Depp, according to his current bodyguard.

Security guard Sean Bett said he documented some of Depp's injuries -- including a swollen cheekbone on one occasion and a scratched nose, forehead and cheek on another.

He added that Heard admitted to him that "she threw a broken bottle [at him] and sliced his finger" referring to a vicious row the pair had in Australia in March 2015 that left the "Black Mass" actor with a missing a digit.

After Bett shared Heard's disclosure, the judge struck it from the record as hearsay. Heard has denied hurling a vodka bottle at Depp or causing the injury to his finger.

The security guard said the two fought constantly, and after one quarrel he warned her that this couldn't continue.

"You guys are either going to kill each other or be in jail," he said he told her. "She said with tears, 'But I love him and I’m not going to lose him.'" 

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's friends and family took advantage of Johnny Depp, his bodyguard says

Actress Amber Heard's friends and family took advantage of Johnny Depp, the actor's longtime bodyguard testified Monday in a Virginia courtroom.

Sean Bett, who has worked exclusively for Depp the last eight years, said Heard's pals lived rent-free at his Los Angeles properties and drove around in his Dodge Challenger.

"They were taking advantage of him and being extra nice to the hand that feeds them and that just progressed over a period of time,” said Bett, who formerly worked for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Bett first met Heard around 2012 and was initially very fond of her.

"She was very pleasant, very easy to get along with," he recalled. "I liked her. I liked her a lot."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actress Amber Heard wasn't happy about a prenup, Johnny Depp's nurse testifies

The "Aquaman" actress was displeased about signing a prenuptial agreement before the couple's wedding, according to Johnny Depp's addiction nurse.

"She didn't take it well," nurse Debbie Lloyd testified in a videotaped deposition played in Fairfax County District Court on Monday. Lloyd said Depp, 58, told her of Heard's reaction.

Heard, 35, often picked fights with Depp then wouldn't let him leave, Lloyd said.

“At times, she would almost try to instigate him,” the nurse explained. During one argument, she recalled Depp "going from room to room trying to remove himself from a situation, and [Heard] would just follow him...not giving him his space."

After the feuding pair got into a ferocious row in Australia in March 2015 that left Depp missing part of his right middle finger, the "Black Mass" actor was told to stay away from his wife.

“Patient discussed feelings of anger and sadness about his relationship," Lloyd wrote in her notes. "Patient was encouraged to stay away from wife as the relationship is toxic."

Depp has claimed that Heard sliced off the tip of his finger after hurling a vodka bottle at him, which she has denied. Heard has alleged that Depp beat her during the trip, which she previously described as a "three-day hostage situation."

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Actor Johnny Depp's home on his private Caribbean island is surprisingly modest

High rolling actor Johnny Depp's home on his private Caribbean island appears to be a modest residence, according to video shown to jurors Monday.

Depp, 58, hunkered down at the property in 2014 to begin detox from narcotics, according to a video deposition of addiction nurse Debbie Lloyd.

A brief video of the home was shown to jurors and featured a single open room with a metal frame bed positioned in between the bathroom and kitchen. It wasn't clear if there were other more extravagant structures on the island.

The humble digs are in contrast with Depp's reputation as a profligate spender who allegedly blew $30,000 a month on wine and shelled out $5 million to blast writer Hunter Thompson's ashes out of a cannon.

Depp is suing ex-wife Amber Heard for libel over a 2018 op-ed she wrote alleging she had been the victim of domestic violence. The pair divorced in 2017.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

A juror was excused Monday after complaining of back pain

A juror seated in actor Johnny Depp's defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard was dismissed Monday afternoon.

The juror complained of "hernia problems" and said he needed to go home to take medication. Judge Penney Azcarate dismissed him after the lunch break and replaced him with an alternate in Fairfax County District Court in Virginia.

There are seven jurors seated in the the civil trial, which is expected to last six weeks.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp was hanging out with Marilyn Manson

Johnny Depp's private addiction nurse Debbie Lloyd expressed frustration that he was hanging out with rocker Marilyn Manson, according to notes.

"Do you have any understanding of what Depp was doing with Marilyn Manson?" an attorney asked Lloyd.

"No, I do not," replied the nurse in a videotaped deposition from March played in a Virginia courtroom Monday.

Depp was supposed to be detoxing in 2015 while in Australia, where he was filming"Pirates of the Caribbean." But his nurse expressed concern to Depp's addiction doctor, David Kipper, that the actor had been hanging out with Manson.

"Debbie is worried and somewhat exhausted," Kipper wrote in medical notes. The doctor later fired Depp as a patient because he was not complying with the treatment plan.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Addiction nurse testifies that Johnny Depp gave her gifts

A nurse assigned to help with actor Johnny Depp's detox treatment said he gave her a jewelry box and a "fancy notepad."

Debbie Lloyd, who stayed with Depp on his private Caribbean island, said she had perceived the gifts as "thank yous."

Lloyd's videotaped deposition recorded in March was played Monday in a Virginia courtroom.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Johnny Depp's finger found in kitchen, doctor testifies

A piece of Johnny Depp's finger was found in the kitchen after he had a vicious row with ex-wife Amber Heard in Australia, according to his doctor.

In a videotaped deposition played in a Virginia courtroom, Depp's private addiction doctor, David Kipper, said the couple's chef found the digit.

The blow up occurred in Australia in 2015 while Depp was on location filming "Pirates of the Caribbean." Heard has previously called the trip a "three-day hostage situation," alleging Depp attacked her and tore apart the house in a drug-fueled rage.

Depp has said that Heard threw a vodka bottle at him, severing his finger. The doctor, who arrived after the fight, said Heard had no visible injuries.

Kipper, who also treated Heard, said he never saw the couple physically abuse each other.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

Amber Heard's pal kicked out of courtroom

Actress Amber Heard’s friend, music journalist Eve Barlow, was tossed from the courtroom Thursday for texting and tweeting from the front row.

Johnny Depp is suing his ex-wife for $50 million after she penned a 2018 op-ed alleging she had been a victim of domestic violence. Although she did not name Depp, his camp has said the allegations have damaged his reputation and career.

Judge Penney Azcarate permanently barred Barlow from the Fairfax, Virginia, courtroom at the request of Depp attorney Ben Chew.

“Ms. Barlow is not coming back into the courtroom during this trial,” Azcarate said Friday, according to a transcript obtained by Fox News Digital.

The ruling came after Chew moved to have Barlow — the former deputy editor of NME magazine — permanently barred. 

“Ms. Barlow has been passing notes to and from Ms. Heard form the beginning of the trial, and she’s been sending out live tweets throughout the trial,” Chew told the judge.

Heard’s pal had been sitting in the front row, which is supposed to be reserved for Heard’s legal team.

On Thursday, Barlow was ordered to the back row and finally ejected from the courtroom by a lieutenant for continuing to tweet, according to the transcript.

Posted by Rebecca Rosenberg

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