As the battlefield moves to the U.S, Johnny Depp has scored a rare victory over the Amber Heard case. The court battle has intensified since 2016, has become more heated with suits and countersuits that were filed recently. But, Depp is coming out as the better person in this particular case.
Fans of Johnny Depp have had one disappointment after the other. After multiple rash spending decisions and lost court cases, the actor faces massive debts and is currently embroiled in a high-stakes battle with ex-wife Amber Heard. Alongside this, the veteran actor has also been virtually blacklisted by the industry. So, when he finally won a hard-fought victory in a U.S court, it came as a breath of fresh air. But why did this happen?
Highlights —
- A history of the relationship
- The trials
- The victory
AMBER HEARD
Amber Heard and Johnny Depp had a tumultuous relationship. Both got together while they were already in a relationship with other people and then married in 2015. However, in 2016, Amber Heard filed for a temporary restraining order. She said that she feared for life and accused Depp of domestic abuse. Over time, the story has gotten more complicated.
Tensions intensified as “The Sun” published an editorial on Depp, calling him a “wife-beater”. He sued the newspaper for alleging abuse and said Heard was the abusive one in the relationship. The depositions that followed were heated.
In 16 days, the justices said, “Taking all the evidence together, I accept that she was the victim of sustained and multiple assaults by Mr. Depp in Australia”. It was a momentous victory for Heard, which established her claim for domestic abuse.
However, it wasn’t all well. Depp had brought out a slew of personal emails and videos to preserve his reputation. Throughout the judgment, stories came out about Heard fighting against Depp and also engaging in abuse. In one particular instance, it was revealed that Heard almost detached the actor’s fingertip. But, the judgment was made, and as the world moved on as Depp faced more significant troubles.
THE TRIALS
Currently, Depp is pursuing a defamation charge against Amber Heard for her op-ed in “The Washington Post”. The article said that she genuinely feared that the case might derail her life and work. Her friends and family had warned her that her career would be over if she complained. She also said that she lost a famous brand deal due to her accusations against Depp.
Heard tried to dismiss the defamation suit out of hand, citing the Britain judgment, but a Virginia judge said that the context was different. Johnny Depp won a rare victory as they also refused to acknowledge the United Kingdom ruling when Heard tried to dismiss the case.
Recently, there has been another set of suits over Heard’s divorce settlement payment to a charity. According to Heard, she had paid the $7 million from the settlement to a charity under ACLU, which Depp has disputed. Johnny Depp scores victory over Amber Heard in this case too.
THE VICTORY
Depp has repeatedly insinuated that Heard was a “gold digger”. She contributed to the rash decisions that put him in debt and had used the settlement she got from the divorce for personal gains. However, there is no confirmation about whether the divorce settlement went to a charity or was employed by Heard for other things. The fact that Johnny Depp won a rare victory after a string of disappointments might help restore his status in Hollywood and prevent him from being further blacklisted.
Binge Central
While the recent judgment has not given a verdict and has only allowed for an opening of books for a deeper investigation, Depp hopes to show that Heard was a liar in court and can help in a more significant defamation case worth $50 million.
Depp still has to fight through a long string of pain, but he has found a rare victory. With the judge’s ruling wanting to reach deeper into Heard’s finances, Depp can score some points in his favour. If Heard is indeed proven to be a liar, his accusations of her being a “gold digger” would be true, and he would be back on his way to regaining Hollywood respect.
