Both Johnny Depp and Amber Heard lose: A Summary
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By Katherine Mutchler
The Johnny Depp and Amber Herd case will make it in history. This case was a rollercoaster, and everyone is talking about it. Some are saying it is just as popular as the O.J. Simpson case. What has piqued most viewers' attention was the final result of the case in the past week; however, it is essential to note that this case is still far from being resolved among the two parties, the divided viewership, and what the future stands for defamation cases.
The defamation lawsuit reached record numbers of viewership on popular social media mediums such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. The case was trending on Twitter the entire time it was active. What has roped so many viewers in is the A-list status of both party members. Both Depp and Heard’s careers are an essential element in the events reviewed under oath. In this case, what should not be overlooked and devalued is the weighty, accurate, and horrific reality that domestic violence is in the United States of America. Furthermore, Heard has been a pave maker in the “Me Too” movement, another issue that should not be belittled. Heard and Depp were together for over two years and were married for fifteen months before filing for divorce in 2015.
The accusations began on Heard’s side when she made pictures of visible injuries public and said quotes such as, “…I felt my life was threatened, [and] I tried to defend myself….” This was in a famous opinion-editorial piece in The Washington Post where Depp remained unnamed. The traction behind these serious allegations quickly picked up, and Depp began to receive backlash in public, surrounding movie premiers, and on social media. Followers and viewers called Depp a “wife-beater” and names alike.
The original case of this nature, between Depp and Heard, was in the court of the United Kingdom, more specifically surrounding the realm of libel. Ms. Heard had a similar opinion editorial published in a famous newspaper, The SUN. Depp, ultimately lost this case, which later made him lose acting jobs. The most famous of these jobs lost was with Warner Brother Media on Fantastic Beasts. Alongside this previous case, Heard was completing her role in Aquaman. There is an online petition to get Heard removed from this movie that currently has over four million signatures. The 2022 case may have come from vengeance by Mr. Depp, but that is up for speculation. He filed the case of defamation from the opinion editorial that Ms. Heard wrote in March of 2019 in the state of Virginia against Ms. Heard. The jury finalized their decision on June 1st, 2022. Ms. Heard countersued Depp for publishing pictures and videos of her, which she claims soiled her acting career.
Ms. Heard denied that the article was about Mr. Depp. There was a clear differentiation between the two parties' argument styles throughout the case. On Heard’s team, many people criticize that they stated too many objections by hearsay, including objecting to their own question at a point in the interview of Mr. Depp. Contrary, on Depp’s side, one could argue that he did not have as much to lose as Heard did in this case. He had already received the domestic violence backlash from the previous lawsuit in the UK, and he has a far more fruitful net worth than Heard currently holds.
As the trial progressed, more shocking claims of drug abuse, vulgar language, and claims of domestic battery arose. Viewers expressed their vast opinions via social media because many may have idolized the once-married couple, both Ms. Heard and Mr. Depp. Heard's team argued that Depp’s alleged drug addictions correlated with the abuse claims, while Depp’s team argued that there was no relation.
What ultimately led to the downfall of Ms. Heard and her team’s rapport was the unclear evidence of physical and sexual abuse. She and her team were making factual statements without solid enough evidence. The most substantial evidence presented by Ms. Heard was texts exchanged between Depp and Paul Bettany, a famous fellow actor from England. Horrific statements were exchanged about burning Ms. Heard, drowning her, and explicitly vulgar sexual language. Depp did not deny the graphicness of these messages. However, he defended these words by saying they came from quotes in the movie Monte Python and that he just had a “really dark sense of humor.”
On the team of Mr. Depp, one of their strongest arguments was that Ms. Heard had visible discrepancies in her domestic violence allegations. Ms. Heard would send pictures of alleged physical abuse inflicted by Mr. Depp to her friend via text message, but she would be seen in public, seemingly ordinary, the following day or a few days later. In opening statements, Ms. Heard’s team brought a makeup pallet called the “Milani Conceal and Perfect All-In-One Correcting Kit” that was allegedly in her purse for “their entire relationship.” Heard claimed this was her trick to hiding bruising and scarring. The makeup brand, Milani, posted a TikTok video responding to the unexpected brand appearance in this famous case. In the video, the brand debunked Heard and her team, stating that this specific palette had not been released until the termination of their relationship, and that was in 2017.
Another crucial aspect of the building of this case was the variety of video and audio recordings retrieved by Heard. Some visually and auditorily displayed their arguments, while others exposed Mr. Depp’s saddening verbalizations of wanting to commit suicide. Ironically, there was a lengthy recording of Mr. Depp attempting to reconcile with Ms. Heard on dealing with the public allegations in a joint media statement; Ms. Heard did not comply with this offer. She said that she did not know how to regain her credibility, that her career was ruined forever, and that her talent team pushed her to make untrue statements. This recording was what Depp’s legal team would use in the final words when Ms. Heard said, “Johnny [Mr. Depp] tell the world that you too are a victim of domestic violence.”
The last two days of the trial were the most ground-breaking, intriguing, and telling in the case. Witness stands came from a previous TMZ employee and model Kate Moss. Ms. Heard was accused of “tipping off” or asking TMZ to show up at the courthouse when Ms. Heard was arriving for a claim against Mr. Depp to get a photograph of her face with alleged bruising. The TMZ employee said that these tips came from publicists, lawyers, and “B-list” celebrities through their tip line. The same employee said that there was an extensive confirmation process to confirm that the tip was factual. On May 27th, 2016, the TMZ employee said that he had scheduled a team to arrange and to get photographs of Ms. Heard filing a restraining order against Mr. Depp at a courthouse in Los Angeles. The employee said that a court house is not a typical location for their paparazzi to camp out at, and for a case like this, they would have to be arranged beforehand. The photographers were told to get photographs of Ms. Heard leaving the courthouse and capturing a bruise on the right side of her face; They were unsuccessful. Later on, on the witness stand, a clip went viral of Ms. Heard's team alleging that the previous employee was only on the air in hopes of newfound fame. “You know this case is being televised, right?” said Ms. Heard’s lawyer, “and this gets you your fifteen minutes of fame, doesn’t it?” The employee then said that he plans to seek nothing from this case and actually fears the backlash he will receive from the highly productive publication that TMZ is.
The trial continues, and the court brings in previous mental health doctors for both marriage and family counseling for Depp and Heard and the personal doctor of Ms. Heard. This witness stand implied that Ms. Heard has Bipolar Personality Disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Mr. Depp’s legal team suggested that the test used to determine PTSD was skewed, stating that Ms. Heard did not suffer from this disorder and it was measured at a much more severe rating. Ms. Heard was accused of exaggerating symptoms of PTSD. Ms. Heard's team responded by stating that it was unfair that only Ms. Heard was examined for this illness and not Mr. Depp.
There were continuous arguments against Ms. Heard’s photo evidence. Mr. Depp’s team argued that she had a variety of the same photographs, some being edited, some being larger sizes, some being different quality standards, and some remaining untouched. These photographs were supposed to show physical bruising on Ms. Heard. After deliberation, it was established that she had submitted many of the same photos and pictures, which harmed her credibility.
What was obscure about this case was how much both Ms. Heard and Mr. Depp testified. This is a risky procedure because the two were in such an intimate relationship; they are both famous figures, which allowed them to ask about whatever he or she wished. It was the most harmful to Ms. Heard because Mr. Depp’s lawyers could bring forth new evidence and have a more assertive stance. After all, this occurred right before the final deliberation, so it was fresh in all of the jury's minds. Depp’s team had a 39-minute final rebuttal, while Ms. Heard’s was 6 minutes long. There was also an ironic aspect on the day of the final rebuttal because it was the same day, precisely six years later, that Ms. Heard filed the original restraining order on Mr. Depp, along with the alleged paparazzi setup. It was also in the final rebuttal that Mr. Depp’s team took the most assertive stance of accusing Ms. Heard as the alleged abuser in all of this evidence; They reminded the jury of Ms. Heard allegedly throwing a vodka bottle at Mr. Depp, severing his finger, and putting out a lit cigarette on his face after he had asked her for a post-nuptial agreement.
After thirteen hours of deliberation, the jury unanimously voted that Ms. Heard presented defamation upon Mr. Depp’s name, image, and likeness in the final judgment. Ms. Heard was correct in one account of her defamation countersuit claim. Depp was awarded around 10 million due to the state of Virginia’s limitations, despite the initial ask for 50 million. Ms. Heard was awarded 2 million for damages by Mr. Depp; This is due to comments by Depp’s previous lawyer Adam Waldman stating that her earlier reports of abuse by Mr. Depp was a joke. The jury was held under extraordinary surveillance measures to know that they had not been watching the world’s very opinionated reaction on the internet.
In conclusion, both parties are losers. Despite the monetary amount, all of their interactions, words, recordings, and even secrets were televised for the world to witness, judge, and speculate. There is no court in the public opinion; it simply is what it is. It will be hard for Ms. Heard to get a job in the future. It will be harder for Mr. Depp to gain opportunities because he is now limited, despite regaining the trust he lost with the initial case in the UK. They both have narrowed possibilities for work, romantic relationships, and recovering the fame they once had. They both suffer from mental illness and traumatic experiences. To be so public throughout this case will be difficult to heal from. Ms. Heard will appeal because it is rumored that she cannot pay the millions of dollars that she owes Depp and the lawyer fees. This is a prime example of a case that could have been settled in mediation. It is unnecessary that this case was as public as it was. These accusations will follow them for the rest of their lives. The backlash from strangers on the internet and people who do not know them personally will hurt their psyche. This case was very emotionally triggered, and this is a solid sign that it should have been held in private mediation. In the process of mediation, they easily could have settled it with experts, evidence, and witnesses. If they had resolved in mediation, they would still have many of the opportunities they were given, their talents could have continued to blossom, and they would not have lost as much money.