Johnny Depp doesn't regret Amber Heard trial: 'It had gone far enough'
To some, Johnny Depp's headline-making defamation trial with ex-wife Amber Heard was a stain on his gleaming Hollywood career. But despite the legal drama, Depp wouldn't change a thing.
The Oscar-nominated actor reflected on the 2022 court battle in an interview with The Sunday Times published June 21. "Look, none of this was going (to) be easy, but I didn't care," he told the British outlet. "I thought, 'I'll fight until the bitter (expletive) end.' And if I end up pumping gas? That's all right. I've done that before."
Depp sued Heard in 2019, claiming she defamed him in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which she said she was a victim of domestic abuse without specifically naming him. Heard was granted a temporary restraining order against the actor in May 2016, just days after filing for divorce, alleging Depp physically abused her various times during their 15-month marriage.
As for their trial, a Virginia jury in 2022 awarded Depp more than $10 million in damages following six weeks of widely watched testimony, during which both parties and witnesses testified about alleged abuse throughout the couple's tumultuous relationship.
"Look, it had gone far enough," Depp, 62, continued. "If I don't try to represent the truth it will be like I've actually committed the acts I am accused of. And my kids will have to live with it. Their kids. Kids that I've met in hospitals. So the night before the trial in Virginia I didn't feel nervous. If you don't have to memorize lines, if you're just speaking the truth? Roll the dice."
'A soap opera': Johnny Depp shades Amber Heard defamation trial
Heard won $2 million in damages from her countersuit over Depp's lawyer calling her claims a hoax. In December 2022, the former couple agreed to a settlement in the defamation case, with Heard paying Depp $1 million that he pledged to charity.
The "Pirates of the Caribbean" alum also reflected on the professional fallout from the trial, including testimony from his former agent Tracey Jacobs. According to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety, Jacobs testified that Depp's industry status was being increasingly undermined by his "unprofessional" on-set behavior, which allegedly included frequent tardiness.
"There are people, and I'm thinking of three, who did me dirty. Those people were at my kids' parties. Throwing them in the air," Depp said. "And, look, I understand people who could not stand up (for me) because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice. I was pre-MeToo. I was like a crash test dummy for MeToo. It was before Harvey Weinstein."
10 bingeable memoirs to check out: Celebrities tell all about aging, marriage and Beyoncé
The legal troubles of disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was indicted in May 2018 on charges of five sex crimes, are widely regarded as the tipping point for the #MeToo movement's impact on Hollywood. Weinstein was convicted on June 11 of a first-degree criminal sexual act in the retrial of his 2020 conviction on sexual assault and rape charges.
Following the conclusion of his trial with Heard, Depp resumed his entertainment career with a starring role in 2023's "Jeanne du Barry," and directed the 2024 period drama "Modi: Three Days on the Wing of Madness."
"Honestly? I didn't go anywhere," said Depp of his showbiz reemergence. "If I actually had the chance to split, I would never come back."
Contributing: KiMi Robinson, Andrea Mandell and Maria Puente, USA TODAY
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