Actor Johnny Depp took a stand on Tuesday in the libel suit he filed against actress Amber Heard, his former wife, in an effort to clear his name of allegations of domestic violence that he said were “not based on any form of of truth”.
Ms. Heard has accused Mr. Depp in court papers of repeatedly abusing her during their relationship, including hitting, kicking, headbutting and dragging her by the hair.
But Mr. Depp told a seven-member jury at Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia that it came as a “complete shock” when she made those charges public.
“I myself never got to the point where I hit Ms Heard in any way,” the actor testified, “nor have I ever hit a woman in my life.”
Slowly and cautiously, Mr. Depp spoke of how the allegations have brought his reputation and career, marked by flashy roles in “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”, into decline.
“It’s very strange when one day you’re Cinderella, so to speak, and then in 0.6 seconds you’re Quasimodo,” he said. “And I didn’t deserve that.”
The testimony came on the fifth day of the trial over whether Ms. Heard, 35, defamed her former husband, Mr. Depp, 58, when she wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post in 2018. In it, she said her career was damaged after she became a “public figure representing domestic violence.”
Mr Depp’s name was not mentioned in the opinion, but he and his lawyers have argued that she was clearly referring to their relationship, which ended in divorce in 2017. Mr. Depp’s lawsuit alleged that Ms. Heard’s opinion “devastated” his once thriving acting career.
The jury is also considering a counterclaim from Ms. Heard, who alleges that Mr. Depp defamed her when his former attorney made statements that Ms. Heard’s domestic violence allegations were an orchestrated “hoax.”
In court papers, Mr. Depp has alleged that Ms. Heard physically assaulted him during their relationship, including by throwing objects at him. He said those items included a vodka bottle that shattered on the counter next to him and cut off one of his fingers — a story that has become an important anecdote in the process.
Ms Heard has denied in court papers that she assaulted Mr Depp except in self-defense or in defense of her sister. She has said that Mr. Depp hurt his finger when he repeatedly slammed a phone against a wall.
On Tuesday, Mr Depp gave a report that bears little resemblance to the one he gave two years ago in London in an earlier defamation lawsuit he had brought against The Sun newspaper for calling him a ‘woman-beater’ in a headline. In that trial, a judge found there was “overwhelming evidence” that he had repeatedly assaulted Ms. Heard during their marriage and that he had “frightened her for her life.”
During their opening arguments last week, Ms. Heard the jury that they would present evidence of “graphic and abominable” abuse of Ms. Heard, including cases of sexual assault, which Mr Depp denies. One of her attorneys, Ben Rottenborn, questioned whether Mr Depp’s events were believable if he was “blacked out” from drugs and alcohol, arguing that Mr Depp was responsible for the decline in his career. , and not Mrs. Heard .
“This man’s poor choices have brought him to this courtroom,” said Mr. Rottenborn.
Ms Heard has said that Mr Depp’s violence often occurred when he used drugs and alcohol.
But Mr Depp testified on Tuesday that while he took his first illegal drug as an 11-year-old dealing with an abusive mother, the story Ms Heard put forth about his drug use was “gross embellishment.”
He said he had become addicted to Roxicodone, an opioid, when he was prescribed it after an injury on the set of the fourth movie “Pirates of the Caribbean”, but that he had been detoxed from the drug during their relationship.
“I’m not some maniac who needs to be high or loaded all the time,” he said, adding that Ms. Heard’s friends were, in fact, amazed at how little effect drugs and alcohol had on him.
Mr Depp’s lawyers have argued that Ms Heard has “lived and breathes with this lie” about domestic violence for years and that the actor’s drug and alcohol use has not made him an abuser.
“Mr. Depp, like all of us, is not perfect, but he is not an abuser,” Camille Vasquez, one of the actor’s lawyers, said last week.
In previous days, the jury and four deputies heard live testimony or videotaped testimony from several witnesses called by Mr. Depp’s lawyers, including a sister who has acted as personal manager, Christi Dembrowski; a doctor, dr. David Kipper, who said he was treating the actor for opioid addiction; and the couple’s marriage counselor, Laurel Anderson, who said she saw “mutual abuse” in the relationship.
Participants have said they expect the trial to take about six weeks, and Ms Heard is also expected to testify. Mr Depp’s testimony will continue on Wednesday.
