Cut finger, insulting text messages, humiliating photos: the six weeks of debates in the trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard gave rise to a great unpacking on the private life of the couple of actors, between honeymoon and violent arguments against a backdrop of alcohol and drugs.
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Here are the highlights, after a jury in a court in Fairfax, near Washington, found on Wednesday that Amber Heard defamed her ex-husband and awarded the actor $15 million in damages.
The jurors also found that Johnny Depp had made defamatory remarks towards the actress through his lawyer, awarding him only two million dollars in compensation.
Severed finger and humiliating photo
Amber Heard recounted, for the first time, an argument followed by a rape in March 2015, during the couple’s stay in Australia where Johnny Depp was filming the 5th episode of the saga “Pirates of the Caribbean”.
The actor had the tip of his right middle finger severed and was hospitalized.
Johnny Depp claims that it was the splinter of a vodka bottle thrown by Amber Heard, which broke near his hand, which injured him.
The actress assures that he injured himself.
He then used his blood to inscribe insulting messages on the walls, mirrors and lampshades of their rental house.
As in a previous trial in the UK, other bizarre details emerged, including when Johnny Depp said he saw a photo of “human faeces” on the couple’s bed after an argument with his wife who was celebrating her birthday. 30th anniversary in April 2016.
Amber Heard denied being behind the scene, saying it was the actor’s dog, a Yorkshire Terrier, who defecated.
Testimonials
Billionaire Elon Musk, ex-boyfriend of Amber Heard, or actor James Franco, who toured with her, were ultimately not called to the stand.
British supermodel Kate Moss has denied an old rumor that the actor pushed her down the stairs in the 1990s.
American actress Ellen Barkin, another former girlfriend of Depp’s in the late 1990s, claimed he was jealous, possessive and “drunk almost all the time”. He also, according to her, threw a bottle of wine in her direction, without aiming at her, during a fit of anger.
The jury also heard from security guards, artistic agents, financial advisers and experts, psychiatrists, doctors, relatives of the two actors, as well as the doorman of the luxurious building where the couple lived in Los Angeles.
The latter, Alejandro Romero, probably summed up the sentiment of many witnesses by saying, “I’m too stressed, I don’t want to have to meddle in this anymore.”
Audiovisual evidence
Photos, audio and video recordings and text messages were presented to the jury.
In a video, filmed in secret by Amber Heard, Johnny Depp angrily bangs the glass door of a kitchen cupboard and pours himself a huge glass of wine.
The two actors produced photos showing, according to them, their swollen faces after arguments.
Amber Heard has also photographed her companion in humiliating positions when he was, according to her, knocked out by drugs and alcohol.
Text messages with crude and violent language to the actress sent by Johnny Depp show, according to Amber Heard’s lawyers, that the actor was prone to violence. But for his lawyers, Johnny Depp has an inventive way of writing, similar to the style of journalist Hunter S. Thompson, whom he admired.
A highly publicized trial
Shortly after the verdict, Johnny Depp said on Wednesday he was “overwhelmed by the outpouring of love” shown by his fans, who cheered him by the hundreds every day in court.
Some spent the night in front of the building to access the courtroom. But despite a partisan public, the serenity of the debates was only disturbed once, during the second testimony of Amber Heard.
On social networks, Johnny Depp also had the advantage with the campaign “
Amber Heard claimed to have received “thousands” of death threat messages during the trial.
Both actors claimed their Hollywood careers were ruined by the affair.
Despite the worldwide success of “Aquaman”, Amber Heard says she had to fight to find her role in the second episode, accusing Johnny Depp of having plotted to oust her from the production.
According to her lawyers, she lost 40 to 50 million dollars in stamps and promotional campaigns.
Johnny Depp also lost nearly $50 million in fees after being “erased from Hollywood” because of the charges, according to his attorneys, nearly half of it for the sixth installment of “Pirates.”
But for his former agent, Tracey Jacobs, there had been no official agreement for him to return to his role. According to her, the actor’s “star” had withered since 2010 because of drugs and alcohol, and his “unprofessional attitude” on film sets.
