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After nearly six weeks of the contentious defamation trial between actors and former spouses Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, the jury delivered a verdict on Wednesday afternoon.
Depp was not present for the verdict, but Heard was.
“Due to previously scheduled work commitments made before the trial, Mr. Depp will not be physically present for today’s 3 p.m. verdict and will be watching from the United Kingdom,” the source said, speaking of Depp.
The jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.
Heard won her defamation countersuit and was awarded $2 million.
The seven-person jury decided:
Johnny Depp has been awarded $15 million in defamation damages, effectively bankrupting Amber Heard. Holy cow.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) June 1, 2022
#BREAKING: The jury just found unanimously in favor of Johnny Depp, that Amber Heard calling him a sexual abuser was defamation. https://t.co/YR7ca0euSg
— TMZ (@TMZ) June 1, 2022
Breaking: Jury finds actress Amber Heard defamed actor Johnny Depp.
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) June 1, 2022
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — Jury rules in favor of Johnny Depp in his libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, who had accused him of abuse.
— James LaPorta (@JimLaPorta) June 1, 2022
Before the verdict was read, a spokesperson for Heard said: “Your presence shows where your priorities are. Johnny Depp plays guitar in the UK while Amber Heard waits for a verdict in Virginia. Depp is taking his snickering and lack of seriousness on tour.”
Depp had filed a $50 million lawsuit against Heard after she wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post in 2018, where she referred to herself as a public figure representing domestic abuse.
Depp’s team argued that even though the op-ed did not mention his name, the piece damaged his reputation and resulted in him losing several high-profile acting roles. Depp has denied all of the allegations against him.
Heard countersued Depp for $100 million after his lawyer said her allegations were false in three statements in the press.
“The pair met while making the 2011 movie The Rum Diary and later wed in 2015. They broke up in May 2016 when Heard sought a domestic violence restraining order against him, accusing him of abusing her. Depp denied the claims, and they settled their divorce out of court in August 2016,” People Magazine reported.
Many celebrities have publicly come out in support of Depp.
Comedian and actor Bill Burr said: “I’m wondering, all these people who just accepted her lies, if they’re gonna apologize somehow because they publicly trashed him. It’d be nice if they then publicly apologized and said, ‘maybe next time we won’t jump to conclusions.’”
Actress Wynnona Ryder, a former girlfriend, added: “He was never, never violent towards me. He was never, never abusive at all towards me. He has never been violent or abusive towards anybody I have seen. I truly and honestly only know him as a really good man – an incredibly loving, extremely caring guy who was so very protective of me and the people that he loves, and I felt so very, very safe with him.”
French singer Vanessa Paradis, the mother of Depp’s two children and former partner of 14 years, has publicly called Heard’s accusations “false facts.”
Penélope Cruz: “Many years have passed and I have not only made 3 movies with him, but I also count on him as a great friend. I’ve always been impressed by his kindness, his brilliant mind, his talent, and his peculiar sense of humor. I’ve seen Johnny in so many situations and he is always kind to everyone around. He is one of the most generous people I know.”
