Johnny Depp described ex-wife Amber Heard’s abuse allegations as “all false” as he returned to the witness stand Wednesday (May 25) in his defamation trial.
“It’s insane to hear heinous accusations of violence, sexual violence, that she’s attributed to me, that she’s accused me of,” Depp said at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Virginia.
“I don’t think anyone enjoys having to split themselves open and tell the truth, but there are times when one just simply has to because it’s gotten out of control.”
Depp previously testified for four days last month. He was called by his lawyers Wednesday as a rebuttal witness and asked what it’s been like listening to Heard’s testimony.
“Horrible,” Depp replied. “Ridiculous. Humiliating. Ludicrous. Painful. Savage. Unimaginably brutal. Cruel. And all false.”
Depp, 58, is suing Heard, 36, for US$50mil over a 2018 op-ed published by the Washington Post in which Heard called herself a “public figure representing domestic abuse.”
Depp isn’t named in the piece, but Heard had previously accused the actor of abuse, which he denies.
Heard filed a counterclaim for US$100mil, referencing comments made by Depp attorney Adam Waldman that described the actress’ abuse accusations as a hoax.
Heard’s accusations against Depp include a claim he sexually assaulted her in Australia in 2015 using a bottle. Heard also claimed during her testimony that Depp abused her during their honeymoon in 2015.
Depp on Wednesday told the seven-member jury that Heard hit him during the honeymoon, during which they travelled by train from Thailand to Singapore.
“At one point, I don’t remember it lasting long at all, I just remember I took a pretty good shot to the face, to the eye, to somewhere up here, so I have a bit of a shiner,” Depp said.
Depp’s lawyers on Wednesday also called to the witness stand supermodel Kate Moss, who dated Depp from 1994 to 1998. Heard made reference during her testimony to a rumour that Depp allegedly once pushed Moss down a set of stairs.
Moss appeared via video link Wednesday and gave a three-minute testimony, claiming Depp “never pushed me, kicked me or threw me down any stairs".
Moss told jurors she once slipped down a stairway on a rainy day during a trip to Jamaica, and that Depp “came running back to help me and carried me to my room and got me medical attention.”
Following Moss’ testimony, Depp claimed he’d told that same story to Heard, and said he’d never heard the rumour Heard referenced from anyone else.
“Ms Heard took the story and turned it into a very ugly incident all in her mind,” Depp said. “There was never a moment where I pushed Kate down any set of stairs.”
During her four days of testimony this month, Heard denied ever assaulting Depp. She claimed last week that Depp is “lying” in the trial.
“I survived,” Heard said. “I survived that man.”
Depp and Heard met while making the 2011 movie The Rum Diary and married in 2015. Heard filed for divorce the following year and was granted a temporary restraining order after accusing Depp of domestic violence.
The defamation trial is in its sixth week, with closing arguments expected to take place Friday.
Depp lost a libel lawsuit against the publisher of British tabloid The Sun over an article painting him as a “wife beater,” with a High Court judge saying in November 2020 that the claims were “substantially true.” – New York Daily News/Tribune News Service
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