A judge has ruled that Johnny Depp can move forward with a $50 million defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard. Heard and Depp met on the set of their 2011 film The Rum Diary before getting married in 2015. Heard filed for divorce the following year, igniting an ongoing legal battle between the two that has played out very publicly. Both Heard and Depp have accused each other of domestic abuse, something both parties deny. Eventually, the pair reached a divorce settlement, with Depp paying Heard $7 million.

Recently, Depp won a lawsuit against Heard concerning her donating the settlement to the ACLU. The actress said she would donate the entire settlement to the organization, but Depp claims that she did not. In the lawsuit, a judge ruled that Heard must reveal how much she actually gave to the ACLU. Similarly, in 2020, UK tabloid The Sun won a lawsuit against Depp in which the actor claimed their labeling of him as a "wife-beater" was libelous. The courts ruled in favor of The Sun, but with several lawsuits pending in the US, the legal battle will continue to play out.

Related: Why Johnny Depp Is Leaving Fantastic Beasts 3

One of those lawsuits concerns defamation in the US. Heard asked that a judge throw out a lawsuit in Virginia based on the UK ruling, but documents obtained by People (via EW) indicate that a judge will allow Depp to proceed with the lawsuit. The suit in question concerns an op-ed written by Heard in the Washington Post about domestic abuse and, because the terminology in the op-ed is different from what was used in The Sun, the judge refused to throw out Depp's lawsuit.

Johnny Depp City of Lies

Heard does not name Depp in the Washington Post op-ed, but it is widely seen as a reaction to the circumstances surrounding her marriage. Depp was reportedly pleased with the outcome of the ruling in the ACLU lawsuit, but also took the opportunity to speak out about how he believes Hollywood is currently boycotting him because of the various lawsuits. However, both Depp and Heard have received backlash, with many fans of Depp calling for Heard to be fired from Aquaman 2 due to the fact that Depp was asked to leave Fantastic Beasts 3. Depp has experienced a notable decline in his career in recent years, but this seems to be due to more than just the ongoing situation with Heard.

Despite all this, Depp is still set to receive a prestigious acting award this fall from the San Sebastian Film Festival, a decision that was met with considerable backlash. Still, it's clear that some in the industry still see Depp as a formidable actor regardless of his situation with Heard. How the recent rulings will affect Depp going forward remains unclear - some say the ACLU lawsuit could strengthen his position going into the defamation lawsuit, but with the court systems backed up due to the pandemic, there's no telling when a final ruling could be made.

More: Why Johnny Depp's City Of Lies Took So Long To Come Out

Source: People (via EW)