As she gears up for an appeal, Amber Heard is speaking out for the first time since the Johnny Depp trial verdict. Depp v. Heard was the second court case to come from the two's divorce after Depp previously brought a libel lawsuit against the UK publisher News Group Newspapers for citing him as an abuser in an early 2018 article. With Heard acting as a key witness for the news publication during the trial, Depp ultimately lost the libel suit and saw his appeal rejected.
Depp later brought a defamation suit against Heard for her publishing an op-ed in The Washington Post referring to past domestic abuse and sexual violence from an unnamed partner. Depp sued Heard for $50 million in damages, with the actress countersuing for $100 million in damages, with a heated and highly publicized trial beginning in April in Virginia, where The Washington Post prints its papers and houses their servers. Heard would ultimately lose the trial as the jury ruled her op-ed to have been false and defamed Depp, awarding the actor $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, which would be reduced to $350,000 due to a Virginia state law limit, while Depp was found guilty on one count of defamation and Heard being awarded $2 in damages.
Just two weeks after the outcome was announced, NBC News spoke exclusively with Amber Heard for the first time since the Johnny Depp trial verdict. The actress explained she doesn't blame the jury for the outcome, believing Depp to be a "fantastic actor" and understanding how her ex-husband swayed the trial in his favor. See what Heard said below:
"I don't blame them. I actually understand. He's a beloved character and people feel they know him. He's a fantastic actor. I don't care what one thinks about me or what judgments you want to make about what happened in the privacy of my own home, in my marriage, behind closed doors. I don't presume the average person should know those things. And so I don't take it personally. But even somebody who is sure I'm deserving of all this hate and vitriol, even if you think that I'm lying, you still couldn't look me in the eye and tell me that you think on social media there's been a fair representation. You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair.”
Shortly after the trial verdict, Depp took to his Instagram with his first reaction to winning the lawsuit, expressing his appreciation for fans' support over six years and feeling the jury "gave me my life back." Heard herself released a statement after the trial verdict, in which she described feeling "heartbroken" by the jury siding with her ex-husband and calling the verdict a "setback" for women in the wake of the #MeToo Movement. Heard's lawyer also came out shortly after the trial verdict confirming the actress would be appealing the outcome with the argument that the jury was "confused" and unduly influenced.
Amber Heard's latest comments regarding the Johnny Depp trial verdict still resonates a sense of heartbreak for the outcome, but instead has shifted her focus to those criticizing her on social media rather than the jury that ruled against her. As she notes, Heard has received more vitriol on social media than her ex-husband, with hashtags calling for boycotts of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom given the actress remains in the DC Extended Universe sequel and reaffirming support for Depp throughout the trial. Audiences will be able to view the entire NBC News exclusive interview on TODAY on June 14 and 15 and during Dateline on June 17.
Source: NBC News