Kate Hackett
Amber Heard spoke for the first time about the verdict in the defamation suit brought by her ex-husband Johnny Depp. She said that the “unfair” verdict was due to “social media representation.” She also accused Depp of putting “paid employees and randos” on the stand to sway the jury.
Heard sat down with Savannah Guthrie of the Today Show for a three-part interview that began airing Monday. Guthrie also interviewed Depp’s legal team last week. In this week’s interview, Heard spoke about the “hate and vitriol” she’s faced during and after the trial.
Heard continued to make the same accusations her law team made last week — that the jury was swayed by social media posts —and that the jury had been taken in by Depp’s “acting” on the stand.
“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 that you think on social media there’s been a fair representation. You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair,” Heard said.
Heard first made allegations of abuse in 2016 when she filed for divorce and accused Depp of abusing her during the marriage. The pair eventually agreed to an expensive settlement with clauses meant to protect both Heard and Depp after the breakup, Heard continued to speak.
While Heard’s 2018 Washington Post op-ed did not call out Depp by name, the actor is suing her for libel over the piece. In the op-ed, Heard alleged that Depp verbally and physically abused her during the relationship. Depp sought $50 million in damages in his lawsuit. He was awarded just over $8 million by a jury earlier this month.
Heard’s legal team has said that she plans to appeal the verdict. She has accused the jury of being won over by Depp’s “excellent acting” and suggested that Depp’s “paid employees” may have also influenced the jury.
Heard said:
“I’ll put it this way, how could they make a judgment, how could they not come to that conclusion… They had said in those seats and heard over three weeks of nonstop, relentless testimony from paid employees and towards the end of the trial, randos, as I say.
“I don’t blame them, I don’t blame them, I actually understand, he’s a beloved character and people feel that they know him. He’s a fantastic actor.
“Again, how could they after listening to three and a half weeks of testimony about how I was an uncredible person and not to believe a word that came out of my mouth.”
