Depp is suing ex-wife Heard for the aforementioned sum following a 2018 op-ed piece regarding her alleged experience as a victim, and subsequent survivor, of domestic viewing. Heard is countersuing the Corpse Bride star for $100 million.
Now, some evidence that Depp’s legal team was surely prepared for — but probably remains less than thrilled to defend — has surfaced in the courtroom, and the content is nothing new.
In December 2021, Marvel Cinematic Universe star Paul Bettany (WandaVision, Avengers: Infinity War) addressed a string of 2013 text messages that were sent between he and Depp, with whom he is close friends. At the time, Bettany expressed that the entire situation was “a strange moment” and shared:
“Can you imagine what it would be like, honestly, to have a bunch of lawyers go through every one of your emails and texts for 10 years? All I can tell you was that it was an unpleasant feeling.”
The messages, for proper context, have been described as:
In one text, Depp wrote, “Let’s burn Amber!!!” to which Bettany responded: “Having thought it through I don’t think we should burn Amber – she’s delightful company and easy on the eye, plus I’m not sure she’s a witch. We could of course try the English course of action in these predicaments – we do a drowning test. Thoughts?”
Now, as noted, additional text messages in a similar vein have surfaced during Depp and Heard’s ongoing trial. One report notes:
Depp repeatedly called Amber Heard a “c–t” and once texted his friend that he hoped her “rotting corpse was decomposing in the f–king trunk of a Honda Civic,” according to text messages read in court Wednesday.
The allegations came on the second day of testimony in Depp’s bombshell defamation suit against Heard, his ex-wife.
Heard’s attorney Elaine Bredehoft read a series of texts while cross-examining Isaac Baruch, Depp’s close friend of 42 years, who was called by the actor’s attorneys as the second witness at trial.
It is certainly worth noting that Depp’s lawyers have alleged that Heard, not the Alice In Wonderland actor, was the aggressor in the relationship. They will likely defend Depp’s various message exchanges by saying he was blowing off steam to his friends and did not mean his words literally.
If you haven’t been following the ongoing Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard case, in November 2020, Hollywood actor Depp lost his libel lawsuit against U.K. News Group Newspaper publication, The Sun, for their report that he had allegedly engaged in domestic violence — including a reported “hostage” situation during a Pirates of the Caribbean shoot in Australia — against the Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom actress on multiple occasions.
British Judge Andrew Nicol presided over the original proceedings, and Depp later lost his right to appeal the original ruling in the United Kingdom. The Jack Sparrow actor, for his part, has denied the domestic violence allegations, with even his ex-partners, Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder, speaking out in his defense at various points in time.
Credit: Dior
Depp has been fired from his two most high-profile parts — his iconic role as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney’s Pirates franchise and as Gellert Grindelwald in Warner Bros. Fantastic Beasts series — as a result of the ongoing situation.
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Credit: ABC
