Actor Johnny Depp — testifying in a defamation case he has brought against his former wife Amber Heard — says an incident between the couple during a trip to Australia left him on the verge of a “nervous breakdown”.
Key points:
- Actor Johnny Depp, 58, is suing his former wife Amber Heard, 35, for $67 million after she accused him of abuse in a 2018 opinion article
- Depp says Heard’s allegations have cost him “nothing less than everything”, including loss of reputation and work opportunities
- Heard is countersuing for $134 million, saying Depp has smeared her by calling her a liar
In a second day on the witness stand in a Virginia courtroom, Depp discussed a violent argument in 2015 — shortly after they were married — that took place in Australia and that he claimed resulted in the tip of his middle finger being cut off.
He said Heard was irate that Depp’s lawyers had asked her to sign a post-nuptial agreement.
Depp said she threw two vodka bottles at him, the second of which exploded where he had placed his hand on a basement bar, slicing the finger to the point where bone was exposed.
Boo and Pistol’s short-lived trip to Australia
In 2015, Heard was visiting Depp on the Gold Coast during filming of Pirates of the Caribbean 5: Dead Men Tell No Tales when it was found she had illegally brought the former couple’s two dogs, Boo and Pistol, on a private jet into the country.
The dogs came to the attention of the federal government after they were spotted being taken to a dog groomer on the Gold Coast.
The pair were faced with an ultimatum by then-federal agriculture minister Barnaby Joyce to either get the dogs out of Australia or have them put down.
At the time, the couple made a now infamous video apologising for the quarantine blunder, with Heard stating she was “truly sorry” for failing to declare the dogs.
The debacle resulted in war of words between Depp and Mr Joyce, with the Hollywood star later saying Mr Joyce looks like he was “inbred with a tomato” and the minister declaring he was Depp’s “Hannibal Lecter”.
In 2016, Heard was handed a one-month good behaviour bond with no conviction recorded for smuggling the two Yorkshire terriers into Australia.
The $1,000 good behaviour bond came after Heard pleaded guilty to falsifying quarantine documents.
Depp accuses Heard of bullying during marriage
Depp said the couple had frequent arguments that included “demeaning name-calling” and “bullying” by Heard.
“If I stayed to argue, eventually, I was sure it was going to escalate into violence and, oftentimes, it did.”
The Pirates of the Caribbean star, 58, is suing Heard, 35, for $67 million after she accused him of abuse.
Depp said it was Heard who would “strike out” with a slap or shove.
Depp wrote list of Heard’s ‘lies’ in own blood
The actor said he began to write on the walls in his own blood to recount lies in which he had caught out Heard.
Depp told hospital doctors he had injured himself, and contemporaneous text messages introduced as evidence refer to Depp injuring himself.
He testified that he lied about the cause of the injury to protect Heard.
However, Heard’s lawyers have said the laws of physics do not support Depp’s story and that they would introduce evidence to prove that.
In a similar legal case in Britain, Heard denied throwing a bottle and severing Depp’s finger.
She said she threw things only to escape when he was beating her, and once punched him because she feared he would push her sister down a flight of stairs.
On Wednesday, Depp described an incident in which he said Heard repeatedly punched him.
The actor said he put his arms around her to calm her, and their foreheads touched.
According to Depp, Heard accused him of “head butting” her and breaking her nose, returning minutes later with a tissue she said was stained with blood.
Depp said he later retrieved the tissue and found the red stain came from nail polish.
The actor said he would remove himself from heated arguments, sometimes locking himself in a bedroom or bathroom, and had never struck Heard.
Why are former couple back in court?
Depp has accused Heard, also an actor, of defaming him when she penned a December 2018 opinion piece in The Washington Post about being a survivor of domestic abuse.
The article never mentioned Depp by name, but Depp’s lawyer, Benjamin Chew, told jurors it was clear that Heard was referencing the Hollywood leading man.
Depp said Heard’s allegations had cost him “nothing less than everything”.
A new Pirates movie was put on hold, and Depp was dropped from the Fantastic Beasts film franchise, a Harry Potter spin-off.
“When the allegations were made, were rapidly circling the globe, telling people I was a drunken, cocaine-fuelled menace who beat women — suddenly in my 50s — it’s over,” he said.
Attorneys for Heard, who just started their cross-examination of Depp late on Wednesday, have argued that she told the truth and that her opinion was protected free speech under the US Constitution’s First Amendment.
In opening arguments, Heard’s attorneys said Depp physically and sexually assaulted her while abusing drugs and alcohol.
A state court judge in Fairfax County, Virginia, is overseeing the trial, which is in its second week and is expected to last six weeks.
Less than two years ago, Depp lost a defamation case against The Sun, a British tabloid that labelled him a “wife-beater.”
A London High Court judge ruled Depp had repeatedly assaulted Heard.
Depp’s lawyers have said they filed the US case in Fairfax County, outside the nation’s capital, because The Washington Post is printed at a facility there.
The Washington Post is not a defendant in the case.
Depp and Heard — who is known for her roles in Aquaman and Justice League — were married for roughly two years. Their divorce was finalised in 2017.
Heard has brought her own defamation claim against Depp, saying he smeared her by calling her a liar.
Her counterclaim, seeking $134 million, will be decided as part of this trial.
ABC/wires
Johnny Depp tells defamation trial he was nearing ‘breakdown’ after argument with Amber Heard when they were in Australia & More Australia Latest News Update
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