Johnny Depp: I Was a Victim of Domestic Violence

Actor wraps up 4 days of testimony in Amber Heard defamation case
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 25, 2022 7:30 PM CDT
Johnny Depp Ends 4 Days of Testimony
Amber Heard talks to her attorney in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022.   (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)

Johnny Depp wrapped up four days of testimony Thursday by continuing to deny that he had ever hit ex-wife Amber Heard—and by saying he was the real victim of domestic abuse. The actor responded "Yes" when one of his lawyers asked him if had been "a victim of domestic violence," Deadline reports. He said he had filed the $50 million libel lawsuit against Heard to "fight back" against the damage her allegations had caused to his reputation. Heard, who is countersuing for $100 million, is expected to testify this week. More:

  • Audio clips. Much of Monday's cross-examination involved Heard's lawyer playing audio clips, including some in which Depp called Heard degrading names, and reading text messages, the AP reports. In one recording, Depp said that if he didn't walk away from the argument, it would be a "bloodbath." In another, Heard says Depp should "Tell them, I, Johnny Depp, I'm a victim of domestic abuse ... and see how many people believe or side with you."

  • "The only person I've ever abused is myself." Heard's lawyers focused on Depp's history of substance abuse, arguing that he could be violent when drunk or on drugs. "If anyone had a problem with my drinking, at any time in my life, it was me," Depp said, per the BBC. "The only person I've ever abused in my life is myself."
  • Depp denies threatening self-harm. In another clip, Depp asks Heard to cut him with a knife and says he will do it if she doesn't. He testified Monday that he was "broken" at the time, Global News reports. He said he wasn't threatening self-harm, but had asked Heard to "spill my blood because that was the only thing she didn’t have at that point."

  • He blames texts on Monty Python. Depp said suggestions he made in a 2013 exchange of texts with actor Paul Bettany, including burning and drowning Heard, were taken "directly" from a Monty Python sketch about burning witches, the BBC reports. "This is a film we'd all watch when we were 10—it's just irreverent and abstract humor," he said.
  • Judge tells fans to maintain order or be thrown out. People reports that Judge Penney Azcarate, who is overseeing the Virginia trial, told some of the Depp fans in the courtroom that they would be kicked out if they couldn't behave properly. The warning came after several fans laughed at Depp's answer to a question on what movies he had starred in. "I'm so pathetic when it comes to knowing what movies I've done," Depp said. "I'm sorry. I just, I don't watch them. I feel better not watching them. What was the question again?"
(More Johnny Depp stories.)

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