Amber Heard to pay Johnny Depp $10m after losing defamation case

Amber Heard ordered to pay Johnny Depp a total of $10m for article saying she was the victim of sexual violence, but Depp also defamed her, a jury finds.

US actress Amber Heard arrives to hear the verdict in the Depp v. Heard trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Virginia. Picture: AFP.

A US jury has found both Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard liable for defamation following an intense, high profile trial riding on bitterly contested allegations of domestic abuse.

The seven-member jury found Mr. Depp proved all three claims of defamation against his former spouse regarding statements in an opinion article she wrote for the Washington Post in 2018, awarding him $15 million. Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Penney Azcarate reduced the punitive damages the jury awarded to Depp to $350,000, the state’s statutory cap, amending his total damages to $10.4 million.

The jury also found Heard was able to prove one of three counts of defamation against Depp, based on statements made by one of his lawyers that her abuse claims were a “hoax.” The jury awarded her $2 million in compensatory damages.

Depp welcomed the verdict, saying in a statement: “The jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled”

He said he had brought case for the sake of his children, adding: “From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome.”

Heard, who listened impassively as the verdict was read out in Fairfax court, near the US capital, declared herself “heartbroken” and disappointed “beyond words” by the outcome.

“The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I’m heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband,” she said in a statement released shortly after the verdict was read.

“I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback... It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously,” she said

The jury reached its verdict earlier today after a six week trial.

The seven-person Virginia jury had been deliberating over three days in Fairfax County Circuit Court near the US capital.

Earlier, the jury said on its decision form that someone had been defamed, but in an extraordinary twist, failed to say who.

Heard was in the courthouse for the verdict but Depp, who has been in England for the past few days, was not present.

Amber Heard (R) departs the Fairfax County Courthouse after the trial. Picture: AFP.

Closing arguments in the case were held on Friday at the end of a six-week trial riding on claims and counterclaims of domestic abuse between the Hollywood celebrities.

The 58-year-old Depp filed suit against Heard over an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post in December 2018 in which she described herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” The Texas-born Heard, who had a starring role in “Aquaman,” did not name Depp in the piece, but he sued her for implying he was a domestic abuser and is seeking $50 million in damages.

The 36-year-old Heard countersued for $100 million, saying she was defamed by statements made by Depp’s lawyer, Adam Waldman, who told the Daily Mail her abuse claims were a “hoax.” The jury has been working painstakingly through a special verdict form that contains dozens of questions.

The eight-page verdict form contained 24 questions relating to Depp’s suit against Heard and 18 questions relating to her countersuit against him.

Both needed to prove the statements were defamatory, and to win compensatory or punitive damages, the jury needed to find they were made with actual malice — with knowledge that they were false or with “reckless disregard” for whether they were false or not.

Depp flew to England over the Memorial Day weekend and made surprise appearances at concerts by Jeff Beck in Sheffield on Sunday and at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Monday and Tuesday.

Jeff Beck and Johnny Depp in Sheffield. Picture: supplied

Depp, a guitarist, has his own band, the Hollywood Vampires, with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry of Aerosmith.

“Your presence shows where your priorities are,” Heard’s spokesperson said in a statement.

“Johnny Depp plays guitar in the UK while Amber Heard waits for a verdict in Virginia. Depp is taking his snickering and lack of seriousness on tour.” Dozens of witnesses testified during the trial, including bodyguards, Hollywood executives, agents, entertainment industry experts, doctors, friends and relatives.

Depp and Heard each spent days on the witness stand during the televised trial, which was attended by hundreds of fans of the “Pirates” star and accompanied by a #JusticeForJohnnyDepp campaign on social media.

Video and audio recordings of heated, profanity-laced arguments between the couple were played for the jury, which was also shown photographs of injuries allegedly suffered by Heard during their volatile relationship.

Hours of testimony were devoted to a grisly finger injury that Depp suffered while filming an instalment of “Pirates” in Australia in March 2015.

Depp claimed the tip of a finger was severed when Heard threw a vodka bottle at him. Heard said she did not know how the injury occurred.

Both agreed that Depp went on to scrawl messages on walls, lampshades and mirrors using the bloody digit.

Heard said Depp would become a physically and sexually abusive “monster” during alcohol- and drug-fuelled binges and resisted her repeated efforts to curb his drinking and drug use.

Depp testified that it was Heard who was frequently violent and said it has been “brutal” to listen to “outlandish” accusations of domestic abuse made against him.

“No human being is perfect, certainly not, none of us, but I have never in my life committed sexual battery, physical abuse,” he said.

Heard, who was married to Depp from 2015 to 2017, obtained a restraining order against him in May 2016, citing domestic violence.

Depp, a three-time Oscar nominee, filed a libel suit in London against the British tabloid The Sun for calling him a “wife-beater.” He lost that case in November 2020.

Both sides have claimed damage to their Hollywood careers.