LONDON (Reuters) – American actress Amber Heard gave evidence against her ex-husband Johnny Depp at London’s High Court on Monday, accusing him of years of physical and verbal abuse.
Depp is suing the publishers of British tabloid newspaper The Sun over a 2018 article, based on Heard’s allegations, that labelled him a “wife beater”.
Depp, 57, told the London court last week all of Heard’s allegations were untrue. His former long-term partner, Vanessa Paradis, said he had never been violent and she did not believe Heard’s allegations.
Heard, 34, gave her testimony on Monday. Here are some details that emerged from her sworn written statements to the court.
WEDDING, FEB 2015
Heard said Depp disappeared into the bathroom for long periods during the wedding reception and the couple fought that night over his drug use.
“I tried to smile through it and entertain our guests. But I had never felt more lonely in my life.”
AUSTRALIA, MARCH 2015
Heard described a three-day stay in Australia as an ordeal during which Depp took drugs, drank large volumes of alcohol and became violent and abusive.
She said Depp had at various points slapped her, grabbed her by the neck, smashed her head against a refrigerator, choked her, spat in her face, thrown glass bottles at her, ripped off her nightgown and pushed her down on a marble bar amid broken glass.
“I was against the bar, naked, bent over backwards, my back against the marble. He was pressing so hard on my neck I couldn’t breathe,” Heard said. “I remember thinking he was going to kill me in that moment.”
Heard said Depp had injured his finger during the violence and had daubed the walls with his blood.
“The best way I can describe what happened in Australia is that it was like a three-day hostage situation,” Heard said.
JEALOUSY
Heard alleged that Depp belittled her work and picked fights with her whenever she was filming or auditioning.
She said he accused her of having affairs with actors with whom she had auditioned or co-starred, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Eddie Redmayne, Jim Sturgess, Kevin Costner, Liam Hemsworth, Billy Bob Thornton and Channing Tatum.
“He would taunt me about it – especially when he was drunk or high – and had derogatory nicknames for every one of my male co-stars he considered a sexual threat. For example, Leonardo DiCaprio was ‘pumpkin-head’, Channing Tatum was ‘potato-head’ and ‘Jim Turd Sturgess’.”
“POOPGATE”
Heard rejected Depp’s allegation that she or one of her friends had defecated in the couple’s bed, which he described in court as “a fitting end” to the relationship. Heard said one of the couple’s dogs may have done it, as had happened before.
“Johnny knew this, which is why I find his accusation was so ridiculous. My friends and I call this ‘Poopgate’.”
VERBAL ABUSE AND SLURS
Heard said Depp would object to any outfit he considered too revealing and hurl sexualised verbal abuse at her.
“Sometimes he used racial epithets about the men I would be – or deserved to be – assaulted by.”
CONTROLLING BEHAVIOUR AND CAREER IMPACT
Heard alleged that Depp would demand to know about any romantic scene in her films and complain about how audiences would get to watch her engaging in sexual acts. He imposed ever tighter restrictions on what nudity or scenes were acceptable.
“I found myself making concessions and turning down work. My salary went down every year I was with him because of all the work I was missing.”
(Reporting by Michael Holden, writing by Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Janet Lawrence)
