It's one of many allegations in Johnny Depp's trial against his ex Amber Heard: Did she have an affair with actor James Franco while she was still married to Depp? Images from a surveillance camera should now provide clarity.
There's a lot of dirty laundry going on in the trial between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard. For weeks, many intimate and disturbing details of this toxic relationship, in which both apparently gave little to each other, have come to light. One of the central themes is an alleged affair between Amber Heard and James Franco. Now the accused at least admits to having spent a night with the actor.
Heard, then 30, and Franco, eight years his senior, were captured on May 22, 2016 by a surveillance camera installed in the elevator of the building where Heard and Depp lived at the time. The recordings have now been presented to the public at the trial in London. In the subsequent cross-examination, Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez elicited confirmation from Amber Heard that they had spent the night with Franco, as reported by the US magazine "People" and the British "Daily Mail". Johnny Depp himself was away at the time. Just a day later, Heard filed for divorce from him and, according to his own statement, obtained a domestic violence restraining order to have the locks changed.
The images from the surveillance camera first show Heard, who, in baggy clothes and a bathrobe, enters the elevator barefoot, drives down with it and leaves it. She returns a short time later with James Franco in tow. During the ride up, the two trustingly put their heads together. Then they both get out and walk away in the direction of the apartment. What then happened in the apartment between Amber Heard and James Franco was not discussed in the process. Vasquez simply asked Heard if she knew Depp was out of town that night. "I don't know his schedule," the 36-year-old replied vaguely.
Otherwise, Amber Heard explained the night together: "He was my boyfriend and literally lived next door. I had honestly exhausted my support network of my usual friends and at the time was glad of any friendship I could get." Regarding the intimate moment in the elevator, she said: "After he saw my face, he put his head on my shoulder. He reacted to what he saw." She was referring to a statement she had previously made, according to which Depp had thrown a phone at her the day before, causing a bruise on her face.
According to Heard, Depp has been on bad terms with colleague James Franco since they collaborated on the 2014 film The Adderall Diaries. Depp should have simply assumed the two had an affair, she claimed in court. "He hated James Franco." In May 2014, she and Depp allegedly even got into a heated argument on a flight from Boston to Los Angeles.
Johnny Depp is suing his ex-wife for $50 million in damages because she presented herself as a victim of domestic violence, which is why he is said to have lost several engagements. Heard then counter-sued for $100 million, alleging that Depp framed her by calling her a liar. The two were a couple from 2011 and married to each other from 2015 to 2016.
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