For the first time since the verdict in the defamation trial between her and Johnny Depp, Amber Heard takes a detailed position. She admits to having made many mistakes. But she always told the truth. She insists that the fact that her ex didn't hit her is a lie.
The broadcaster NBC has published the complete first part of an interview with Amber Heard, in which the actress expresses herself in detail on television for the first time after the verdict in the defamation lawsuit between her and Johnny Depp. "Until the day I die, I will stand by every word of my statement," explains the 36-year-old.
A lot of "really important evidence" from her side was not discussed in the process, says Heard. Depp's attorneys "certainly did a better job of distracting the jury from the real issues" than her defense. She "paid the price" for telling the truth about a more powerful person.
Immediately after the verdict, Heard said on her Instagram page that Depp's lawyers had tricked the jury into overlooking the "key issue of free speech" and ignoring evidence. "I am heartbroken that the mountain of evidence was still insufficient to confront the disproportionate power and influence (...) of my ex-husband," Heard wrote, among other things.
In the process, the two ex-husbands had accused each other of domestic violence. Heard now asserts that she never instigated physical arguments between the two, "I reacted to it". Depp had protested in court that he had never hit his former partner. In the NBC interview, Heard is now asked directly: "Is that a lie?" The actress replies, "Yes, it is."
Heard admits that she did and said "disgusting, regrettable things" during her relationship with Depp. She sometimes behaved “terribly” and almost didn’t recognize herself. She regrets a lot, says Heard and admits to having contributed half to the toxic relationship between the two.
"It was ugly, but it could also be beautiful," Heard says of their time with Depp. "It was very, very toxic. We were horrible to each other," she adds. And: "I made many, many mistakes. (...) But I always told the truth."
The interview with Heard will be shown in two parts. After the first half on Tuesday, the second half will be shown on Wednesday. The first excerpts from the conversation had already been published on Monday. In them, Heard had complained, among other things, about the hatred directed against her in online networks.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard got married in 2015. They separated in 2016 and divorced in 2017. A jury largely found the 59-year-old right in a defamation trial against Heard in the United States on June 1. Depp sued Heard over an article in the Washington Post in which she claimed to be a victim of domestic violence. She did not mention him by name, but the jury found her guilty of defamation.
Heard was ordered to wire Depp $15 million as a penalty. Because of the laws in force in Virginia, where the trial took place, she only has to raise 10.35 million. Depp was also fined - in the amount of two million US dollars. Heard's attorney said her client plans to appeal the verdict. The actress could "definitely not" pay the amount.
