“Typically celebrities are not like this. They take great lengths to avoid having to reveal this stuff about themselves,” stated @TheSecondStatePodcast host Hannah Seymour when talking about the Johnny Depp versus Amber Heard trial that’s been flooding our timelines in a video recently shared on TikTok. “The other thing that makes this [trial] incredible is that, in the coming weeks, Elon Musk, James Franco and Paul Bettany are all going to be testifying,” Seymour continued.
@thesecondestatepodcast #elonmusk #jamesfranco #paulbettany
♬ original sound - thesecondestatepodca
This video is one of the many currently trending on TikTok, and for good reason. Though it is now balancing more in favour of the Pirates of the Caribbean actor, after many saw Heard’s accusations as an attempt at weaponising the #MeToo movement, the internet remains somewhat divided when it comes to finding out exactly who was the victim and who was the abuser in this toxic relationship.
What’s been clear since the beginning of this latest trial is that Depp’s fans have made it their mission to defend the actor, painting him as an angel while simultaneously villainising Heard as much as possible. Without taking a final stance on the matter (not at least until we fully hear Heard’s testimony), we’ve compiled some of the most viral content published on the internet regarding the oh-so-public court case. Buckle up for some heart wrenching, enraging, sometimes even hilarious content from netizens around the world.
@mculokii why discuss when the evidence will speak for itself 💁🏻♀️ #johnnydepp #justiceforjohnnydepp #fyp #foryou
♬ vibe for this year - joseph fagundes
@johnnydepp80s yeah it’s real💀 #justiceforjohnnydepp #johnnydepp #johnny #depp #fy #foryou #4u #johnnydeppforever #ambersmflawyer #omg
♬ Originalton - Annus💋
@failedtweet ♬ original sound - FT
@yahooaustralia #JohnnyDepp says ex-wife #AmberHeard cost him ‘everything’. #yahoonews #johnnydepptrial #johnnydeppamberheard
♬ Pieces (Solo Piano Version) - Danilo Stankovic
@gugurutor Responder a @cristy7201 #johnnydepptrial #amberheard #justiceforjohnnydepp
♬ Only Love Can Hurt Like This (Slowed Down Version) - Paloma Faith
It’s crucial to highlight that Heard and Depp’s relationship was, without a doubt, intensely toxic and that physical as well as emotional harm seems to have been perpetrated by both celebrities. There are around 120 people on the potential witnesses list.
Musk is expected to testify on behalf of Heard. The Tesla CEO, who reportedly dated the actress between 2016 and 2018, offered to provide her with “24/7 security” to protect her from Depp, according to text messages read at the London libel trial. Franco, too, is expected to speak on Heard’s behalf. The actress has said she confided in him about bruises she sustained in an alleged fight with Depp.
Bettany, who has called Depp the “kindest, gentlest” man he knows, will take the side of his friend. He will probably face questions about text messages exchanged between him and Depp in 2013.
It’s everywhere at the minute—you wouldn’t be able to avoid it even if you wanted to. The current US trial involving Johnny Depp and Amber Heard centres on a lawsuit the Pirates of the Caribbean actor filed against his ex-wife for an op-ed she wrote in The Washington Post following their divorce. The 2018 article detailed, in Heard’s own words, how she had become a “public figure representing domestic abuse.”
Though the piece did not mention Depp by name, the actor has maintained in court papers that it clearly referred to their relationship and that both his reputation and career were “devastated” as a result. In his lawsuit filed in March 2019, Depp denied that he was a domestic abuser and said that Heard’s accusations were an “elaborate hoax” intended to boost her public persona—one that succeeded in making her a “darling of the #MeToo movement.”
Instead, Depp is now trying to prove that the Aquaman actress had been the perpetrator of abuse herself, not him—accusing her in court papers of punching, kicking and throwing objects at him, including a bottle of vodka that he said shattered on the countertop and severed the tip of one of his fingers. Long story short, after losing his libel case against the British tabloid The Sun and having to forfeit his role in the Fantastic Beasts film series (among many other career opportunities), Depp has been on a mission to clear his name. And it looks like things are finally going his way.
In testimony on Tuesday 19 April, Depp denied ever striking Heard—or any woman for that matter. Then, during more than five hours of testimony the next day, the jury heard snippets of recorded arguments between the couple. Those included audio of Depp confronting Heard about kicking a door into his head the previous night and Heard asking, “Why are you obsessing over the fact that I can’t remember it the way you remember it?”
Heard, who is expected to take the stand later in the trial, has given a very different account of the incident, writing in court papers that her ex-husband became violent with her during an argument surrounding his drug use.
@jodepp_ ♬ original sound - Jordan🫡
As the internet’s opinion on the case continues to shift in favour of Depp and more evidence being presented against the American actress—just take a quick look at your TikTok FYP and you’ll be flooded with montages of some of the trial’s most controversial moments—one user seems to believe they’ve cracked a mind game Heard is playing with Depp.
In a video posted on Wednesday 20 April, Dani Dell’Olio looked at the two celebrities’ outfits as they both attended court throughout the trial so far. She highlighted the fact that whatever Depp is wearing on the day, Heard is seen wearing something very similar to it the very next—insinuating that this behaviour is proof of her obsession with the actor.
@delloliod ♬ original sound - Spirit of Dani 🎃🍷
It’s very rich of Amber Heard to tell Johnny Depp “you don’t have style” considering she’s been copying his court outfits💀 https://t.co/ENMYApji8k pic.twitter.com/olJVCA3gPb
— — roni (@CostaRue) April 14, 2022
As stated in a Marca article, “One of the last public appearances in which Johnny Depp was spotted before this trial, he wore an all-black shirt with a black tie and a completely grey suit. Amber Heard wore the exact same outfit on the first day of the trial. On that same day, Depp decided to wear a black Gucci bee tie, Amber Heard wore the exact same tie on the next day.”
The publication continued, “Johnny wore all black on that day and Heard wore all black on the third day of the trial. It’s evident she is just leaving the trial and going to buy the exact same outfit [he] wore, but why is she doing this? Is it to play mind games with Depp or is she just mocking him?”
I’ve never seen a women or anyone for that matter who would imitate their alleged abuser’s outfit. #AmberHeard is indeed a psychopath, why would she wear the bee pin #JohnnyDepp wore on the 1st day of hearing?! #JusticeForJohnnyDepp #istandwithjohnnyDepp pic.twitter.com/A3B8mZ5DER
— Make Plantain Cheap Again➐🇺🇬 (@YouMustBeJo) April 13, 2022
Many of you will recognise the saying ‘you are what you wear’ and interestingly, in this case, Heard is quite literally wearing whatever her accuser dons the day prior. Is that her own attempt at making herself look like the victim once more, since she’s now being the one accused of physical and mental abuse?