Amber Heard alleges she was the victim of domestic abuse at the hands of Johnny Depp for years. In a new court filing, the Aquaman star recounts multiple instances where the actor allegedly became violent and threatened to kill her during booze and drug-filled rages. Yahoo Entertainment reached out to Depp’s publicist regarding the claims made in the document, but did not immediately receive a response.
The new, horrific allegations were not made public before due to the pair’s strict confidentiality agreement as part of their 2016 divorce settlement, but are relevant now because of Depp’s lawsuit against her. In February, the actor filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit over an op-ed she wrote for the Washington Post about being a survivor of domestic abuse. Depp, 55, also called Heard’s abuse accusations against him “an elaborate hoax” to further her career.
In Heard’s filing, obtained by Page Six, she claims Depp became violent “about a year into our relationship.” (They began dating in 2012 after meeting on the set of The Rum Diary.)
“I began to witness Johnny abusing drugs and alcohol … On some occasions, when Johnny simultaneously used both illegal narcotics and prescription medications I have had to get him medical attention. Whenever he was using, I worried for both of us. He would become a totally different person, often delusional and violent,” Heard states, saying she and Depp referred to “that version of Johnny” as “The Monster.”
In May 2014, the 32-year-old actress alleges that Depp got physical with her on a private jet (in front of witnesses) because he was jealous of a love scene she filmed with James Franco one day prior. “Johnny began to throw objects at me,” she says, adding that Depp would taunt her by “yelling out the name James Franco.”
“At some point, I stood up, and Johnny kicked me in the back, causing me to fall over. Johnny threw his boot at me while I was on the ground. Johnny continued to scream obscenities until he went into the plane bathroom and passed out locked in the bathroom for the remainder of the flight,” she claims. Depp supposedly apologized later in a text message, writing, “Once again, I find myself in a place of shame and regret. Of course, I am sorry. I really don’t know why or what happened. But I will never do it again.” Heard says Depp’s assistant also messaged her to apologize.
The pair wed in February 2015 and the abuse allegedly continued one-month later. Depp was in Australia filming Pirates of the Caribbean 5 when he supposedly went on a violent, three-day MDMA bender.
“Johnny told me that I had not explicitly forbidden him from taking ecstasy. The argument heated up, and Johnny pushed me, slapped me, and shoved me to the ground before I retreated to a locked bedroom,” she recalls. When Heard went downstairs the next morning she found that Depp had allegedly taken eight MDMA pills and was drinking again. “By nightfall, Johnny had hit me multiple times, shoved and pushed me to the ground, choked me, and spit in my face.”
She continues:
[quote] That night, Johnny shoved me into a ping pong table that collapsed underneath me. Johnny threw bottles through the window panels of a glass door, breaking two panes, and leaving glass everywhere. Johnny then grabbed me, gripping my body and nightgown. He tore the nightgown off, and at some point, I was naked and barefoot, covered in alcohol and glass.
[quote] Johnny grabbed me by my hair and choked me against the refrigerator in the kitchen. I tried to stand myself up but I was sliding around the glass-strewn floor and countertop. Johnny threw me away from him, and I tried to run away as Johnny continued to throw objects and alcohol at me.