nypost.com
10.04.2022 / 22:23
Johnny Depp defamation trial against Amber Heard to begin Monday
Amber Heard and Johnny Depp will kick off Monday in Virginia court — where the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star is suing his ex-wife for $50 million claiming she defamed him in a 2018 op-ed.The star-studded witness list for the Fairfax County trial includes everyone from Elon Musk to James Franco and the warring ex-couple themselves.At the center of the case is the piece that Heard, 35, wrote for the Washington Post, in which she spoke out about being a victim of “sexual violence.” While Depp is not named in the op-ed, the actor who once made upwards of $20 million per film, says it ruined his reputation and career after it was widely assumed Heard was writing about their five-year relationship.Defamation cases as high-profile as this one are usually litigated behind closed doors, but a jury of 12 Virginians will ultimately decide whether they find Heard’s allegations credible.Just days after Heard’s op-ed published, Disney dropped Depp from its “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, which collectively grossed more than $4.5 billion in the box office.