Johnny Depp & Amber Heard Trial On Break Until May 16
By Kristin Myers on May 9, 2022 at 8:30 AM EDT
Actor Johnny Depp and ex-wife Amber Heard will be missing from the headlines this week.
The couple has been facing each other at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia for just over two weeks now. The “Pirates of the Caribbean” actor is suing his ex-wife for $50 million over a December 2018 op-ed Heard wrote for the Washington Post where she claims that she is a domestic violence survivor. Although she did not mention Depp by name, he claims that he has lost movie roles due to the “clear implication” that he was the “Aquaman” actress’ abuser. Heard is countersuing for $100 million dollars.
However, the court will not meet at all this week due to a prior commitment that the judge has. Heard will take the stand again to be cross-examined on Monday, May 16.
Amber Heard Gets A Week-Long Break To Prepare For Her Cross-Examination
Although the trial is scheduled to continue up until Memorial Day, Judge Penney Azcarate has a prior commitment to attend to and will not hold court from Monday, May 9, through Thursday, May 12. The jury does not meet on Friday.
Although Depp gave his testimony at the end of April, Depp's legal team did not rest their case until earlier this week as witnesses continued to testify in Depp's defense. On Wednesday, May 4, Heard's psychologist finished testifying on her behalf and gave Heard the opportunity to take the stand in her defense on Wednesday afternoon.
Heard's testimony continued through Thursday afternoon, running from 10 AM to 5:30 PM, even though the court usually finishes up at 5 PM. During her full day of testimony, Heard recalled what happened in Australia and described graphic allegations of psychological, physical, and sexual abuse.
On Friday, a day after Heard shared her side of the story, a spokesperson for Johnny Depp slammed her testimony, alleging that she gave the "the performance of her life" while on the stand.
Johnny Depp’s Spokesperson Slams Amber Heard's Testimony
On Friday, a spokesperson for the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" actor told PEOPLE, “As Mr. Depp's counsel correctly predicted in their opening statements last month, Ms. Heard did indeed deliver 'the performance of her life' in her direct examination.”
“While Ms. Heard's stories have continued to grow new and convenient details, Mr. Depp's recollections have remained exactly the same throughout the six painful years since her first allegations were made," Depp's spokesperson continued. “His truth — the truth — is the same no matter the environment in which it has been presented.”
“The upcoming cross-examination from Mr. Depp's team will be most telling, and will certainly highlight the many fallacies Ms. Heard has now attempted to pass off as fact throughout her convoluted testimony,” the spokesperson concluded.
Heard's spokesperson saw the statement and decided to respond with a statement of their own.
Heard’s Spokesperson Says Depp’s Defamation Lawsuit Is ‘Falling Apart’
In response to Depp's statement, a spokesperson for Amber Heard said, “As evidenced by the statement just released, Mr. Depp's defamation claim is falling apart so rapidly that his counsel is turning from prosecutor to persecutor.”
“They boast that Mr. Depp's story has not changed,” the spokesperson continued. “If so, since he lost the Domestic Violence Restraining Order and he resoundingly lost the libel case in the UK, perhaps he should consider a new strategy rather than the recycled approach of attacking the victim, and refusing to take responsibility for his own conduct.”
“That same team is so panicked they are fighting tooth and nail to prevent compelling evidence and photos from being introduced,” Heard’s spokesperson continued. “Small wonder Mr. Depp does not have the fortitude or courage to even look at Ms. Heard at all throughout the proceedings — as he could not in the UK trial — and, instead he doodles and snickers.”
Amber Heard’s spokesperson concluded, “Mr. Depp's behavior in this trial has been as pitiful as it was in their marriage. They feel they must double-down on their demonstrably losing two-part strategy: distract the jury and demonize the victim.”
At this point, it's unclear when the trial will ultimately come to an end. Both sides are expected to appeal if the other side wins, meaning that this lawsuit could drag on throughout the coming months or even years.
