From the start of my childhood, I would always watch Disney movies. My favorite was always Pirates of the Caribbean. From Captain Jack Sparrow, played by the talented Johnny Depp, we learned that life is not black and white, and how to always live spontaneously. Unfortunately, life not being black and white became the reality for Depp’s personal life.
Since I was always fascinated with Depp, with his countless roles in Tim Burton movies, I decided to sit down one day, in high school, and watch a documentary as to why people believe he is the most troubled actor in the modern-day. Depp has faced many challenges in his career; these include cocaine addiction, alcohol abuse, and countless others, this man has stood strong and shown the whole world nothing can tear him down…until now.
Amber Heard, Depp’s recent wife, finalized their divorce in 2017. During the long trials and tribulations of this divorce, Heard had an uproar in court in regards to how Depp would abuse her, but it turned out to be the opposite. Depp testified against Heard stating that she, in fact, was the abuser in the relationship. He said while testifying, that their marriage was “a crime scene waiting to happen.” If fans look back, there is a lot of footage showing how uncomfortable Depp was standing next to her leading up to 2016, which was the year the divorce was filed.
With the back and forth accusations of abuse, earlier this year, phone recordings were released that showed Heard admitting to hitting Depp. With these messages coming out, the next battle of this war began on July 7th. This libel trial would last for 3 weeks, with not a decent result in sight. She spoke about the hitting incident during her deposition.
According to the court documents, there were a lot of voice messages and evidence that were produced by Depp’s legal team to help the court see that he was the victim of abuse. These pieces of evidence included the following:
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She had a cigarette put out on his face, which was on audio and seen through pictures.
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He had a finger cut off, which was on audio and seen through pictures (these photos are extremely graphic)
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Getting slapped and punched was a part of the normal day, which was on audio and seen through pictures
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She defecated in her bed while her friends laughed about the situation, which was on audio and seen through pictures
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She has constantly mocked him, which can be seen through this audio and this video.
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She was stating how if he goes to court no one will believe him, which can be seen through this audio
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Doctors witnessed some of the abuse he faced
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She put on makeup to imitate bruises for pictures and court appearances but the next day, there were no bruises to be seen on her, which was found with pictures and audio
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She has blamed his drinking for being the problem in the relationship, even though he has been sober for years, but the violent relationship had led him back to his addiction which was his only escape
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She leaked a picture of him asleep with ice cream melted on him to prove how out of control he was and to shame him
On November 2nd, the court ruled in favor of Heard, stating Depp was a “wife-beater.” As a result of this ruling, Depp was asked to resign from being in the Wizarding World Franchise and Warner Bros. On November 6th, Warner Bros has redacted their request for Depp to resign from being in the Wizarding World franchise. Alongside hearing the news of Depp losing this role, past partners of Depp, have stepped up to support him, stating how he was nothing but kind and loving to each and every one of them.
Though domestic abuse is not a common topic to be talked about, it occurs more than the public is aware of. For example, according to the CDC, 1 in 10 men in the United States experience contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. Meanwhile, in the UK, in which this trial occurred, according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) about 4.2% of men and 7.9% of women suffered domestic abuse in England and Wales during 2018. This equates to about 685,000 male victims and 1,300,000 women.
Watching Johnny Depp over the years has shown me that through all of the pain that life causes, being strong is critical to survival. As a feminist woman, I believe Johnny Depp and his allegations against Amber Heard. #justiceforjohnnydepp