Amber Heard returned to the stand on Monday during the defamation trial brought against her by ex-husband Johnny Depp, saying that the actor attacked her on their honeymoon.
The Aquaman star said that Depp would become more violent when he was drinking, which he began doing the last night the couple were celebrating their wedding vows on the Orient Express.
When Heard brought up his drinking to him, “Johnny slapped me across the face and held me up by the car hold my neck and pushed me up against the wall of the car”, she said.
The Pirates of the Caribbean star is suing Heard for libel and demanding $50 million in damages over an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post about surviving domestic abuse.
Depp's lawyers say he was defamed by the 2018 article even though it never mentioned his name. He lost a separate libel case in London in November 2020 that he brought against The Sun for calling him a “wife-beater”.
The emotional and tumultuous trial is now in its fifth week.
On the Orient Express, the couple was lodged in a small sleeper car where Depp slammed her up against the walls, Heard said.
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James Franco and Amber Heard at the premiere of 'The Adderall Diaries' at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival. Heard said her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, 'hated' Franco. Photo: FilmMagic -
Heard said that being cast with Franco caused her ex-husband to become violent. Reuters -
Depp with his friend, rock singer Marilyn Manson in 2001 in Los Angeles, California. AFP -
Manson was dropped by his record label after his ex-fiance, actress Evan Rachel Wood, accused him of sexual and other physical abuse. AP -
Heard dated Elon Musk after her divorce from Depp. AFP -
Heard said that she met Musk and his mother, supermodel Maye Musk, at the Met Gala in New York in 2015. AFP -
Actress Winona Ryder began dating Depp when she was only 17 years old. Depp once had a tattoo that read: Winona Forever. New World Pictures / Getty Images -
Moss and then-boyfriend Johnny Depp at the premier of 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' in 1998. EPA -
Heard said that actor Paul Bettany witnessed her ex-husband passed out while working together. Sarah Dea / The National -
Heard said that she thought Depp might 'accidentally' kill her. AP -
Heard said that she has lost work because of Depp's lawsuit. Reuters -
Heard said that she only wanted to go on with her life and wished that Depp would, too. Getty Images -
Aaron Eckhart and Heard star in 'The Rum Diary', an adaptation of the book by Hunter S Thompson. She met Depp on set. Photo: FilmDistrict -
Heard, seen here at the Met Gala, said that Depp was supposed to attend with her and failed to show up. Reuters -
Heard filed a restraining order against Depp and then for divorce. EPA
“He was squeezing my neck against the railway car for what felt like a very long time and every time he kind of would pull me away from the side of the car, he slammed me up again against the wall,” Heard said.
“I remember looking down at him and trying to get his arms off of my neck.”
Heard said that Depp then took off his shirt and wrapped it around her neck as if to strangle her.
Depp, during his four days on the witness box, denied ever striking Heard and claimed that she was the one who was frequently violent.
“That's how I woke up the next morning,” Heard said. “I woke up with it still around my neck and a giant knot on the back of my head.”
In her previous evidence, Heard said that she loved Depp and that when he wasn’t under the influence of drugs or alcohol, they had a loving relationship.
While on the stand, she said that Depp also promised to “get clean” and seek counselling, but that did not last and that, at times, he became so intoxicated that he began hallucinating.
“He was communicating with people and sounds and voices that weren't there,” Heard said.
“I know because I was sometimes in the room and sometimes on the phone with him and he would tell me I had a conversation with him that I did not have. He would comment on somebody being in the room behind me that wasn't there. It was terrifying.”
Depp and Heard met in 2009 on the set of The Rum Diary and were married in February 2015.
Heard filed for divorce from Depp 16 months later because she feared for her life.
“I had to leave him,” the 36-year-old actress Heard told the jury at the trial. “I knew I wouldn't survive if I didn't.
“Johnny would always say the only way out of [the marriage] was death.
“At the time, [filing for divorce] felt like the hardest thing I've ever had to do.
“I had worked so hard to try to make this relationship work.
“It was hard because I loved Johnny so much. I loved him so much.”
Heard has countersued, demanding $100m and claiming she suffered “rampant physical violence and abuse” at Depp's hands.
It was also revealed in Heard’s evidence that she had vowed to give her entire $7m divorce settlement to two charities, the American Civil Liberties Union and Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, where Heard was a volunteer — though she admitted she has yet to follow through. Heard also said that her former boyfriend, Elon Musk, had donated $100,000 to each on her behalf.
Mr Musk and Heard began dating for a few months after her divorce after they met at the Met Gala in 2015, which he attended with his mother.
“I want to move on with my life. I have a baby. I want to move on,” Heard said.
“I want to move on. I want Johnny to move on, too, I want him to leave me alone.”
Depp’s lawyers began grilling Heard late in the day and she will return to the box tomorrow.
Judge Penney Azcarate has scheduled closing arguments in the case for May 27, after which it will go to the jury.
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This photo was taken at the Los Angeles courthouse the day Heard filed her domestic violence restraining order against Johnny Depp. AP -
Evidence showing pictures of injuries to Heard appear on a screen. EPA -
Actor Johnny Depp is seen laying in a hospital after his finger was injured while he and his ex-wife Amber Heard were in Australia in March 2015. Photo: Johnny Depp Legal Team / Reuters -
Evidence presented by US actress Amber Heard showing a bald spot in her head. AFP -
Evidence showing US actress Amber Heard's hair she testified was pulled out by her ex-husband Johnny Depp. AFP -
Evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard's injuries presented in court. AFP -
Evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard appear on a screen during a defamation trial. AFP -
More evidence showing pictures of US actress Amber Heard. AFP -
Johnny Depp reportedly wrote messages in his own blood to his former wife Amber Heard. EPA -
Pictures of shattered glass presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Photo presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
This is a photo of the ping pong table where Amber Heard testified she was sexually assaulted by her former husband Johnny Depp. EPA -
Johnny Depp's scribblings presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor during the Depp vs Heard defamation trial. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor during the Depp vs Heard defamation trial. -
A photo of Johnny Depp that Amber Heard says she took of him whilst he was passed out. EPA -
Communications presented as evidence by Amber Heard's defence team. EPA -
Evidence appears on a monitor in the courtroom during the 50 million US dollar Depp vs Heard defamation trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia, EPA -
More evidence was shared in the courtroom in the US actor Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial. EPA -
Johnny Depp's emails were submitted as evidence in today's trial. EPA -
An image taken by US actress Amber Heard of her former husband, Johnny Depp, passed out was submitted as trial evidence. EPA -
Johnny Depp testified that these pictures were taken during the period when he had 'fallen off the wagon'. EPA -
Evidence shown in today's proceedings. When asked if he would often drink whisky in the morning, Mr Depp replied: “Isn’t happy hour anytime?” -
US actress Amber Heard reacts as she listens to an audio recording of she and US actor Johhny Depp arguing. AFP -
US actor Johnny Depp testifies during the 50 million US dollar Depp vs Heard defamation trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia. EPA -
US actress Amber Heard during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia. EPA -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP -
Images of Amber Heard admitted as evidence. AP
