Actress Amber Heard will be questioned about her allegations that she suffered domestic abuse at the hands of ex-husband Johnny Depp when she begins giving evidence on Monday as part of the Hollywood star’s libel case against a British tabloid.
The High Court in London has heard two weeks of testimony, including five days of evidence from Depp himself, which has laid bare the couple’s volatile relationship and some shocking claims from both parties. Depp, one of the world’s highest-paid movie stars, is suing News Group Newspapers, publishers of the Sun newspaper, over an article which labelled him a “wife beater” and questioned his casting in the “Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them” franchise. The paper says the article’s claims are true and the court has been told that Heard, 34, accuses her ex-husband of attacking her on at least 14 occasions between 2013 and 2016 when he became enraged after drinking or taking drugs to excess. Depp, 57, denies ever being violent, saying she is lying and that she had regularly assaulted him. While the case strictly concerns whether the paper defamed him, it has become, in effect, a trial to decide which of them is telling the truth.During his five days giving evidence, the court has heard extensive details about Depp’s issues with alcohol and drugs and his “binges” with other celebrities. Citing emails and text messages between Depp, Heard, his staff and friends, the Sun’s lawyer Sasha Wass has argued that the actor turned into an alter ego – “the monster” – when intoxicated or under the influence of cocaine.
