FAIRFAX, May 31 — The jury resumed deliberations today in the bitter defamation trial between "Pirates of the Caribbean" star Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard.
The seven-person jury met for about two hours on Friday after closing arguments and resumed their consideration of the high-profile case this morning after a three-day holiday weekend.
The 58-year-old Depp flew to England over the Memorial Day weekend and made surprise appearances at concerts in Sheffield and London by Jeff Beck.
"Well... what a surprise we got last night when Johnny Depp joined @jeffbeckmusic on stage," Sheffield City Hall tweeted.
Depp, a guitarist, has his own band, the Hollywood Vampires, with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry of Aerosmith.
Depp filed suit against Heard over an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post in December 2018 in which she described herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse."
The Texas-born Heard, who had a starring role in Aquaman, did not name Depp in the piece, but he sued her for implying he was a domestic abuser and is seeking US$50 million (RM219 million) in damages.
The 36-year-old Heard countersued for US$100 million, claiming that she suffered "rampant physical violence and abuse" at his hands.
Dozens of witnesses testified during the trial, including bodyguards, Hollywood executives, agents, entertainment industry experts, doctors, friends and relatives.
Depp and Heard each spent days on the witness stand during the televised trial, attended by hundreds of fans of the "Pirates" star and accompanied by a #JusticeForJohnnyDepp campaign on social media.
Video and audio recordings of heated, profanity-laced arguments between the couple were played for the jury, which was also shown photographs of injuries allegedly suffered by Heard during their volatile relationship.
Hours of testimony was devoted to a grisly finger injury that Depp suffered while filming an installment of "Pirates" in Australia in March 2015.
Depp claimed the tip of a finger was severed when Heard threw a vodka bottle at him. Heard said she did not know how the injury occurred.
Both agreed that Depp went on to scrawl messages on walls, lampshades and mirrors using the bloody digit.
Heard said Depp would become a physically and sexually abusive "monster" during alcohol- and drug-fueled binges and resisted her repeated efforts to curb his drinking and drug use.
Depp testified that it was Heard who was frequently violent and said it has been "brutal" to listen to "outlandish" accusations of domestic abuse made against him.
"No human being is perfect, certainly not, none of us, but I have never in my life committed sexual battery, physical abuse," he said.
Heard, who was married to Depp from 2015 to 2017, obtained a restraining order against him in May 2016, citing domestic violence.
Depp, a three-time Oscar nominee, filed a libel suit in London against the British tabloid The Sun for calling him a "wife-beater." He lost that case in November 2020.
Both sides have claimed damage to their Hollywood careers. — AFP
