Johnny Depp trial – live: Amber Heard and actor banned from court photos as opening statements start $50m case – The Independent

From meeting on the set of a 2011 film to filing for divorce in 2016, the history between Depp and Heard will likely be heard again when the trial in Fairfax, Virgina, begins.

The Independent’s Clémence Michallon has a timeline, here:

Monday marked the opening of a case that brought celebrities, journalists, and a host of supporters to a Washington DC suburb, 2,500 miles from Hollywood.

Seven jurors were chosen by the judge and both Depp and Heard appeared at the court house in Fairfax, Virginia. Fans arrived even earlier, with reports of some people camping out to get a glimpse.

AsThe Independent’s Clémence Michallon, the jury selection process was extensive and at times, awkward, with the potential jurors quizzed on their knowledge and opinions of Depp and Heard.

Although the couple both live in California, the defamation case brought by Depp against his former wife is in Virginia, where the trial will play out at Fairfax County’s district courthouse.

Online editions of The Washington Post are published through servers located in Fairfax County, which is thought to be one of the reasons behind Depp’s lawyers deciding on the location.

Another is because of Virginia’s anti-Slapp law, which is not as broad as the one in California. The provision allows a person to claim protection from a lawsuit when speaking about issues of public concern.

Lawyers for Heard, who have filed a counter defamation claim, are expected to use the anti-Slapp law during the trial. It comes four years after her Washington Post article titled: I spoke up against sexual violence – and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press

Depp and Heard will be prohibited from taking selfies with fans and signing autographs outside the court house in Fairfax, Virginia, following an order entered into the docket by the judge last month.

The $50m defamation case brought by Depp against his ex-wife, Heard, will fully get underway on Tuesday with opening statements made by both sides.

In the order on 29 March, the judge said “Litigants and their legal teams in this trial will not pose for pictures or sign autographs in the Courthouse or on Courthouse Grounds”.

The court attracted a group of supporters and fans of Depp and Heard on Monday when the jury was selected. Some fans were thought to have travelled for hours to be in Fairfax for the trial involing the actors.

The multi-million dollar trial involving Jophnny Depp and Amber Heard will get fully underway on Tuesday in Fairfax, Virginia, following the selection of jurors.

The 58-year-old Pirates of the Caribbean star was pictured outside the court house on Monday for the selection of the jury in his case against his 35-year-old ex-wife, Hearf.

The case centres on allegations of defamation following a 2018 article in The Washington Post in which she desctribed herself as a victim of domestic violence, but did not name her ex-husband, Depp.

On Tuesday, both sides will begin to set out their opening statements in the Fairfax County Circuit Court. The trial is expected to last for several weeks.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press.

Johnny Depp claimed “no one is safe from cancel culture” while accepting the Lifetime Achievement Award at Spain’s San Sebastian Film Festival in September last year.

At the time, Depp was responding to a question about Disney removing him from his career-defining franchise The Pirates of the Caribbean movies after allegations of abuse were leveled against him by ex-wife Amber Heard in 2018.

Four days after Heard’s The Washington Post op-ed, in which she alluded to physical and sexual abuse by the 58-year-old actor, Disney announced Depp would not be reprising his role as Captain Jack Sparrow.

Depp has sued Heard for a sum of “not more than $50m” claiming that the “categorically and demonstrably false” accusations of abuse in the opinion piece have impacted his Hollywood career adversely.

The actor, 58, was photographed outside Virginia’s Fairfax County Courthouse before trial for his defamation case against Amber Heard began on Monday (11 April).

Depp and Heard, who were married from 2015 to 2017, are facing off against each other in court after the Pirates of the Caribbean actor sued Heard for defamation over an op-ed she authored in 2018.

In The Washington Post article, Heard recounts her experiences as an abuse survivor – but doesn’t name Depp directly.

In 2020, the Aquaman star’s younger sister told the high court in London she began noticing “signs of physical abuse, like bruises or cuts or burns on [Heard’s] arm – and this was early on”.

Depp is suing Heard for a sum “not more than $50m” for alleged damages to his career, according to court documents.

Elon Musk, who dated Amber Heard between 2016 and 2018, is expected to testify on the Aquaman actor’s behalf during the $50m defamation lawsuit which began on Monday (11 April).

The Tesla CEO allegedly offered Heard round-the-clock security to safeguard her from Depp.Actor James Franco’s testimony is also believed to be part of Heard’s legal strategy. Franco reportedly had knowledge about bruises Heard sustained during an alleged fight with Depp.

Meanwhile actor Paul Bettany is listed as a witness for Depp, and expected to appear in court via video link. The actors allegedly exchanged text messages about “burning Amber” and “drowning her” in 2013.

When asked about the text messages in an interview last year, Bettany told The Independent: “Can you imagine what it would be like, honestly, to have a bunch of lawyers go through every one of your emails and texts for 10 years? All I can tell you was that it was an unpleasant feeling.”

A jury of eleven people, including four alternates, has been selected to hear Johnny Depp’s defamation case against his ex-wife Amber Heard.

In 2018, Amber Heard authored an opinion piece for The Washington Post titled, “I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.”

The actor, who is currently being sued by former partner and actor Johnny Depp for defamation over the op-ed, wrote about having suffered physical and sexual abuse in the article.

“I was exposed to abuse at a very young age,” the 35-year-old actor revealed, adding, “But I kept quiet – I did not expect filing complaints to bring justice. And I didn’t see myself as a victim.

“Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out.”

Without naming Depp directly, Heard recounted the consequences of “speaking out” including being dropped by production houses and fashion brands alike, receiving death threats, and near-constant paparazzi surveillance.