In a sprawling interview with The Occasions U.Ok., Johnny Depp claimed he was a “crash check dummy for #MeToo,” reflecting on his protracted authorized battle with actress and ex-wife Amber Heard.
“My comeback? Truthfully? I didn’t go wherever,” he mentioned. “If I had the prospect to separate I might by no means come again.”
The Pirates of the Caribbean star, who labeled his ousting from Hollywood as a “boycott,” praised the San Sebastián Worldwide Movie Competition for sticking with him via “all of the hit items, the bullsh–.” In 2021, the fest awarded him the prestigious Donostia, its highest accolade, and final yr, his second directorial effort, Modi: Three Days on the Wing of Insanity, garnered a long-standing ovation by the group.
“No, I’ve no regrets about something — as a result of, actually, what can we do about final week’s dinner? Not a f—ing factor,” he mentioned of the much-publicized court docket trial with Heard.
In 2022, Depp and Heard engaged in a contentious court docket battle throughout which a jury unanimously discovered he was defamed. After Heard filed an attraction of the decision, the 2 introduced individually that the case had been settled with the cash paid by Heard going to charity. The case stemmed from a 2018 Washington Put up op-ed during which Heard mentioned she was a survivor of home violence with out mentioning Depp’s identify. All through the media circus that ensued through the live-streamed trial, Heard — who wields significantly much less energy as a lady who will not be as well-known nor cherished as veteran Depp — was largely raked over the coals each on-line and by Depp’s followers who lined the doorways exterior the courtroom, receiving loss of life threats. Research performed by a analysis agency additionally indicated the overwhelming hatred she skilled on social media was not solely human-generated.
The Virginia battle additionally adopted a separate libel case within the U.Ok. over The Solar‘s calling Depp a “spouse beater.” The decide sided with the publication in 2020, after which Depp was requested to resign from Warner Bros.’ Unbelievable Beasts franchise, with the decide discovering that the “nice majority of alleged assaults of Ms. Heard by Mr. Depp have been proved.”
When requested why he pursued the general public trial within the U.S., Depp answered: “Look, it had gone far sufficient. I knew I’d should semi-eviscerate myself. Everybody was saying, ‘It’ll go away!’ However I can’t belief that. What is going to go away? The fiction pawned across the f—ing globe? No it gained’t. If I don’t attempt to characterize the reality it is going to be like I’ve truly dedicated the acts I’m accused of. And my youngsters must dwell with it. Their youngsters. Children that I’ve met in hospitals. So the evening earlier than the trial in Virginia I didn’t really feel nervous. If I don’t should memorize strains, should you’re simply talking the reality? Roll the cube.”
He continued, “Look, none of this was going to be straightforward, however I didn’t care. I assumed, ‘I’ll combat till the bitter f—ing finish.’ And if I find yourself pumping gasoline? That’s all proper. I’ve performed that earlier than.”
Depp additionally claimed his expertise predated #MeToo, and that’s why folks did not assist him. Nonetheless, activist Tarana Burke’s hashtag and motion had been based in 2006, later shifting to the leisure business house circa 2017, the identical yr the New York Occasions and The New Yorker printed exposés on now-disgraced mogul Harvey Weinstein.
“I’ll let you know what hurts. There are folks, and I’m pondering of three, who did me soiled. These folks had been at my youngsters’ events. Throwing them within the air. And, look, I perceive individuals who couldn’t rise up [for me] as a result of essentially the most scary factor to them was making the proper selection,” he mentioned. “I used to be pre-#MeToo. I used to be like a crash check dummy for #MeToo. It was earlier than Harvey Weinstein. And I sponged it, took all of it in. And so I wished from the a whole bunch of individuals I’ve met in that business to see who was taking part in it protected. Higher go woke!”
Since 2022, the actor hasn’t actually gone gently into that good evening — therefore the disagreement with the time period “comeback.” That yr, he made a shock look on the MTV Video Music Awards; afterward, he launched into a 2023 European tour with band Hollywood Vampires and was seen in Savage X Fenty’s trend present. Extra not too long ago, he’s set to reunite with Pirates of the Caribbean co-star Penelope Cruz in Lionsgate’s upcoming Day Drinker, additionally that includes Madelyn Cline. Moreover, filming for Terry Gilliam’s Carnival: On the Finish of Days, reverse Adam Driver, Jeff Bridges and Jason Momoa was scheduled to begin in April.
