Johnny Depp v Amber Heard trial aftermath live updates: Heard appeal, mistrial, Vasquez, hate, Beck tour...

In support of Amber Heard

Despite the intense backlash that she has faced, Ms. Heard does have her supporters. Regardless of where you stand, it's clear there are varying layers to this case. What they are and who is truly culpable, remains to be seen.

It's all about context and perspective

An interesting twitter thread, that attempts to debunk varying ideas that have been spread about Ms. Heard online.

Johnny Depp's lawyers respond!

After an appeal made by Amber Heard, following a court ruling that she is to pay $10 million to Johnny Depp in defamation, the legal team for Depp has now responded.

You can read the response in full here, but here is a snippet of what they had to say:

"The jury listened to the extensive evidence presented during the six-week trial and came to a clear and unanimous verdict that the defendant herself defamed Mr. Depp, in multiple instances. ...We remain confident in our case and that this verdict will stand."

A picture is worth a thousand words...

When considering the claims made by Ms. Heard and her subsequent appeal, one has to admit that photos like the one featured, really don't help her case.

Amber Heard appeal

Kim Kardashian and her obsession over Johnny Depp

Reality star and fashion icon Kim Kardashian had revealed during an interview from her teenage days that she was obsessed with actor Johnny Depp. Kim had earlier revealed that she has a crush on Depp while on the other side her elder sister Kourtney had revealed that she liked Titanic star Leonardo DiCaprio.

While back in 2014, during an interview with Australia Daily Kim had revealed that shew was obsessed with Johnny Depp during her teenage days. She said, I thought he was so hot. He was gorgeous and had that bad-boy streak – especially when he was with Winona Rider and then Kate Moss. I loved looking at couples and wondering what it was that attracted them to each other. As a general rule, I didn’t go for bad boys and I never went for party boys but was certainly attracted to Johnny Depp physically.”

Rupa Das brings you more, if you care one jot.

Watch | Heard appeal news summary

If you prefer your bite-size news chunks in video form - and let's face it, who doesn't these days? - Bang Showbiz have you covered with this segment.

Who is Lily-Rose Depp, anyway?

The daughter of actor Johnny Depp and French songstress Vanessa Paradis will appear alongside The Weeknd in the show, set within the music industry.

Tatler takes a look at the ascent of the 23-year-old, who, they say, 'has inherited the perfect mix of her parents' genes - all chiselled bone structure and doe eyes,' and who appears in what is being dubbed HBO's hottest new show of the year, The Idol.

The bilingual beauty co-stars alongside singer The Weeknd in the series - which he has also executive produced - and is set within the music industry. It sees Depp playing a wannabe popstar, while the Blinding Lights hit-maker is a cult-leader and self-help guru. The trailer has reportedly already gone viral on TikTok - unsurprising considering Gen-Z favourite Euphoria's creators are behind the series.

Check out the article.

Heard immunity doesn't cover abuse

The study referenced in the previous post was managed by Christopher Bouzy, who launched BotSentinel.com in 2018.

Following its publication, as well as sharing snippets with further insight on his Twitter feed, he made this point about the reaction to it, suggesting we have a wider societal problem.

"To recap: People claim our report isn't legitimate because Amber Heard lost the case, and the social media abuse she is receiving is justified because "Johnny won." Our society is severely broken."

US NEWS

Bot Sentinel research shows the extent of Amber Heard Twitter hate after Johnny Depp trial

Although much of the focus on what has happened since the very public defamation trial has been on more entertainment, tittle-tattle aspects of the former couple's lives, there has also been much more serious fallout.

One of those is the publication of a new report that has shed light on the online hate Amber Heard has suffered as a result of her ugly battle against Johnny Depp.

Put together by research firm Bot Sentinel, the study describes the “rampant abuse and widespread targeted harassment" Heard has endured.

The report's authors say it is “one of the worst cases of platform manipulation and flagrant abuse from a group of Twitter accounts.”

Our Will Gittins brings you the full story.

Depp team responds to Heard's appeal

After the aforementioned papers being filed by Heard's lawyers to appeal against the judgement in favor of her ex-husband, it wasn't long before we had a response.

A spokesman for Depp issued this statement:

"The jury listened to the extensive evidence presented during the six-week trial and came to a clear and unanimous verdict that the defendant herself defamed Mr. Depp in multiple instances.

"We remain confident in our case and that this verdict will stand.”

Latest News

Amber Heard files to appeal judgement in Johnny Depp defamation case

Following up on my previous post, here is some further information on the news that Amber Heard's lawyers have filed for an appeal against the judgement in favor of her ex-husband Johnny Depp. 

We don't have a timeline yet from the court as to when they might make a ruling on whether to grant the appeal or not, but will bring you any developments in this feed as they happen.

Amber Heard lawyers appeal defamation judgement

According to UK tabloid, the Daily Mail, lawyers for Amber Heard filed papers yesterday to appeal the verdict in her defamation trial against Johnny Depp. The filing took place in Fairfax County, Virginia. 

Just a week ago Judge Penney Azcarate threw out a request from Heard's legal team to declare a mistrial on grounds that one of the jurors was not eligible (claiming the summons had been for the juror's father). Judge Azcarate said, refusing to declare a mistrial and hold a new trial, that there was "no evidence of fraud or wrongdoing' by the juror and that the jury's verdict should stand."

She also rejected the arguments that Depp had "proceeded solely on a defamation by implication theory, abandoning any claims that Ms. Heard's statements were actually false."

Having lost her motion to declare a mistrial, Heard's legal team have decided to appeal. In order to be granted an appeal, Heard will likely need to put up a bond to show she can raise the money she's owed Depp from the judgement ($10M in compensatory damages and $350,000 of punitive damages). In general, the appeal will be heard on claims the law was wrongly applied, rather than that the jury misunderstood the facts. 

Legal experts agree an appeal, if granted, will be long and expensive, likely costing hundreds of thousands of dollars, minimum. 

'Keep me out of it,' says Evan Rachel Wood

A number of outlets are claiming that Westworld actress Evan Rachel Wood apparently (or other words to that effect) supports Amber Heard after the trial, saying that Wood posting the findings from the report by Bot Sentinel (read our report) which said, in relation to their investigation into online bots used to attack Heard: "What we observed was one of the worst cases of cyberbullying and cyberstalking by a group of Twitter accounts that we've ever seen," noting that 627 accounts were created for the sole purpose to tweet on the defamation trial and attack Heard and her supporters.

Note that these outlets are just claiming Evan Rachel Wood seemingly supports Heard, but the actress has now posted on Instagram saying that she said 6 years ago she wouldn't comment and she still hasn't i.e. stop putting words in my mouth. 

Wood asks media to avoid headlines that "put her in danger"

In a string of posts to her Instagram Story (which will disappear within 24 hours of posting), she says: "If you are worried about my feed being flooder with hate, then I would steer clear of headlines that put me in danger, such as these, which are not based on facts". Those being the headlines that claim she is supporting Heard. 

Wood has been targeted by online abuse in connection to her claims of abuse by Marilyn Manson, her former fiancé. She first publicly named the singer, real name Brian Warner, as her alleged abuser in a post in early 2021, claiming Manson had ""horrifically abused [her] for years" and that she had been "brainwashed and manipulated" by him. Manson denies the allegations against him, and in March this year, Manson's legal team announced a defamation suit against Wood.

With hate groups marauding in the aftermath of the Depp v Heard trial, calling out someone as a supporter of Heard has the potential to lead to those groups then targeting that person. If someone says they have no comment, then they have no comment.

Deadline Sunday for Depp merch

In the middle of their current European Tour, Jeff Beck and his special guest, Johnny Depp have very graciously signed 10 tour t-shirts to raise funds for Folly Wildlife Rescue, in Tunbridge Wells - a UK charity, dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of injured, orphaned and distressed wild animals and birds throughout West Kent, East Sussex and the surrounding region. Both stars are patrons of Folly Wildlife Rescue.

The shirts, which feature striking artwork from their forthcoming album, 18, were designed by Sandra Beck. Each shirt has a slightly different layout and wording and comes with a copy of a letter of authentication.

All proceeds will go 100% to helping UK wildlife in need.

The Ebay auction, was extended and nows ends on Sunday 24 July. Get involved here:

Depp faces backlash for misgendering author during trial

Johnny Depp is facing criticism after misgendering an author during his trial against ex-wife Amber Heard.

In a clip being shared online, the Pirates of the Carribean actor, 59, seems to struggle with his words while discussing author iO Tillett Wright in the courtroom.

Depp said: "She was born female, if that's the right terminology these days. Born a female, but she was, she had chosen, at a very young age, she decided that she was a male."

Wright told his Instagram followers that using the pronouns he/him "feels right at the moment".

"That may change, as it has already changed many times," he added, "and I'm good with that."

April Curtin brings you more on this for JOE. 

Latest News

Key moments from the Amber Heard vs Johnny Depp trial

Another video you might be interested to watch is this AS USA recap, put together by my colleague Jennifer Bubel, of some of the stand-out moments in the Depp v Heard trial between April and June.

"A Marriage on Trial": NBC doc looks at Depp v Heard case

In case you missed it, NBC News released a half-hour documentary on the Depp v Heard case, examining the role social-media played in the six-week defamation trial in Fairfax, Viriginia.

Watch the documentary: 

Depp v Heard fallout: welcome

Hello and welcome to our live blog on Friday 22 July.

We'll be bringing you all the latest news and information from the aftermath of the Johnny Depp v Amber Heard court case, in which a Virginia jury found that Amber Heard had defamed ex-husband Johnny Depp in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed entitled: "I spoke up against sexual violence - and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change".

Heard was ordered to pay Depp damages of $10.35m, but also won out on one count of her defamation counter-suit against the Pirates of the Caribbean star. She was awarded $2m.

The fallout continues...