Amber Heard Speaks Out About The Damaging Role Social Media Played During Her Trial
"Even somebody who is sure I’m deserving of all this hate... You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair."
- by
Jess Pullar
Amber Heard has spoken out for the first time after a verdict was reached in her defamation case against Johnny Depp.
For six weeks, the trial saw Depp try to prove that Amber Heard had defamed him over a 2018 op-ed in the Washington Post, where she didn't name him, but claimed to be a victim of domestic abuse. Heard countersued Depp for defamation.
Throughout the trial, Heard's filmed reactions testimonies became an internet meme, with hundreds of thousands of Depp supporters vilifying her claims and making her out to be a liar before the trial had ended. This smear campaign has since been recognised by many as a huge step back in the movement to end gendered violence—because any woman claiming to be a victim of domestic violence should be taken seriously.
Eventually, the jury found that Heard's statements about her marriage were 'false' and conveyed a 'defamatory implication'. But Heard also won part of her libel case against Depp regarding articles in The Daily Mail, where Depp's former lawyer described her claims of domestic abuse as a hoax. The jury awarded Heard $2 million in damages for this.
A couple of weeks after the verdict, Heard has now spoken up about the social media smear campaign she watched play out during the trial.
In a teaser for an upcoming sit down interview she did with TODAY, Heard slammed the role that social media played during the trial.
"Even somebody who is sure I’m deserving of all this hate and vitriol, even if you think that I’m lying, you still couldn’t tell me—look me in the eye and tell me—that you think on social media there’s been a fair representation. You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair," she told interviewer Savannah Guthrie.
Heard also added that she understands the hype and the unconditional support beloved actors receive, even in troubling circumstances: "I don’t blame them," she told Guthrie of the fans who relentlessly defended Depp.
"I actually understand. He’s a beloved character and people feel they know him. He’s a fantastic actor."
Guthrie also pressed Heard on the verdict of the trial: "There’s no polite way to say it. The jury looked at the evidence you presented. They listened to your testimony and they did not believe you. They thought you were lying."
Heard responded: "How could they not come to that conclusion? They had sat in those seats and heard over three weeks of non-stop, relentless testimony from paid employees."
The interview is set to air on NBC Tuesday in the US.
Jess PullarJess Pullar is the Culture Editor (digital) of marie claire and ELLE. When she's not gazing at sunsets, she enjoys tucking into a green tea and re-watching 'Sex And The City'.
