The jury in Virginia found that Amber Heard had defamed her ex-husband with an op-ed describing herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse”. But what does the verdict mean for the #MeToo movement?
On Wednesday (1 June), the seven-person jury found that actor Johnny Depp had been defamed by his ex-wife Amber Heard in a 2018 op-ed for The Washington Post. Depp was awarded $15 million in damages, with Heard awarded just $2 million of her $100 million countersuit, where Depp, through his lawyer Adam Waldman, was found to have defamed her.
In her opinion piece, Heard described herself as a “public figure representing domestic violence”. But this statement is amid the three following statements that the court found to be false and defamatory: (1) “I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.” (2) “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.” (3) “I had the rare vantage point of seeing, in real time, how institutions protect men accused of abuse.”
For six weeks the jury in Fairfax County, Virginia, has been deliberating over these three statements and countless more intimate details from testimonies. Offering a rare insight into high profile #MeToo charges, live recordings of lurid accusations of physical, emotional and sexual abuse have commanded the media’s attention.
In his testimony, Depp continually gave a vastly different account of the couple’s relationship and named Heard as the aggressor. An incident in Australia in 2015 was largely a focus in court, with Depp testifying to having a vodka bottle thrown at him which resulted in the severing of his middle finger. Yet, Heard denies throwing this bottle and remains adamant that she only ever hit or challenged him in self-defence (contrary to recordings played in court of her admitting to starting fights).
Several witnesses called by Depp’s lawyers contested Heard’s allegations of physical violence, including police officers and employees of Depp who saw Heard around the time of the alleged incidents. Whilst many recalled not seeing any injuries, such as bruises, on Heard’s face, several of Heard’s witnesses, including her sister Whitney Henriquez and former makeup artist Melanie Inglessis, did testify to seeing injuries at the time of the reported abuse.
Depp – largely known for the Tim Burton films he starred in such as Edward Scissorhands, as well as his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean franchise – associated Heard’s accusations with the decline of his acting career.
“It’s very strange when one day you’re Cinderella, so to speak, and then in 0.6 seconds you’re Quasimodo,” Depp testified. “And I didn’t deserve that.”
Yet, just one click on social media comments proves that Cinderella, so to speak, has returned to the ball. According to Wired, the hashtag #JusticeForJohnnyDepp has surpassed ten billion views on TikTok and parody videos of Heard’s testimony have gone viral.
With Depp now touring the UK and announcing a new album with guitar legend Jeff Beck, it appears to be business as usual, with fans left wondering about future film releases. Moments after the verdict was given Depp took to Instagram, giving thanks to the jury who “gave me my life back” and emphasising the significance of the truth.
As for the effect on the #MeToo movement, some have revealed their support for exposing men who have experienced domestic violence, changing what it means to be a male survivor.
Earlier in the court proceedings, a recording was played where Heard says: “Tell people it was a fair fight and see what the jury and judge think. Tell the world, Johnny. Tell them, ‘I, Johnny Depp, I’m a victim, too, of domestic violence, and it was a fair fight,’ and see if people believe or side with you.”
On the stand Depp was asked how he responded to Heard when she told him to “tell the world” that he was a victim of domestic violence. To which he told the courtroom, “Yes. I am.”
Despite any disagreements that the general public might have about the verdict, male victims of domestic abuse have been given a spotlight during these six weeks. Whilst 1 in 3 women have experienced some form of violence from a partner, 1 in 4 men, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, have also been victimised. This decreases to 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men when it comes to severe violence, such as burning, beating or strangulation.
Heard’s lawyers’ closing statement concentrated on the #MeToo movement. Heard’s attorney Benjamin Rottenborn began the closing statement by telling the jury: “Think about the message that Mr Depp and his attorneys are sending to Amber and every victim of domestic abuse everywhere.”
Some feared the case would raise the prospect of some victims hesitating to speak out about their experiences and an increase in the distrust for courts to provide justice. Others believed that the trial marks the end of the #MeToo movement. However, Tarana Burke, founder of #MeToo, disagreed.
“This movement is very much ALIVE,” Burke wrote in a Twitter post.
Several attorneys told the Guardian they agreed that this was not the death of the movement.
“I’m hoping that people recognize this as distinct from a lot of the #MeToo situations that we’ve seen, for example, like the Harvey Weinsteins of the world,” Mitra Ahouraian, a media attorney based in Beverly Hills, told the Guardian. “This is not that.
“This is two people who were in a toxic relationship that were awful to one another and a jury decided that one of them was manipulating the situation,” Ahouraian continued, without taking sides.
Yet, there are obvious disagreements in the media today (4 June) as Sam Fender took to an Instagram story to apologise for posting a selfie with Depp and Beck, branding them as “serious heroes”. Explaining why he had called Depp and Beck “serious heroes”, Fender said heroes “was meant in reference to their careers” but acknowledged that “in the context of the trial [it] was severely misinformed.
“I now realise that it was a poor choice of words and timing, but that’s irrelevant,” Fender continued.
As the verdict pursues to divide media and public opinion, the spotlight on victims of domestic violence beams regardless according to Mimi Sterling, the CEO of The Family Place, a Dallas-based resource center and shelter for survivors of family violence.
In a report to NBC News, Sterling said “Having a landmark case like this serves a greater purpose, in a way, of normalizing the conversation and raising awareness around the fact that men absolutely can be victimized and awareness around what that victimization and that abuse look like.”
“It’s horrible it’s playing out on an international stage,” she continued, addressing all victims. “I do hope that part of the benefits come from victims saying: ‘Yeah, this is a problem. I need to get out.’”
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