Being a celebrity means having your entire life positioned under a pretty big spotlight for the rest of the world to see.
Sometimes this can be a good thing, like when celebs use this spotlight to bring awareness to world and societal issues, like we’ve seen with actress Angelina Jolie or Amal Clooney’s public activism.
But other times, this spotlight can make what would normally be a private matter very public—like divorce.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard began dating in 2011 after meeting on the set of their movie ‘Rum Diary.’
Four years later, the Pirates of the Caribbean actor and Heard got married, but their marriage would turn out to be the farthest thing from a fairy-tale.
In 2016, after just over a year of marriage, Heard formally filed for divorce.
At the same time, she also filed a restraining order against Depp in which she cited domestic abuse as the reason for the order.
She also released a photo of her bruised face to support her claims.
Depp didn’t immediately respond to the abuse allegations but later released a statement :
“Given the brevity of this marriage and the most recent and tragic loss of his mother, Johnny will not respond to any of the salacious false stories, gossip, misinformation and lies about his personal life. Hopefully the dissolution of this short marriage will be resolved quickly,”
The pair eventually reached a settlement and their divorce was finalized in 2017, but they weren’t done yet.
This January, it came to light that Depp is suing Heard for $50 million for defamation after she published an op-ed in the Washington Post about being a survivor of domestic abuse.
“Ms. Heard is not a victim of domestic abuse, she is a perpetrator,” the suit said.
There’s been even more accusations thrown around between the couple lately.
Just this week, Depp accused Heard and her friend of concocting the plan for the 911 call made the night of the alleged abuse.
On May 21, 2016, Heard’s friend Tillett Wright claimed he called 911 after hearing the alleged abuse over the phone. But phone records show Wright waited over an hour and a half before calling police, time which Depp’s lawyers claim Wright and Heard spent getting their “story” together.
Heard attended the Create & Cultivate conference in New York City.
While there, the Aquaman star opened up about the backlash she received after publicly accusing Depp of spousal abuse.
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Although she didn’t explicitly mention Depp by name, she certainly alluded to their legal disputes.
“I’m somebody who has obviously suffered the full force of the wrath of our culture when a woman or a survivor speaks up against a more powerful force,” she said.
According to Heard, people were quick to attack her for coming forward about the alleged abuse.
“I’ve seen that firsthand ― from death threats to harassment to bullying to invasions of my privacy to threats to my career to my livelihood, my safety — and yet I’m still here,” she said.
Although the public didn’t take well to her allegations, Heard said she feels nothing but pride for her actions.
She said that when she looks back on her life, she is definitely proud of her accomplished film career, but she’s also proud of her decision to come forward about the alleged abuse.
“That is nothing in comparison to the pride I feel for what I stood up for because it was right and true,” she said.
Heard also said she doesn’t care about the possible effect her decision may have had on her popularity.
“I did that despite what it cost me,” she said. “That wealth of pride gives back to me and will give back to my daughters and their daughters a million times over.”
She added, “I am proud I did the hard stuff. I would rather be unpopular. I would rather go down for being who I am than to be popular for something I’m not.”
The battle between Heard and Depp is still ongoing with seemingly no end in sight.
Last month Heard filed new allegations against Depp and expanded on the physical abuse she claims she suffered during their marriage.
Just one month prior, Depp filed a counter-lawsuit in which he claims Heard was actually the abusive one in the marriage, not him.
It looks like it will be awhile before this legal battle sees any conclusion.
