Amber Heard’s multi-part TODAY interview (with Savannah Guthrie) continues to unfurl after the morning show showed how the actress alleged unfair treatment on social media. It’s something that she believes led to the jury’s verdicts — that both she and Depp were guilty of defamation against each other, but she somehow was on the hook for $15 million against Depp’s own $2 million in damages. This, surprisingly, led Joe Rogan to sympathize with Amber, and there’s no telling how she’ll ever be able to pay for those damages with her own career left in tatters as he could gain a resurrection.
More of Amber’s discussion with Guthrie revealed her insistence that she was truthful at all moments in court (“To my dying day, I’ll stand by every word of my testimony”), but she didn’t stand a chance given the environment in and surrounding the courthouse. Jurors were non-sequestered and able to view all those viral TikToks that lampooned her testimony. Via Variety, here’s how Amber described the chaotic courtroom circus:
“I think even the most well-intentioned juror…it would have been impossible to avoid this. Every single day I passed three, four, sometimes six city blocks lined with people holding signs saying ‘Burn the Witch,’ ‘Death to Amber.” After three and a half weeks, I took the stand and saw a courtroom packed full of Captain Jack Sparrow fans who were vocal, energized.”
She also adding her own interpretation of the First Amendment, saying, “It’s a freedom to speak truth to power, and that’s alI I spoke. I spoke it to power and I paid the price.”
Amber further pointed out that she didn’t understand how she was accused of performative testimony under the circumstances:
“Says the lawyer for the man who convinced the world he had scissors for fingers? I’m the performer? I had listened to weeks of testimony insinuating or saying quite directly that I’m a terrible actress, so I’m a bit confused how I could be both.”
Amber also alleged that audio footage revealed in court was heavily edited after Guthrie questioned her regarding testimony that Amber may have instigated fights with Depp:
“I know much has been made of these audiotapes. They were first leaked online after being edited. What you would hear in those clips are not evidence of what was happening. It was evidence of a negotiation of how to talk about that with your abuser.”
Meanwhile, Depp appears to be embracing that legion of TikTok fans by joining the platform, and there are still plenty of questions surrounding allegations that a paid army of bots fueled an anti-Amber campaign for years. In addition, IndieWire detailed how Hollywood insiders remain skeptical that fans alone can push Depp toward reinvigoration at the box office, particularly after several of his movies flopped, and alleged substance abuse (and “Marlon Brando-scale set behavior”) may have contributed to production hiccups. In summation, it sure doesn’t feel like there are any winners here.