This article references domestic abuse.
Johnny Depp has described himself as a “crash-test dummy” for the #MeToo movement. In a sprawling, self-indulgent interview with The Sunday Times, the actor laments an industry that has, supposedly, cast him out. In doing so, he revives Depp v. Heard, the infamous 2022 trial in which he successfully sued ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation in the US, after she wrote an op-ed about experiencing domestic abuse.
During the trial, I was between abusive boyfriends. I caught snippets of the courtroom drama through TikTok and tortured myself imagining all the ways my ex-partner could use the legal system to hurt me. While adoring, placard-wielding fans chanted ‘Johnny, Johnny’ outside the Fairfax County courtroom, Heard's tearful testimony of marital rape was memefied by brands and celebrities alike. If Depp was a crash test dummy, Heard might as well have been the car itself, breaking in all the right places to give him another chance behind the wheel.
Of course, no one can ever really know what happened between Depp and Heard. While the 2022 trial found that Heard did indeed defame Depp, an earlier civil trial in the UK determined that an article in The Sun, in which Depp was referred to as a “wife-beater”, was substantially true, with the judge ruling that 12 of Heard's allegations of domestic abuse had occurred. Despite these contradictory cases, the public had no trouble choosing a side during (and after) the 2022 trial. Noted, I thought.
We investigate.
In his latest interview, Depp reflects on supposedly being abandoned by his peers, saying, “I understand people who could not stand up [for me], because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice. I was pre-MeToo. I was like a crash test dummy for MeToo. It was before Harvey Weinstein.”
And yet, Depp's career hasn't suffered as a result of being 'MeToo'd'– not really. As The Times profile notes, since the 2022 trial, Depp has shot several modelling campaigns for Dior, received a seven-minute standing ovation for his role in Jeanne du Barry at Cannes Film Festival, and has directed Modi: Three Days on the Wing of Madness, starring Al Pacino, Stephen Graham, and Sally Phillips.
Of course, Depp is entitled to continue working and giving interviews about his perception of life events, but it strikes me as unfair that Heard has sacrificed so much for essentially doing the same thing. She described herself as a survivor of domestic abuse and was punished accordingly. She has since relocated to Spain, welcomed twins Agnes and Ocean, and begun the quiet, steady work of rebuilding her life. In short, Amber Heard has chosen peace.
Peace is not a given for any survivor of domestic abuse. Hell, survival itself isn't a guarantee. In Nights At The Circus, Angela Carter wrote, “We must all make do with the rags of love we find flapping on the scarecrow of humanity.” For survivors, we must make do with the little flickers of peace we can etch out of every minute of every day.
Granted, most survivors don't need to worry about their exes pontificating about their relationship on the cover of The Sunday Times Magazine, but we know what it's like to live in near-constant adjustment to injustice. We know what it's like to make those impossible trade-offs between fighting for the truth and choosing a quiet, peaceful life. We know what it's like to be right; to be right and for the whole world to believe we are wrong.
Every time I see a new Johnny Depp interview or film, I am invariably reminded of the disdain society has for women like Amber Heard and survivors of domestic abuse like me. And honestly? I'm not sure how much longer I can stomach it.
For more information about emotional abuse and domestic abuse, you can call The Freephone National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge on 0808 2000 247.
For more information about reporting and recovering from rape and sexual abuse, you can contact Rape Crisis on 0808 500 2222.
If you have been sexually assaulted, you can find your nearest Sexual Assault Referral Centre here. You can also find support at your local GP, voluntary organisations such as Rape Crisis, Women's Aid, and Victim Support, and you can report it to the police (if you choose) here.
For more from Glamour UK's Lucy Morgan, follow her on Instagram @lucyalexxandra.
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