As part of a $50million defamation lawsuit, Johnny Depp has accused Amber Heard of ‘painting on’ her bruises which she claimed were a result of abuse in their relationship. Instead, Depp is now claiming that he was 'the victim' and Heard was 'the perpetrator'. In a new declaration, The 55-year-old ‘vehemently’ denied Heard’s allegations, which the actress first made in 2016. And while she didn’t name Depp, the Aquaman actress also described herself as a victim of domestic abuse in a Washington Post article at the end of last year.
After the article was published, a defamation case against Heard was launched by Depp - but the new allegations have come after Heard asked a judge to dismiss Depp’s original lawsuit. Since, a lawyer for Heard has denied the allegations.
Depp claims, 'I have denied Ms Heard's allegations vehemently since she first made them in May 2016 when she walked into court to obtain a temporary restraining order with painted-on bruises that witnesses and surveillance footage show she did not possess each day of the preceding week. I will continue to deny them for the rest of my life.’
He added, ‘She was the perpetrator, and I was the victim. While mixing prescription amphetamines and non-prescription drugs with alcohol, Ms Heard committed innumerable acts of domestic violence against me, often in the presence of a third-party witness, which in some instances caused me serious bodily harm.’ The actor also made more explicit accusations of abuse.
The pair married in February 2015. But, after accusing him of abuse in May 2016, Heard obtained a restraining order against Depp. He denied the abuse. The couple settled their divorce out of court in 2016, both signing NDAs to halt them discussing their relationship publicly.