In the end, Johnny Depp got what he wanted. A jury found his ex-wife, Amber Heard, liable for defamation(opens in a new tab), and he proclaimed victory(opens in a new tab).
Meanwhile, Depp's supporters celebrated the trial's conclusion as vindication of their hero. Never mind that a judge in the UK found evidence(opens in a new tab) for Heard's claims of domestic abuse and dismissed Depp's libel lawsuit against a paper that described him as a "wife beater." This time, a jury that hadn't been sequestered decided that when Heard, without even naming her ex-husband, wrote in a 2018 Washington Post(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab) op-ed(opens in a new tab) about becoming a "public figure representing domestic abuse," she defamed Depp, and did so with malice. The jury awarded Depp more than $10 million(opens in a new tab) in damages.
To come to this decision, the jury may have believed that Heard was the abuser and Depp the victim, as he and his lawyers claimed, and Heard denied. The jury also found that Depp's former lawyer defamed Heard in one instance(opens in a new tab) and awarded $2 million for her defamation countersuit(opens in a new tab).
Still, the trial delivered a different, chilling victory for Depp, which had been years in the making.
"She’s begging for total global humiliation," Depp wrote in an angry 2016 text message(opens in a new tab). "She’s gonna get it."
Depp was right. The livestreamed trial served up daily humiliations for Heard, whose testimony was mocked and memed. The vitriol poured forth from Depp's fans as well as celebrities like Chris Rock(opens in a new tab) and Joe Rogan(opens in a new tab). Various hashtags became repositories of cruelty, with spectators eager to tear Heard down as manipulative and mentally ill. On TikTok, the hashtag #JusticeforJohnnyDepp has garnered nearly 20 billion views. Disturbingly, internet creators flocked to cover the trial and cashed in. The Washington Post (opens in a new tab)reported(opens in a new tab) that some creators brought in significant earnings for pro-Depp content. One creator said that commentary supportive of Heard lost people followers.
Unsurprisingly, the rage directed at Heard often felt like payback. Plenty of Depp's supporters would describe themselves as supportive of women — just not this one, who they'd describe with expletives. She'd ruined it for all the women who were telling the truth, they argued, and should be appropriately punished. Heard became a digital punching bag, a stand-in for the type of woman that our culture loves to loathe: beautiful, young, aspiring, and seemingly involved in a beloved man's downfall.
Heard was not the perfect victim, though no such thing exists. She berated Depp, hit back at times, and was characterized by the couple's marriage counselor as preferring to fight with Depp rather than see him leave. These are certainly troubling dynamics, and ones that are best left to domestic violence experts to analyze(opens in a new tab), not random YouTubers.
Those experts are already concerned(opens in a new tab) about what the trial and verdict, and the public circus around it, will mean for victims. Will they be sued for defamation? Will they never come forward in the first place, worried that they'll become a town laughingstock if their partner, or their partner's friends, target them on TikTok?
Those victims can't be blamed for declining to trust the legal process. After years of painfully slow progress toward convincing victims they don't have to live with abuse, or their abuser, this trial has revealed an ugly cultural regression: If the jury or public don't believe a victim's claims, she should expect every indignity that comes her way. Depp's supporters may one day unfortunately find themselves or their loved ones on the other side of this ruthless equation and wonder why such scorn is sanctioned.
Thanks to the judge's high-stakes decision to televise the trial(opens in a new tab), this wasn't an ordinary legal proceeding. It was a money-making public shaming of a woman who credibly claimed she experienced abuse. And none of us should feel good about living in a society that celebrates that kind of humiliation.
If you've experienced domestic or intimate partner violence, you can call the National Domestic Violence hotline at 1−800−799−7233. Additional resources are available on its website(opens in a new tab).
