Amber Heard’s team defended her right to continue to speak up against her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, despite a jury finding she previously defamed him and owes him millions as a result.
“If Mr. Depp or his team have a problem with this, we recommend that Johnny himself sit down with Savannah Guthrie for an hour and answer all her questions,” a spokesperson for the “Aquaman” actress tells Page Six.
Heard’s interview with NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie has been airing in part all week on the “Today” show and will air in full on “Dateline” Friday night.
In the clips that have already been released, the “Rum Diary” actress has confessed she still “loves” the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star and finds him to be a “fantastic” actor but maintains she will stand by every word of her testimony until her “dying day.”
“As I testified on the stand … when your life is at risk, not only will you take the blame for things that you shouldn’t take the blame for, but when you’re in an abusive dynamic, psychologically, emotionally and physically, you don’t have the resources that, say, you or I do, with the luxury of saying, ‘Hey, this is black and white,’” she told Guthrie, 50.
Depp, 59, sued Heard, 36, over those exact implications — that he abused her — in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed she wrote titled, “Amber Heard: I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.”
On June 1, the jury awarded the “Edward Scissorhands” star $10 million in compensatory and $5 million in punitive damages and gave Heard $2 million in compensatory damages for a countersuit she filed.
Depp’s team released a statement to “Dateline” criticizing Heard for “repeating” her claims in her sit-down with Guthrie, according to a preview that streamed on Peacock Thursday.
“It’s unfortunate that the defendant and her team are back to repeating, reimagining and re-litigating matters that have already been decided by the court and a verdict that was unanimously and unequivocally decided by a jury in Johnny’s favor,” his legal team said.
While Depp has not sat down for an interview yet, he has voiced his opinions on the verdict.
After the decision was announced, the “Blow” star released a statement in which he shared he felt like he had gotten his life back and said the “goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome.”
Depp then joined TikTok to thank his “treasured, loyal and unwavering” fans for their support.
He added, “We did the right thing together, all because you cared. And now, we will all move forward together.”
Heard criticized Depp’s message, saying via a spokesperson after the TikTok video was posted, “As Johnny Depp says he’s ‘moving forward,’ women’s rights are moving backward. The verdict’s message to victims of domestic violence is … be afraid to stand up and speak out.”