Amber Heard Hopes She & Johnny Depp 'Can Move On’ After Defamation Trial

Amber Heard is hoping she and her ex-husband Johnny Depp can eventually put the past behind them after their defamation trial comes to an end.

On Saturday, the 35-year-old actress took to Instagram to address the upcoming court battle, in which Johnny is suing her for $50 million, claiming she ruined his career by writing a 2018 article for The Washington Post about her experience with surviving domestic violence. Amber began by announcing plans to “go offline for the next several weeks” in order to focus on the legal proceedings, which will take place in Fairfax County, Virginia starting on Monday. She continued:

“Johnny is suing me for an op-ed I wrote in the Washington Post, in which I recounted my experience of violence and domestic abuse. I never named him, rather I wrote about the price women pay for speaking against men in power. I continue to pay that price, but hopefully, when this case concludes, I can move on and so can Johnny.”

The Aquaman star then expressed that she has “always maintained a love for Johnny,” adding that:

“It brings me great pain to have to live out the details of our past life together in front of the world. At this time, I recognize the ongoing support I’ve been fortunate to receive throughout the years, and in these coming weeks I will be leaning on it more than ever. With love always, A”

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As you may know, Johnny has been pursuing a defamation lawsuit against Amber since 2018. According to E! News, he claims that Amber’s op-ed includes “false allegations” against him and “depends on the central premise that Ms. Heard was a domestic abuse victim and that Mr. Depp perpetrated domestic violence against her.” However, it is important to note that there was no mention of the actor in the publication. Heard’s attorney said in a statement at the time:

“This frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced.”

So she countersued her former partner for $100 million in 2020, alleging that he had affected her career by interfering with her endorsements and acting gigs just because of the statements she made in the article. They’ve since filed to have each other’s defamation case thrown out, but both are continuing forward.

Dozens of A-listers are set to testify during the trial – including James Franco, Elon Musk, Paul Bettany, and Ellen Barkin. Representatives for Disney, Warner Bros, WME, ACLU, and the Los Angeles Police Department are also on board to speak.

It’s unclear how the trial will go at this time. However, it is good to mention that Johnny lost his UK libel case against The Sun over a piece that labeled him a “wife beater.” A judge ended up siding with the tabloid since the description was “substantially true.” So who knows what will happen in the end here! But no matter the outcome of the trial, it sounds like Amber is hoping to put this all in the past once and for all afterward.