Johnny Depp Claims Betrayal by Close Friends After Amber Heard Abuse Allegations

Johnny Depp has spoken out about how he was ‘deserted’ by his closest friends after he was accused of abuse by his ex-wife Amber Heard.

Jonny married Amber in 2015 after the pair met on set of The Rum Diary (2011). However, she filed for divorce the following year, and it was finalised in 2017. 

The Hollywood star, 62, always strenuously denied the claims made by Amber, 39, during the couple’s divorce proceedings in 2016.

The couple’s alleged violent relationship sent shockwaves throughout the industry and both parties were dropped from work projects at the time.

Johnny was recast in the Fantastic Beasts series by Mads Mikkelsen, while Amber claimed she lost out on opportunities due to the online backlash.

As well as being axed from jobs, Johnny has now claimed he was also let down by some of the people in his inner circle who attended his children’s birthday parties.

Johnny Depp has spoken out about how he was ‘deserted’ by his closest friends after he was accused of abuse by his ex-wife Amber Heard (pictured October 2024)

Jonny married Amber in 2015 after the pair met on set of The Rum Diary (2011). However, she filed for divorce the following year, and it was finalised in 2017 (pictured 2014)

During the Depp v. Heard trial that came to an end in June 2022, Johnny received a rally of support from fans at the Fairfax County courtroom in Virginia (pictured May 2022) 

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Johnny criticised the actions of three of his close friends and claimed he had been a ‘crash test dummy for the #MeToo movement’.

He said: ‘I’ll tell you what hurts. There are people, and I’m thinking of three, who did me dirty. Those people were at my kids’ parties, throwing them in the air.’

‘And, look, I understand people who could not stand up [for me], because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice.’

Johnny’s agent of 30 years who was sacked in 2016, Tracey Jacobs, spoke out against him during the highly publicised defamation trial.

Tracey claimed that studios were ‘reluctant’ to hire Johnny because of his reputation for being late to work. 

He said of Tracey: ‘My loyalty is the last thing anybody could question. I was with one agent for 30 years, but she spoke in court about how difficult I was.’

During the Depp v. Heard trial that came to an end in June 2022, Johnny received a rally of support from fans at the Fairfax County courtroom in Virginia.

Johnny and Amber’s publicised legal issues began when he filed a libel lawsuit against The Sun’s publisher and it’s executive editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article which included claims that he was a ‘wife beater.’

During the Depp v. Heard trial that came to an end in June 2022, Johnny received a rally of support from fans at the Fairfax County courtroom in Virginia (Amber pictured during the trial)

Johnny and Amber’s publicised legal issues began when he filed a libel lawsuit against The Sun’s publisher and it’s executive editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article which included claims that he was a ‘wife beater’ (pictured 2015)

But in 2020, the High Court of Justice ruled in favour of The Sun’s publisher and Wootton, but Johnny later sued Amber in 2019 for defamation over a 2018 op-ed article she wrote for The Washington Post.

She countersued her ex-husband in 2020 and the trial officially began in April 2022. Two months later, the jury’s verdict was in favour of Johnny. 

At the time, the star had offered his reaction to the ruling and expressed that the ‘jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.’

He star also expressed, ‘Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that.’ 

Amber has since moved and settled in Spain – where she raises her three children, a daughter born in 2021 via surrogacy and she announced in May that she had also welcomed twins. 

Johnny has also made his return to the big screen following the trial, such as Jeanne du Barry (2023). 

Johnny pictured during the trial at Fairfax County Courthouse

A first look photo was recently released which shows an unrecognizable Johnny stepping into the shoes of his character – which includes graying hair and a beard

Last year in October, Johnny insisted that he ‘holds no ill will towards anyone’ following the legal drama and bitter divorce from Heard.

‘Honestly, I can sit here this very second and think about all the hit pieces, and how everybody was against me, and yeah yeah yeah he is off the map … endless stuff,’ he told The Hollywood Reporter.

‘I can remember it all. Went through it all. Some of it was not the most beautiful time, some of it was hilarious. Some of it was mad.’

The actor added, ‘The thing is, it simply just was, and it simply just is. So, for me, it happened. I learned, man.

‘Everything that we experience, whether you’re given a snow cone or walking your dog, you learn something somewhere along the way.’

Johnny then explained, ‘So I don’t have any ill feelings toward anyone. I don’t have this great reserve of hatred, because hatred requires caring. Why carry that baggage?’

Johnny is preparing to hit the big screen once again for the upcoming thriller Day Drinker. 

The movie is being directed by Marc Webb and also stars Penelope Cruz, Madelyn Cline, Manu Rios and Javier Botet. 

The premise is: ‘An enigmatic stranger forms an unlikely bond with a grieving bartender who lost her lover, their lives intertwining in unexpected ways,’ per IMDB. 

A first look photo was recently released which shows an unrecognizable Depp stepping into the shoes of his character – which includes graying hair and a beard.

When questioned by The Sunday Times if he has any regrets, the actor admitted, ‘I have no regrets about anything – because, truly, what can we do about last week’s dinner? Not a f***ing thing.’