Late last year, it all went wrong for Johnny Depp. A much-publicized UK court case, in which the Pirates of the Caribbean star attempted to sue British tabloid The Sun for labelling him a “wife-beater” in response to allegations of domestic abuse by ex-spouse Amber Heard, went against him, with the ruling agreeing in favor of the newspaper and calling their descriptor “substantially true.” Depp’s legal team made clear from the off that they would dispute the result and the actor’s reps will now get their chance at an oral hearing taking place in March.
As per Deadline, Depp’s team will be given the opportunity to appeal the decision handed down by the UK High Court in an estimated two-hour hearing that will take place between March 15th and 31st. Depp will be producing “further evidence” to help strengthen his case as well. “The issues raised by both applications are best resolved at a hearing,” Court of Appeal judge Lord Justice Underhill decreed yesterday. Heard’s own legal team will need to file reasons for opposing the appeal by February 21st, after which Depp’s reps will be able to respond by February 28th.
Of course, the initial ruling had a huge knock-on effect for the actor’s career. Just days after the court case ended, Warner Bros. dropped him from the Fantastic Beasts franchise, and subsequent reports have claimed that, as things stand, given his sullied reputation, Depp could be finished in mainstream Hollywood. His attempts to overturn the UK ruling are in addition to a $50 million defamation case he’s taking against Heard in the US later this year concerning the actress penning a piece for The Washington Post about her experience with domestic abuse.
Johnny Depp was recently featured in animated series Puffins, while Amber Heard can currently be seen in Amazon’s The Stand, with roles in Zack Snyder’s Justice League and Aquaman 2 to come.
