Johnny Depp’s Defamation Lawsuit Moves Forward As Amber Heard’s Dismissal Is Denied

Ex-lovers Johnny Depp and Amber Heard have had a truly dramatic few years since the couple divorced in January of 2017. Following abuse allegations from Heard, Depp took the matter to the courts with a $50 million defamation lawsuit. Now, Heard’s attempted dismissal of the case has been denied by Fairfax, VA County Chief Judge Bruce White, marking a substantial win for Depp in the ongoing battle.

Judge White had this to say in response to Heard’s dismissal request:

Defendant’s Demurrer is sustained as to the fourth statement listed above, but it is overruled as to the other three statements. Further, Defendant’s Plea in Bar regarding the statute of limitations is denied. Counsel shall prepare an Order reflecting the Court’s ruling and forward that Order to the Court for entry.

The long and arduous legal battle is sure to bring plenty of chaos and negativity to the two actors, but as things stand, the evidence against Heard has been mounting rapidly and has consistently given Depp quite a lot of ammunition in court. Among the damning evidence is a collection of audio tapes that brought to light that Heard defecated on Depp’s bed and punched him in the face for being late to her birthday party.

Meanwhile, an account from Depp’s estate manager, Tara Roberts, states that Heard physically abused Depp at the couple’s home in the Bahamas while his children were there. Though Heard admitted to throwing a lacquer bottle at Depp’s face, she insists that the entire scenario was completely misrepresented.

A petition to remove Heard as the L’Oreal spokesperson has reached nearly 12,000 signatures, while another to replace her in Aquaman 2 sits on the cusp of 400,000. It’s rare that online petitions make much of a difference in situations like this, but it is nevertheless strange that none of the mounting allegations against the actress have swayed L’Oreal or Warner Bros.

In any case, it could be years before Johnny Depp and Amber Heard see the end of this fight, but stay tuned for more as the messy story unfurls.