As an early Christmas present to all of us, it seems as if the tawdry, televised debacle that’s been the Johnny Depp v Amber Heard case has finally come to a close.
Depp’s ex-wife will reportedly pay $1 million to settle their protracted and noxious legal battle. Don’t get me wrong, a million dollars is a lot of money, but it’s a fraction of the $8.35m she was ordered to pay by the court – and it’s a far cry from Depp’s original $50m defamation claim against Heard in March 2019 after she published her now infamous an op-ed in The Washington Post.
Depp’s team released a statement in response to the news. “We are pleased to formally close the door on this painful chapter for Mr Depp, who made clear throughout this process that his priority was about bringing the truth to light…The jury’s unanimous decision and the resulting judgement in Mr Depp’s favor against Ms Heard remain fully in place. The payment of $1m – which Mr Depp is pledging and will (actually) donate to charities – reinforces Ms Heard’s acknowledgement of the conclusion of the legal system’s rigorous pursuit for justice.”
It’s an oddly tepid and snide response from his legal team. They may try and spin Heard’s as her recognition and acknowledgement of the trial verdict but anyone who’s followed the case – or even read her statement – will know that the settlement is hardly an admission on her part.
She writes: “After a great deal of deliberation I have made a very difficult decision to settle the defamation case brought against me by my ex-husband in Virginia.
“It’s important for me to say that I never chose this. I defended my truth and in doing so my life as I knew it was destroyed. The vilification I have faced on social media is an amplified version of the ways in which women are re-victimized when they come forward. Now I finally have an opportunity to emancipate myself from something I attempted to leave over six years ago and on terms I can agree to. I have made no admission, this is not an act of concession. There are no restrictions or gags with respect to my voice moving forward.
“I make this decision having lost faith in the American legal system, where my unprotected testimony served as entertainment and social media fodder.”
The trial should never have been televised. Domestic violence and graphic testimony of allegations of sexual abuse should never be turned into reality TV entertainment for a global audience. If we needed any confirmation that despite all the #MeToo and #BeKind hashtags, pillorying women remains a global bloodsport.
Those purporting to support Depp by deriding Heard’s testimony exposed the treatment of women who speak out about sexual violence.
Regardless of what you think of Depp and Heard – even if you’re one of those “they’re both as bad as each other” types – no one can reasonably deny that Heard was subjected to more vitriol and hatred for alleging sexual violence than actual perpetrators of sexual abuse. That says something about our culture that’s really quite depressing.
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From the get-go, the trial encouraged the contempt of Heard and her testimony. In the small, physical space of the court room she had to testify directly in front of Depp while he and his legal team smirked and scoffed – giving permission to the rest of the world to smirk and scoff along.
I’m not surprised Heard has settled. I’m certainly not surprised she’s desperate to move on from this debacle that’s made a spectacle of her. I am surprised though that Depp’s team have agreed to a settlement that allows Heard to retain her right to speak about her relationship with Depp. There’s no non-disclosure agreement and no hush clause. Not bad terms for someone who’s just been sued for defamation.
In a case as high profile as this – with unprecedented public interest and coverage – Heard’s silence would be the main prize for Depp’s team. The fact Heard gets to walk away with her right to speak shows her voice wasn’t something she was willing to settle on.
Katie Edwards is a freelance writer and broadcaster
