Has Johnny Depp turned the world against Amber Heard?
The televised defamation case on Johnny Depp & Amber Heard finally ended making Depp look like the “winner”, still, none of them are entirely innocent. The truth is there are always two sides to the story and when it comes to relationships usually both sides end up being harmed. Luckily with the end of this trial, both parts can finally rest, yet, Amber Heard might pass through a rough time first.
They say all you give the universe ends up coming back to you again. Yet in a cancellative culture, its comeback might be twice as hard, especially if you’re a public figure & a woman. Definitely, neither Heard nor Depp have shown impeccable conduct, and this case has brought the worst part of both publicly. Both Depp & Heard have been canceled in different moments, still Heard has it harder.
It’s true that when Amber Heard wrote her polemic piece on Johnny Depp, not only did she defame him, but wrongly used an important political movement. Her conduct has been despicable from all views. Still, the hate she has received this last week goes way further than the social punishments violent men experience. Chris Brown is just an example. Is the entire world against Heard?
Small refresher
At this point it’s senseless to make a profound recap on the story between these two, nevertheless here’s a small refresher in case you live under a rock. In 2016, Amber Heard filed divorce papers after a year of being married to Johnny Depp and put a restraining order on him. Two years after, Heard published her controversial piece in the Washington Post where she talked about domestic violence through Me Too.
A year later in 2019, Johnny Depp sued the British newspaper the Sun for defamation after referring to him as a “wife-beater”. Nevertheless, he lost the trial in 2020 and came stronger than ever this year with a defamation trial on Heard’s piece. Although the text never mentions his name, Depp went through a dark cancellation era after its publication, he even got expelled from Pirates of the Caribbean.
This 2022 defamation case came right on the cusp of this case’s virality online, it also happened at a moment when Heard started being more visible through Aquaman. Although by this moment many people knew Heard’s discourse was questionable and sketchy there wasn’t supported evidence on that. Meanwhile, Depp remained stuck & canceled without job opportunities.
By this moment, Amber Heard became a mother and lost all credibility since the moment she didn’t donate her divorce fee as she promised. As this last trial went by, TikTok and all social media reproduced daily clips of iconic moments in the trial, where usually Heard was portrayed as ridiculous. Also, the fandom for Depp arose again, probably stronger than ever, but what’s next for Heard?
Is it over for Heard?
Although both Heard & Depp are public figures, they’re situated in entirely different contexts and have radically opposite possibilities. No matter how canceled Johnny Depp was, he never stopped being the Hollywood legend he is, and neither the millions he has left. For Heard this situation is completely different, now she’s canceled forever, not only as an actress but also as an activist, and has a child to look after.
Hopefully with time Heard will find a way to build her life again and find another profession she’s happy at. With some luck and a truthful change, she might find a way to vindicate herself and be an actress again. It’s cruel and hard to claim Heard’s future is over forever, hopefully not, but it’s a fact she’ll pass through hell and more during this year.