The court case that has the whole world watching… literally

You would have to be living under a rock if you haven’t heard something about the Johnny Depp defamation case that has captured the world’s attention as of late. 

To recap, actor Johnny Depp is suing ex-wife Amber Heard for defamation over a 2018 op-ed she wrote about her alleged experiences surviving domestic violence. The couple were married from 2015-2017 and faced a reasonable amount of publicity during this time.

Even though Heard never named Depp in the open letter, the insinuation was clear and severely damaged his career. He was let go from the Fantastic Beasts franchise as well as the upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean movie, losing a reported $22.5 million in the process. Depp has yet to appear in anything since 2020 and therefore found Heards accusations had greatly affected both his personal and professional life. 

The court case began two weeks ago, and is being live streamed for anyone to watch. In true 2022 style, many clips have been circulating on social media dissecting every little detail, each more horrifying than the last.

Whether it’s the celebrity conflict, or the timing as May is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, this is arguably the most talked about story right now. 

This isn’t a matter about who is right or wrong, that’s the court’s decision. However, as the majority of coverage sided with Depp and in a time when PR was most critical, Heard dismissed her PR team for her own unfavourable coverage. As an ongoing investigation however, Heard is unable to speak to the public to rewrite the narrative on this occasion – which is what all good PR’s would suggest. 

She has since hired a new PR team, who has previously worked against Depp, perhaps in the hopes of planting some unfavourable coverage to distract from the case.

As experts in public relations, we understand there is only so much you can do when intimate details become public knowledge. Furthermore when celebrities are involved. We applaud her approach to try and shift the conversation, highlight her positive attributes and hope it all blows over soon.

By Grace Drummond – PR & Influencer Coordinator at InsideOut PR and #AsSeenOn