The day ‘broke actor demanded $20m’
JOHNNY Depp once stormed into his agent’s office and said ‘give me $20 million!’ because he had no cash, the actor’s $100 million defamation trial heard yesterday.
The Pirates Of The Caribbean star’s finances became ‘very dire’ in 2016 after his career declined but his spending stayed at ‘incredible’ levels.
Depp was paying one security guard $10,000 a day, his doctor got $100,000 a month and he refused to sell his €29million chateau in France.
His agent refused to give him the money, so he got a $20million loan from Bank of America and fired his money managers, the court heard.
The details were revealed during Depp’s defamation trial with ex-wife Amber Heard, 36. Depp, 58, sued her for $50million for calling herself a domestic abuse survivor in a 2018 column for the Washington Post.
Heard, the star of Aquaman, countersued for $100million for a ‘smear campaign’ conducted by his lawyers.
Depp’s former agent Tracey Jacobs said that in early 2016, Depp was in ‘financial desperation’ because his ‘star had dimmed’ due to his lateness on set and drug use.
Heard’s lawyer Elaine Bredehoft said: ‘He came in and said, “I want you to get $20million for me”?’ Miss Jacobs said: ‘Actually, it was, “I want you to give me $20million”. The question was not asked as a loan.’
Depp’s former money manager Joel Mandel told the court that the actor’s financial situation became ‘very dire’ during this period.
He said Depp’s ‘income was very significant, spending was very significant’.
He told the court in Fairfax, Virginia: ‘Spending levels had grown very, very, very large and required a level of incredibly high income to be maintained and when that dropped off the disconnect became untenable.’ When he tried to tell Depp to control his spending, the discussions became ‘heated’.
Depp fired Mr Mandel and sued him for $25million in 2017, alleging fraud – he later claimed Mr Mandel stole $650million from him. The case was settled a year later.
Miss Jacobs also revealed an email Depp sent her because he was jealous Heard was doing a sex scene in the movie London Fields. He wrote: ‘It must be shut down or I will sue them 18 ways from f ****** Sunday. These people are nobodies in this business and they should be made to understand that we will ruin them instantly.’
Earlier, Depp’s former close friend Bruce Witkin said the actor had a ‘jealous streak’ going back to the 1980s. According to Mr Witkin, Depp was jealous of actor Nicolas Cage and pop star Adam Ant because his first wife, Lori Anne Allison, was friends with them. The trial continues.