Depp won because he is a fantastic actor, says Heard

AMBER HEARD has suggested that she lost her high-profile defamation battle against Johnny Depp because her exhusband is a “fantastic actor” whom “people feel they know”.

The 36-year-old broke her silence on the trial to detail the “hate and vitriol” she had received online after the verdict earlier this month during an interview with the Today show on NBC News.

“You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair,” she said.

In a preview clip, Heard said of the jury: “I don’t blame them. I actually understand. He’s a beloved character and people feel they know him. He’s a fantastic actor.”

The actress was pushed on the verdict by Savannah Guthrie, the NBC interviewer, who told her: “Their job is to not be dazzled by that. Their job is to look at the facts and evidence and they did not believe your testimony or your evidence.”

Heard added: “Again, how could they after listening to three and a half weeks of testimony about how I was a noncredible person, how not to believe a word that came out of my mouth?

“But even somebody who is sure I’m deserving of all this hate and vitriol … you still couldn’t look me in the eye and tell me that you think on social media there’s been a fair representation.”

The jury in Virginia concluded that a 2018 article Heard wrote for The Washington Post about her experiences as a survivor of domestic abuse was defamatory and awarded $10.35 million (£8.2 million) in damages to Depp.