Johnny Depp Admits Feeling “Duped” by Amber Heard

More than three years after the verdict that shook both Hollywood and the internet, Johnny Depp is finally peeling back the layers of his turbulent past with Amber Heard.

In a rare, introspective interview with The Sunday Times, the 62-year-old actor opens up—not just about the courtroom battles that dominated headlines, but the emotional core that defined their beginning, shaped their downfall, and scorched everything in between.

A Brief History Between Depp and Heard

Their relationship, once wrapped in red-carpet glamor, began in 2011 and culminated in a short-lived marriage in 2015. By 2016, divorce papers were filed, and what followed became one of the most high-profile legal sagas in modern celebrity culture.

Depp, known for his poetic way of expressing pain, described how past relationships shaped his understanding of love—or perhaps, his misunderstanding of it.

“So, what were my initial dealings with what we call ‘love?’” he mused. “Clearly obtuse.”

“And what that means is, if you’re a sucker like I am, sometimes you look in a person’s eye and see some sadness, some lonely thing and you feel you can help that person,” he said.

“But no good deed goes unpunished… It manifests itself in other ways,” he added. “And the interesting thing is that it is merely a sliver of my life I have chosen to explore.”

From Romance to Ruin: The Legal Domino Effect

Following their split, Heard filed for a restraining order and cited irreconcilable differences. The divorce was finalized in August 2016 with a $7 million settlement, but it was far from the end.

By 2019, Depp had filed a defamation lawsuit against Heard over her Washington Post op-ed in which she described herself as a survivor of domestic violence—a piece she wrote without naming him, yet one that set the stage for an explosive legal war.

The case made international waves. In 2020, Depp lost a libel suit against The Sun in the U.K. after the paper labeled him a “wife-beater.” The court ruled the claim “substantially true.”

Heard took the stand in that case, testifying in support of the publication. Depp’s attempt to overturn that ruling failed.

Then came the U.S. defamation trial—televised, dissected, and devoured by millions. Beginning in April 2022, both Depp and Heard aired harrowing allegations of abuse.

The spectacle lasted six weeks and ended with a mixed verdict: Heard was found liable on three counts of defamation, and Depp was awarded $10.35 million.

Heard won one claim in her countersuit and was awarded $2 million. By December, the pair reached a final settlement: Heard would pay Depp $1 million, which he pledged to donate to multiple charities.

“Roll the Dice”: Truth as a Gamble

For Depp, the trial wasn’t about fame or reputation—it was about reclaiming truth for his children and those who believed in him.

“Look, it had gone far enough. I knew I’d have to semi-eviscerate myself. Everyone was saying, ‘It’ll go away!’ But I can’t trust that. What will go away? The fiction pawned around the f—— globe? No, it won’t,” he said.

“If I don’t try to represent the truth, it will be like I’ve actually committed the acts I am accused of. And my kids will have to live with it. Their kids. Kids that I’ve met in hospitals.”

He recalled the night before the trial in Virginia—not with anxiety, but with a quiet resolve.

“So the night before the trial in Virginia, I didn’t feel nervous. If you don’t have to memorize lines, if you’re just speaking the truth? Roll the dice,” he said.

“I knew none of this was going be easy, but I didn’t care. I thought, ‘I’ll fight until the bitter f—— end.’ And if I end up pumping gas? That’s all right. I’ve done that before.”

Confetti and Betrayal: The Fallout Within His Circle

What stung just as deeply as the public humiliation was the betrayal from people within Depp’s own camp—people he had trusted for decades.

“As weird as I am, certain things can be trusted. And my loyalty is the last thing anybody could question,” he said.

“I was with one agent for 30 years, but she spoke in court about how difficult I was. That’s death by confetti, these fake motherf—— who lie to you, celebrate you, say all sorts of horror behind your back, yet keep the money — that confetti machine going — because what do they want? Dough.”

He said the disloyalty cut deep—especially from those who had once been part of his family life.

“Those people were at my kids’ parties. Throwing them in the air,” Depp said, narrowing the betrayal to “three” individuals who, in his words, “did me dirty.”

“And, look, I understand people who could not stand up [for me], because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice. I was pre-#MeToo. I was like a crash test dummy for #MeToo. It was before Harvey Weinstein.”

Looking Back Without Regret

Despite the damage, Depp doesn’t appear bitter—just brutally honest. His story isn’t one of victimhood, but of a man who felt compelled to protect his name, his children, and the truth.

Whether he returns to global stardom or chooses to walk away, his stance remains the same: he played his hand with everything he had.

And if the world still spins rumors?

He’s already rolled the dice.

Be sure to catch up on everything happening with Johnny Depp right now. Come back here often for all Johnny Depp’s spoilers, news, and updates.

Editorial credit: Tom Rose / Shutterstock.com