July 18, 2025

Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard - "PIRATES AND PIRATES: How Hollywood's Golden Couple Became Toxic Enemies"

Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard - "PIRATES AND PIRATES: How Hollywood's Golden Couple Became Toxic Enemies"

How did Captain Jack Sparrow fall for a rising starlet 23 years his junior and destroy both their careers in the process? Reid Carter exposes the toxic transformation of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard from Hollywood's hottest couple to courtroom enemies. From their steamy affair on "The Rum Diary" set to the shocking divorce that ended in restraining orders and bruised face photos, discover the red flags everyone ignored. When pirates meet pirates, nobody wins - but the legal bills are spectacular. Justice isn't always romantic, but it's absolutely riveting.

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WEBVTT

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Caalaroga Shark Media. Good morning, I'm Read Carter, and welcome

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back to Celebrity Trials. We're taking a break from our

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live trial coverage to bring you some of the greatest

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celebrity trials ever. Remember you don't have to be a

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celebrity going in, but you will be one when the

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verdict comes down, and we'll be back to covering breaking

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trials as they happen. Today, we're diving into the case

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that redefined celebrity justice in the social media age. Johnny

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Depp versus Amber Heard, a legal battle so explosive it

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made the Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni war look like

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a disagreement over coffee plans. Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.

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One was Hollywood royalty worth hundreds of millions, the other

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was a rising star ready to conquer the world. Together,

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they should have been unstoppable. Instead, they became the most

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toxic celebrity couple of the twenty first century, and their

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legal war would redefine what it means to fight for

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your reputation in the age of social media. This is

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the story of how a twenty three year age gap

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became a twenty three million dollar legal Bill, how love

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turned into mutual destruction, and how two people convince themselves

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that destroying each other in court was better than just

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walking away. Because sometimes the most dangerous relationships aren't the

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ones that end quietly. They're the ones that end in

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federal court rooms with cameras rolling and the world watching.

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Let me paint you the picture of how this all began.

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It's two thousand and nine and Johnny Depp is at

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the absolute peak of his powers. The Pirates of the

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Caribbean franchise has made him one of the highest paid

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actors in Hollywood. He's worth an estimated two hundred million dollars,

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owns a private island in the Bahamas, and has been

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in a stable relationship with French actress Vanessa Parodies for

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twelve years. They have two children together. Life is good.

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Enter Amber heard, twenty three years old, stunningly beautiful, and

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hungry for fame in that particularly American way that Hollywood

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both creates and devours. She's been cast in the rum Diary,

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a Hunter S. Thompson adaptation that Depp is both starring

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in and producing. On paper, she's the female lead. In reality,

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she's about to become the most expensive mistake of Johnny

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Depp's life. Now, let me tell you something about age

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gap relationships in Hollywood. They're as common as botox and

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twice as predictable. Older male star meets younger actress. Older

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male star thinks he's found his muse. Younger actress thinks

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she's found her ticket to the A list. Sometimes it

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works out. Most of the time it ends in expensive

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divorces and NDAs. But the Depp heard situation had red

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flags from day one that everyone chose to ignore. First,

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there was the way the relationship began. Depp was still

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with parodies when he started developing feelings for herd Friends

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and family members who knew dep well reportedly expressed concern

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about his interest in the much younger actress. But when

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you're Johnny Depp in two thousand and nine, people don't

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tell you no very often. Second, there was the power dynamic.

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Depp wasn't just the male lead, he was the producer.

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He had complete control over Hurd's career prospects, at least

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on this film. She was a relative nobody who had

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appeared in a few small films and TV shows. The

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imbalance wasn't just romantic, it was professional. And financial. Third,

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and this is where it gets interesting from a legal perspective,

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there were already signs of the volatility that would later

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consume both their lives. People close to the production reported

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that Depp and Herd's on set relationship was intense, passionate,

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and occasionally explosive, not exactly unusual for Hollywood romances, but

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worth noting given what came later. The filming of The

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Rum Diary wrapped in two thousand and nine, but the

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movie wasn't released until twenty eleven. During that two year period,

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deppan Heard maintained what they claimed was a professional relationship,

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but by most accounts, the attraction was obvious to everyone

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around them. In twenty twelve, Depp finally ended his relationship

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with Parodies. The official line was that they had grown apart,

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but Hollywood insiders knew the real reason. Johnny Depp, at

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forty nine years old, had fallen hard for a woman

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half his age who represented everything his stable domestic life

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with Parodies wasn't dangerous, unpredictable, and exciting. By early twenty twelve,

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Depp and Herd were officially dating. The tabloids loved it,

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Captain Jack Sparrow and the gorgeous young actress made for

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great copy, but people close to Depp were reportedly concerned

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about the relationship's intensity and Herd's influence over him. The

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engagement came in twenty fourteen, with Herd sporting a diamond

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that probably cost more than most people's houses. They looked

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happy in the paparazzi photos. Depp seemed energized by his

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young fiancee, and Herd looked like she'd won the Hollywood lottery.

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But here's what's fascinating about their relationship timeline. Almost from

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the beginning, there were reports of fights, breakups, and reconciliations.

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Friends described their dynamic as passionate but volatile. In Hollywood

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speak that usually means call the lawyers. The wedding finally

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took place in February twenty fifteen, a private ceremony in

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the Bahamas with just a few close friends and family members.

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The photos were gorgeous, the venue was exclusive, and the

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marriage lasted all of fifteen months. Fifteen months. For all

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the drama that would follow, these two people who convinced

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themselves they couldn't live without each other, managed to stay

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legally married for less than a year and a half.

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So what went wrong? How does a fairytale romance between

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two beautiful, wealthy, successful people turn into a cautionary tale

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about toxic relationships. The answer, as it often is in Hollywood,

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involves drugs, alcohol, money, and egos, lots of egos. Let's

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start with Johnny Depp's substance abuse issues, which were well

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documented long before he met Amber Herd but reportedly escalated

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during their relationship. Depp had been open about his struggles

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with alcohol and had experimented with drugs throughout his career,

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but friends and colleagues noticed that his substance use became

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more problematic during the Herd years. Text messages that would

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later be revealed in court showed depth, describing himself in

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terms that would make Hunter S. Thompson blush. We're talking

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about a man who was consuming levels of alcohol and

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drugs that would hospitalize normal people. And this wasn't recreational use.

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This was a man trying to numb something much deeper.

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Then there was the money situation. Yes, Depp was worth

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hundreds of millions on paper, but he was also spending

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money at a rate that would make a lottery winner nervous.

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Private islands, wine, collections, multiple homes, a full time staff

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of dozens. The man was hemorrhaging cash. His business managers

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were reportedly warning him about his spending. But when you're

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married to a woman twenty three years younger who's accustomed

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to a certain lifestyle, financial restraint becomes complicated. And speaking

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of Amberherd's lifestyle expectations, let's be honest about what this

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relationship represented for her. She went from being a struggling

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actress to being the wife of one of the world's

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most famous movie stars. Private jets, designer clothes, exclusive parties,

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a list events. It was everything a young actress dreams about.

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But here's where the story gets darker. According to court

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documents and testimony that would come out later, the fairy

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tale was hiding some very ugly realities. Both Depp and

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Herd would later accuse each other of physical and emotional

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abuse during their marriage. The details are disturbing and contradictory,

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and we'll get into the specific allegations in our next episodes,

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but what's clear is that whatever was happening behind closed doors,

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it was toxic enough to destroy both their mental health

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and their careers. There were also the career pressures during

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their marriage, Depp's film career was starting to show cracks.

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Mortdecai bombed Alice through the Looking Glass, underperformed the Pirates franchise,

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was showing signs of fatigue. For an actor whose identity

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was built on being one of Hollywood's most bankable stars,

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professional disappointment added another layer of stress to an already

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volatile situation. Meanwhile, Hurd was trying to establish herself as

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a serious actress while being known primarily as Johnny Depp's wife.

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She had roles in Justice League and Aquaman, but the

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shadow of her famous husband loomed large over her career.

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That kind of professional frustration can poison even healthy relationships.

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Friends of both Depp and Herd reported that their fights

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were legendary screaming matches that could be heard through the

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walls of their penthouses. There were reports of throne objects,

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broken furniture, and neighbors calling security. This wasn't normal relationship conflict.

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This was two people who brought out the absolute worst

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in each other. The breaking point came in May twenty sixteen,

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just fifteen months after their wedding. Back in a moment

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welcome back to celebrity trials, I'm Red Carter, and we're

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exploring how Johnny Depp and Amber Herd went from Hollywood's

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golden couple to courtroom enemies. May twenty third, twenty sixteen,

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Amber Heard files for divorce from Johnny Depp, citing irreconcilable

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differences in Hollywood. That's usually code for we can't stand

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each other, but our lawyers told us not to get specific.

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But Herd didn't stop at filing for divorce. Three days later,

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she filed for a restraining order against Depp, alleging domestic violence,

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and she showed up to court with photos of what

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appeared to be bruises on her face. Those photos would

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become the most important evidence in everything that followed, because

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once Amber Heard made the decision to go public with

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abuse allegations, there was no going back for either of them.

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The restraining order filing was accompanied by a declaration from

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Herd describing incidents of alleged physical abuse. She claimed Depp

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had hit her, thrown objects at her, and threatened her.

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She described a pattern of escalating violence that she said

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had gotten worse as Dep's substance abuse increased. Depp's response

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was swift and categorical, complete denial. His lawyers painted Herd

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as a gold digger who was fabricating abuse allegations to

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gain leverage in the divorce proceedings. They suggested the bruises

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and the photos were either fake or self inflicted. And

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here's where the story becomes a preview of everything that

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would follow. Both sides immediately hired not just divorce lawyers,

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but crisis pr firms. This wasn't going to be a

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quiet Hollywood divorce handled behind closed doors. This was going

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to be a public relations war. The media coverage was

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immediate and intense. Dep's fans rallied to his defense, pointing

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to his lack of any history of violence against women.

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Herd's supporters applauded her courage in speaking out against a

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powerful man. The battle lines were drawn, and they haven't

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moved much since. But here's what's interesting about the divorce proceedings.

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They were actually resolved relatively quickly and quietly. By August

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twenty sixteen, just three months after the initial filing, Depp

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and Herd reached a settlement. The terms Depp would pay

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her seven million dollars and both parties would release statements

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saying that our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile,

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but always bound by love. Most importantly, they agreed to

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a mutual non disparagement clause neither would speak publicly about

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their relationship or the allegations. Hurt also made a very

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public promise she would donate the entire seven million dollar

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settlement to charity, specifically the American Civil Liberties Union and

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the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. This wasn't just generous,

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it was strategically brilliant. It made her look like someone

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who wasn't motivated by money, which undermined dep's gold digger narrative.

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The divorce was finalized in January twenty seventeen, and for

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a brief moment it looked like both parties might actually

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honor their agreement to move on quietly. That lasted less

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than two years. Because here's the thing about toxic relationships.

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The legal paper work might end the marriage, but it

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doesn't end the emotional warfare. And when you're dealing with

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two people who have hundreds of millions of dollars in

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access to the best lawyer's money can buy, a simple

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divorce settlement is just the opening move in a much

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longer game. Depp clearly felt that the abuse allegations had

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damaged his reputation and career, even though he had never

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been criminally charged or formally found liable for anything. Hollywood's

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whisper network is real, and once you're labeled as someone

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who hits women, that label follows you to every casting

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decision and business meeting. Heard meanwhile, was discovering that speaking

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up about domestic violence, even with a settlement and NDAs

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in place, came with its own set of consequences. She

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was being criticized in the media as a money grubbing liar,

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and her own career was suffering from the association with

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the controversy. So when The Washington Post offered Herd the

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opportunity to write an op ed about domestic violence in

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December twenty eighteen, she said yes. It seemed like a

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chance to tell her story without violating the non disparagement

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agreement since she wouldn't mention Debt by name. That op

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ed would trigger the most watched defamation trial in American

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history and prove that sometimes the most expensive words are

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the ones you don't actually say. You know what fascinates

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me about the dep heard relationship. Both people probably thought

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they were rescuing each other. Depp saw a young, beautiful

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woman who could make him feel young and relevant again.

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Heard saw an established star who could open doors that

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would otherwise remain closed to her forever. But here's the

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problem with relationships built on what the other person can

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do for you. When the benefits stop outweighing the costs,

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there's nothing left to hold the relationship together. And when

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you add drugs, alcohol, massive egos, and hundreds of millions

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of dollars to the mix, the explosion is inevitable. The

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really tragic part is that both Depp and Herd probably

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could have walked away from their marriage with their reputation intact.

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If they had just honored their settlement agreement. Depp could

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have remained the beloved eccentric character actor, and Herd could

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have built a solid career without the shadow of domestic

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violence allegations. Instead, they chose to keep fighting, and in

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the process they gave us a masterclass in how not

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to handle a toxic relationship when you're famous, wealthy, and

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have access to unlimited legal resources. But the Depp Heard

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story was just getting started, because in twenty eighteen, Amber

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Herd would write six hundred and fifty words that would

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cost millions of dollars, destroy careers, and prove that in

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the age of social media, the court of public opinion

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matters more than any legal judgment. That's where we'll pick

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up in our next episode, how a carefully worded op

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ed about domestic violence triggered legal battles on two continents

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and turned Johnny Depp into what he calls a crash

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test dummy for me too. But before we go, let

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me leave you with this thought. Toxic relationships don't end

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when the divorce papers are signed. They end when both

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parties decide that winning isn't worth the cost of fighting,

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and sometimes that realization comes too late to save anyone involved.

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I'm read Carter with celebrity trials. Next time, we'll explore

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how six hundred and fifty words in the Washington Post

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triggered a legal war that would span from London to

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Virginia and prove that the most dangerous thing you can

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do to a powerful man is suggest he's not as

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powerful as he thinks he is. Justice isn't always fast,

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but it's always riveting.