Amber Heard Testifies About Johnny Depp: ‘This Is a Man Who Tried to Kill Me’

5 minute read

Johnny Depp’s legal team continued their cross-examination of Amber Heard today as the defamation trial against her continues in the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia. On the stand, when questioned about love notes she wrote her then-husband and whether she was scared of Depp, Heard testified, “This is a man who tried to kill me.”

Depp’s legal team pressed Heard for details about an alleged 2015 incident in Australia, in which Heard claimed that her then-husband sexually assaulted her. She also said that Depp lost a portion of his finger during the incident. Depp’s attorney asked Heard why there were no records of medical treatment for any of the injuries she allegedly received while fighting with Depp. In response, Heard said, “I didn’t seek treatment.”

When Depp’s lawyer Camille Vasquez remarked that Heard did not appear scared of Depp, despite the alleged assault, Heard responded: “This is a man who tried to kill me. Of course it’s scary. He’s also my husband.”

Read more: What to Know About the Defamation Trial Between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard As It Resumes

Depp’s legal team noted that while police were called after an argument in May 2016, Heard did not file a report. She did, however, file for divorce several days later and obtain a domestic violence restraining order. During cross-examination, Deadline reports that Vasquez noted that many witnesses testified that they did not notice any injuries on Heard’s face after the argument with Depp.

Amber Heard testifies about photos

Depp’s legal team steered the cross-examination to photos of Heard. In one black-and-white set, taken a few weeks after Depp allegedly assaulted her, a Depp lawyer zoomed in to theoretically show there were no visible injuries. When asked if she was wearing makeup, Heard answered, “Yes, it’s a photoshoot,” per the New York Post. Depp’s attorney showed another photo of Heard, this time with a visible bruise, and asked if she had tweaked the photo to make her bruise seem worse. “I didn’t touch it,” Heard testified.

Amber Heard claims negative stories were planted

Depp’s legal team questioned Heard about negative headlines about her in the press, including one claiming Heard admitted to hitting Depp.

Heard testified that she believes Depp’s team planted unflattering stories about her in the press and leaked an edited audio recording to the media in which Heard admits hitting Depp, per the Post.

Depp’s attorney asked Heard if the Washington Post op-ed that prompted Depp’s defamation suit was about her ex-husband, and the actress answered that no, “the op-ed was about what happened to me.”

Heard also testified that she believes the lawsuit has damaged her career and that her role in the sequel to Aquaman was reduced due to negative publicity.

Amber Heard ends testimony

“I survived that man and I’m here,” Heard said on the witness stand on Tuesday afternoon—her final day of testimony.

Vasquez insinuated that Heard was after Depp’s cash, Deadline reports. Heard denied the charge and pointed out that she “didn’t want” the approximately $32 million divorce settlement from Depp that she was entitled to under California law. Instead she sought just $7 million, which she said she would donate to the ACLU and a children’s hospital. It was revealed during the trial that she has not yet lived up to that pledge, though she claims she will.

Depp’s legal team also displayed a 2015 photo showing Depp with black eyes, bruises, and swelling on his face. Heard said the image had been “Photoshopped.” “I’ve seen this picture before, and he’s not injured in it,” she said.

Under redirect from her own lawyer, Heard said her claims that Depp physically, emotionally, and sexually abused her were true. “He knows he’s guilty—why can’t he look at me?” Heard said. (Earlier in the trial, Depp’s attorney said he is avoiding eye contact with his ex-wife to keep his 2016 promise that Heard would never see his eyes again.)

Read more: Why You’re Seeing So Many Johnny Depp Defenders on TikTok

iO Tillett Wright’s testimony

Podcaster and producer iO Tillett Wright testified today via a video deposition. Wright was friends with both Heard and Depp during their marriage. Wright testified to witnessing several disturbing moments between the then-couple, including one fight heard during a phone call that ended when Heard screamed and the phone dropped. In another instance that he described, Depp asked Heard, “What if I peel your f–ing hair back?”

Wright also relayed a conversation with Depp in which Depp said about Heard, “All she’s got is her looks.” Wright also testified about Depp’s drug and alcohol use. “The substances I saw him ingest with my own eyes were: cocaine and hard liquor, marijuana, ecstasy, mushrooms, wine, probably some other things, but those are the immediate ones that jump to mind,” Wright testified, per NBC News. “Cocaine and any kind of alcohol would bring out a very, very ugly side of him, very misogynistic and cruel.”

Raquel Pennington’s testimony

Raquel Pennington, Heard’s former best friend, also testified today.

While she was Heard’s witness, she testified that she and Heard got into a violent altercation in which the actress hit her.

Pennington’s testimony will continue tomorrow.

More Must-Reads From TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com