Amber Heard’s lawyers will likely call Johnny Depp to stand as witness

Johnny Depp is expected to return to the stand in his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard. Her legal team is slated to call Johnny as a witness on Monday, according to news reports. The actor is expected to be questioned, days after the cross-examination of Amber. Representatives for Johnny and Amber are yet to made an official comment. Closing arguments in the trial are scheduled for Friday. Read more: Johnny Depp’s lawyer Camille Vasquez laughs and dodges question when asked if she is dating the actor

Johnny Depp is suing Amber Heard for $50 million in damages over an opinion piece she wrote for The Washington Post in 2018, in which she described surviving domestic violence — without mentioning Johnny by name. The actor testified in the case in April, and claimed Amber was the aggressor in the relationship. He said he brought the suit against her to “clear” his name. She, in turn, tried to portray Johnny as willing to use violence and influence to silence her.

The actor’s possible return to the witness stand follows testimony given on Thursday from actor Ellen Barkin, who was in a relationship with him in 1994 – and told the court he was an often-drunk, “jealous man,” who once threw a wine bottle in her direction.

During the ongoing trial Johnny said he has never hit a woman; while Amber said she was only ever physical with Johnny in self-defense or to protect her younger sister from his alleged aggression. Amber described the first time Johnny allegedly hit her and accused him of breaking her nose in a jealous rage.

When Amber filed for divorce in 2016, she filed a temporary restraining order against Johnny, claiming he had been abusive toward her throughout their relationship. Though Disney did not cite Amber’s Washington Post op-ed or her accusations as the reason, the studio dropped Johnny from their major franchise Pirates of the Caribbean, shortly after Amber’s essay was released.