Johnny Deppclaims he played a part in landing Amber Heard herAquamanrole.
On Wednesday, the actor, 58, returned to the stand when his team called him to testify again in his ongoing defamation trial against his ex-wife. In this final week of testimonies, Depp got the chance to respond to some matters brought up during Heard’s defense, including her saying he did not get her blockbusterAquamanrole for her.
In response to Heard’s claim, Depp said that is “not exactly true.”
In his testimony, Depp said that after Heard auditioned for the comic-book film, “She asked me if I’d speak to [Warner Bros.]”
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“I made a phone call and I spoke to three upper-echelon Warner Bros. executives … and I told them—,” continued Depp before an objection was sustained. “I can only say that she ultimately did get the job in the film. I suppose I curbed their worries to some degree.”
Heard’s legal team previously planned to call Depp back to the stand butchanged course at the last minuteon Monday. A source close to Heard said at the time, “Calling Depp back to the stand would be as relevant to us as a bicycle to a fish. Everything Depp has testified up to this point has been irrelevant to the heart of this case, and there’s no reason to believe it would be any different now.”
Johnny Depp.EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
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Aquamanwent on to be a box office hit after it was released in December 2018, the same month Heard’sWashington Postop-ed was published. Heard has testified thatshe “fought hard” to returnfor the sequelAquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which is already filmed and set to hit theaters March 2023.
She and her agent claimed her role was significantly “pared down” this time around due to negative headlines surrounding the Depp controversy. However, Depp’s legal team had DC Films President Walter Hamada testify that her role as Mera in the sequel was never planned to be significant, and that it’s instead a “buddy-comedy” centered on Jason Momoa and Patrick Wilson.
He also said there wereconcerns that she had no “natural chemistry"with Momoa in the first film, and it was discussed whether to recast her in the role.
EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / AFP/ Getty
“They didn’t really have a lot of chemistry together,” Hamada said with a laugh during cross-examination. “The reality is it’s not uncommon on movies for two leads to not have chemistry. It’s sort of movie magic and editorial, the ability to sort of put performances together with the magic of, you know, a great score and how you put the pieces together. You can fabricate that sort of chemistry.”
He continued, “At the end of the day, I think if you watch the movie, they look like they had great chemistry. I just know that over the course of post-production, it took a lot of effort to get there. … You know it when you see it. The chemistry wasn’t there.”
When asked what issues were had with Heard in the making ofAquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Hamada said, “My understanding is actually the production went very smoothly.”
Back in November 2020, Depplost his highly publicized U.K. libel lawsuit caseagainst British tabloidThe Sunfor calling him a “wife-beater.” The court upheld the outlet’s claims as being “substantially true” and Heard testified to back up the claims. In March 2021, Depp’s attempt tooverturn the decision was overruled.
source: people.com
