The actress navigates complex legal battles amid a high-profile defamation case
Amber Heard, 36, stepped into the witness stand during her multimillion-dollar defamation trial with ex-husband Johnny Depp, acknowledging that she was “the lesser known person” in the courtroom compared to Depp’s status. Heard’s career spans supporting roles in various Hollywood productions and a prominent role as Mera in the Aquaman franchise within the DC superhero universe.
Heard has a one-year-old daughter, Oonagh, born in 2021 via surrogate. Before her marriage to Depp, she dated photographer Tasya Van Ree and identifies as bisexual. Raised on a ranch near Austin, Texas, with her parents and younger sister Whitney, she grew up learning to break horses with her father, a skill her lawyers say shaped her resilience: “not to show fear or pain.”
At 17, she relocated to Los Angeles after being spotted by a Hollywood agent, supporting herself with part-time work while pursuing auditions. Heard’s early career saw minor roles in TV series such as Jack & Bobby, The Mountain and The OC, before making her film debut in 2004’s Friday Night Lights.
Her first major role came in 2008, when she starred alongside Seth Rogen in Pineapple Express. She first encountered Depp during 2009’s The Rum Diaries, based on Hunter S. Thompson’s novel. Heard’s lawyers claim Depp pursued her during this period, gifting her a guitar, which she eventually returned.
The pair began dating during The Rum Diaries press tour in 2011. That same year, Heard starred in Drive Angry with Nicolas Cage and appeared as the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car on Top Gear. Her career continued with roles in Magic Mike XXL, The Danish Girl and The Adderall Diaries by 2015.
Heard married Depp in a private Los Angeles ceremony in February 2015, but the couple separated just 15 months later in May 2016. Following their split, Heard pledged to donate her $7 million (£5.5 million) settlement to two charities: the American Civil Liberties Union and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
She became a notable figure in the DC Extended Universe after being cast as Mera in Aquaman in 2017, reprising her role in Aquaman 2, set for release in 2023.
In December 2018, Heard published an op-ed in The Washington Post titled “I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.” While the article detailed her personal experience with domestic violence, Depp’s legal team sued her for defamation, claiming it harmed his reputation, even though Depp was never named in the piece.
This lawsuit, which now dominates the courtroom, highlights Amber Heard’s journey through a high-profile legal battle, a successful but tumultuous Hollywood career, and ongoing scrutiny as her personal and professional life collide.
