After a river testimony, Johnny Depp gave up his place on Tuesday on the witness stand to those who revolve around him: agent, driver, bodyguard, wealth or property manager … And these secondary characters have sometimes stole the show.
Between farce and drama, the trial between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard focused this week on the galaxy of professionals who surround the star, painting a portrait of Hollywood in all its excess. The 36-year-old actress’ domestic violence charges and the 58-year-old star’s denials are at the heart of a high-profile defamation lawsuit that has been going on since April 11 in suburban Washington.
After a river testimony, Johnny Depp gave up his place on Tuesday on the witness stand to those who revolve around him: agent, driver, bodyguard, wealth or property manager … And these secondary characters have sometimes stole the show.
To read : At the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard trial, a photo of the actor, the swollen face, revealed
The porter who vapes
Alejandro Romero is a doorman in a luxury building in Los Angeles where the couple lived. Testifying by video link, driving a car, he assured not to have seen marks on the face of Amber Heard after the couple’s final argument in May 2016. The actress appeared shortly after in court , apparently swollen, to apply for a protective order.
But the porter didn’t want to dwell on his memories. “I’m too stressed, I don’t want to have to meddle in this anymore,” he said, showing his ill will as he tugged on his e-cigarette. To drive the point home, he ended up starting his car.
“Well, here’s a first, I’m sorry,” commented Judge Penney Azcarate, visibly taken aback.
The bodyguard with chiseled replicas
Security guard Malcolm Connolly has worked for Johnny Depp for 23 years. With a marked Scottish accent, he gave her unfailing support on Thursday, describing an Amber Heard “who wanted to wear the panties” and initiated arguments.
Asked about the actor’s alcohol and drug use, he assured that the star had “a high tolerance for all substances” and referred to his role in “Pirates of the Caribbean”: “I believe that Jack Sparrow was more drunk than Johnny…”
Even in these circumstances, he never saw the actor urinate in a hallway, as a lawyer for Amber Heard suggested. “I think I would remember if I had seen Mr. Depp’s penis…”
Underlining his financial dependence on the actor, Ms. Heard’s lawyers asked him if he had received $8,500 in gifts over the years. “He gave me so much more than that!” replied Malcolm Connolly without flinching.
The huge checks of the financial manager
The lifestyle of Johnny Depp, who has owned 45 luxury cars, a yacht and several properties, has regularly hit the headlines. His “business manager”, Edward White, told Thursday how he had sought to redress his accounts, while settling the costs of the divorce with Amber Heard, pronounced in 2017.
“At first she was asking for four million dollars, but her requests kept increasing,” he said. In the end, Johnny Depp paid her $6.8 million, wrote checks for $200,000 in donations in her name, paid half a million to her lawyers, and assumed all debts incurred during their lifetime. municipality, or $13.5 million.
L’agent confident
Christian Carino was the agent and friend of the two actors, but no longer speaks to either of them.
By video, he reported having tried, in vain, to reconcile them and read text messages exchanged with Amber Heard after their divorce. In a message, the “Aquaman” actress said she was “sad” to have broken up with her new lover, billionaire Elon Musk.
“You didn’t like him and you told me a thousand times that you just wanted to plug the hole,” replied the agent, advising him to stop dating “super famous people”.
Christian Carino spoke knowingly: he was once Lady Gaga’s fiancé.
Psychological analysis of costumes
On the first day of the trial, Johnny Depp wore a light gray suit with a black tie decorated with a bee-shaped pattern. The next day, Amber Heard had a gray jacket, the day after a bee tie.
At the helm, Shannon Curry, a psychologist hired by Johnny Depp’s lawyers, felt that the actress suffered from a personality disorder that could push her to “imitate” her relatives “because it is reassuring”.
And now ?
Ms. Heard’s lawyers wanted to hear Elon Musk and actor James Franco, another relative of their client. But the two men declined, without explaining their reasons.