Johnny Depp said he has "no regrets" over his highly publicized legal battle with actor and ex-wife Amber Heard.
The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star made the remarks during an interview with The Times of London while claiming he was a "crash test dummy for #MeToo."
"No, I have no regrets about anything — because, truly, what can we do about last week's dinner? Not a [expletive] thing," he said of the court trial with Heard.
In 2022, Depp and Heard were involved in the legal fracas that ended with a jury unanimously ruling that Depp was defamed. Following her appeal, both parties announced a settlement, with Heard agreeing to pay a sum that would be donated to charity, Deadline reported.
The dispute originated from a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which Heard described herself as a domestic violence survivor without naming Depp directly.
Prior to that case, Depp lost a 2020 libel suit in the U.K. against The Sun over being labeled a "wife beater," with the judge ruling that most of Heard's abuse claims were proved. Following the verdict, Depp was asked to step down from the Fantastic Beasts franchise.
Depp claimed that his experience took place before the rise of the #MeToo movement, which he said he believes contributed to the lack of public support for him at the time.
"I'll tell you what hurts. There are people, and I'm thinking of three, who did me dirty. Those people were at my kids' parties. Throwing them in the air. And, look, I understand people who could not stand up [for me] because the most frightening thing to them was making the right choice," he said.
"I was pre-#MeToo. I was like a crash test dummy for #MeToo," he continued. "It was before Harvey Weinstein. And I sponged it, took it all in. And so I wanted from the hundreds of people I've met in that industry to see who was playing it safe. Better go woke!"
Since 2022, Depp has remained active in the public eye, appearing at the MTV VMAs, touring with Hollywood Vampires in 2023, and participating in Savage X Fenty's fashion show. He's set to star alongside Penelope Cruz in "Day Drinker" and was scheduled to begin filming Terry Gilliam's "Carnival: At the End of Days" in April.
"My comeback? Honestly? I didn't go anywhere," he said about his career. "If I had the chance to split, I would never come back."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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