by Hannah Lee ’21

Johnny Depp is a well known figure in Hollywood best known as Captain Jack Sparrow in the franchise “Pirates of the Caribbean”. In 2018, producers fired Depp from his role amid abuse allegations made by his former wife Amber Heard. These allegations were one of the top scandals at the time and Depp’s career suffered greatly from them. However, recently an audio confession has surfaced which revealed the true nature of the situation. In it, Heard admits she had been the perpetrator of violence during their marriage, not Depp. Depp was wrongly named as the abuser and should not have had his career ruined, as he was innocent all along.

The controversy began in May of 2016 when Heard filed for divorce and the court issued her a temporary restraining order against Depp. Heard made allegations of physical and emotional abuse against Depp but retracted them a day before the restraining order hearing. Depp and his team denied all allegations and the two reached a divorce settlement of $7 million. Still, Heard soon became an important figure in the media as a spokeswoman for domestic abuse. She was looked up to by many women who have gone through similar experiences and was painted as a survivor. In March 2019, Depp filed a defamation lawsuit against Heard claiming her false allegations and fake injuries had cost him his role in “The Pirates of the Caribbean”. Depp also accused Heard of abusing him throughout the length of their relationship whilst she was under the influence of alcohol.

The newly released audio recording of a phone call includes Heard admitting that she had physically abused Depp during their marriage, taunting and mocking him for being upset that she had gotten violent with him. She is also accused of having thrown pans, pots, and burning candles during their arguments. Even though Depp had continuously refuted her allegations and stated that she had been the abuser, the media labeled him as a wife-beater at once, resulting in many of his former fans turning against him. Depp’s admirable acting career was quickly overwritten by the claims and his reputation declined significantly. Now that this new evidence has come to light, support for Depp is rising and those who wrongfully sided with Heard are shaming her for acting as a victim and posing as an advocate.

In an age where every aspect of celebrities’ lives are put on blast and sold to tabloids, people should not be so quick to jump to conclusions. Regardless of the fact that they are famous, celebrities still deserve a fair chance at being proven innocent or guilty without having to have the public criticize and condemn them for it through social media before they know all the facts. These kinds of assumptions are unfair and lead to undeserving collateral damage in peoples’ lives and reputation. Especially with the emergence of the “me too” movement, it is important to stress that men can be victims as well and to prevent the spread of false claims-as they undermine real victims’ stories and credibility. This is not to say that people should not take those who share their stories seriously, we should. However, we must also keep in mind how crucial it is to learn all the facts before mislabeling someone as an abuser.