How Did Johnny Depp And Amber Heard Meet?

The following article includes discussion of alleged domestic abuse.

One would like to hope that there were good times for Amber Heard and Johnny Depp early on in their relationship, but it's hard to remember it now. With Heard and Depp in the throes of their shocking defamation trial, it's easy to forget any early days of happiness as details about their past come into the spotlight.

As the long-delayed trial continues rehashing old incidents of alleged violence, substance use, and bed-pooping (yep), it's again turned into a he-said-she-said about what may have happened during their volatile time together. Their short marriage ended in drama, with not only a messy divorce, but a restraining order amid allegations of domestic violence. Only married for 15 months, per Us Weekly, the two separated in May 2016 when Heard filed for divorce. She cited irreconcilable differences in the filing, but later she showed up in court with a bruised face, and was granted a temporary restraining order against Depp, per TMZ, as her application was filled with detailed accounts of verbal and physical abuse.

Depp and Heard have been going back and forth since then, as Depp responded with defamation lawsuits: the first against The Sun publisher News Group Newspapers for calling him a "wife-beater" (per BBC), and the current suit against Heard directly for writing about her experience after she came forward with the allegations in The Washington Post. With the horror stories of their turbulent relationship being told again in court, it's hard to remember how the ex-lovers first met.

Johnny Depp must have met hundreds of people on set over his more than 35 years in entertainment, but apparently, not all of them affected him in the way Amber Heard did. Depp was filming the movie adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson's novel, "The Rum Diary," in 2009 when he met Heard on set, according to Vulture. Depp played journalist Paul Kemp in the adventure film while Heard's female character, Chenault, grabbed Kemp's attention. The same seems to be true for the real-life couple.

Depp described their early relationship in his testimony, per Page Six, saying he felt "something I shouldn't be feeling" during filming. According to Depp, it was not until one particular intimate scene that the romance really began. "I think there was something in the kiss in the shower that was real," he said. Heard noticed it too, saying similar in her testimony (per Page Six). "I felt chemistry. I felt this other thing that went beyond my job, for sure," she said. "Johnny clearly felt that way about me."

Apparently, the two bonded over music. When asked what Depp liked about Heard when they first started seeing each other, Depp testified, "She seemed to be the perfect partner in a sense," describing her as "very knowledgeable about old obscure blues music." He also described her as "literate ... sweet, funny, nice, all those things."

Perhaps the initial romance felt forbidden because Johnny Depp and Amber Heard both had partners at the time. Heard was dating Tasya van Ree, while Depp was with Vanessa Paradis, with whom he has two children, Lily-Rose and Jack. Depp ended his 14-year relationship in 2012, per Us Weekly, and started dating Heard shortly after. Heard revealed during her testimony, per Mirror, that they were "secretly dating" and "in a bubble of secrecy" because Depp's split from Paradis wasn't yet public.

Heard felt bliss in those early days similar to what Depp described. "I felt like this man knew me, and saw me, in a way that no one else had. I felt he understood me, I felt he understood where I came from," she said. "When I was around Johnny, I felt like the most beautiful person in the world. It made me feel seen. It made me feel like a million dollars."

The couple married in February 2015, twice — once in a private setting and again with a big shindig (per Evening Standard). However, the honeymoon didn't seem to last long. During the 2020 lawsuit against The Sun, ABC News reported that Heard's friend testified against Depp, saying, "The first thing Johnny said to me after the ceremony, as we walked to the reception, was, 'Now I can punch her in the face and no-one can do anything about it.'" It seems Heard was also eager to hit her new spouse. In the former couple's defamation suits against each other, Depp's team played a recording of Heard telling Depp after an argument, "I'm sorry I didn't hit you across the face in a proper slap. I was hitting you, it was not punching you."

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.