Dakota Johnson on the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard Trial: ‘Please, Take Me Out of This’
It’s been a month since the Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard defamation trial reached its end after six grueling weeks of legal drama. But it seems the tension is continuing beyond the courtroom. While she wasn’t explicitly involved with the case, 50 Shades of Grey actor Dakota Johnson found herself wrapped up in the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial after an old video of her and Depp made its rounds across the internet. However, Johnson is making one thing clear: She never wanted anything to do with Heard and Depp’s legal battle.
A quick recap of the Depp v. Heard trial
The defamation lawsuit, which Depp first filed in 2019, kicked off on April 11, 2022. Depp’s lawyers claimed Heard was creating a false narrative to cast her ex-husband in a bad light. And Heard’s legal team accused Depp of violence during their marriage, among other things.
The lawsuit itself marked nearly six years after Heard filed for divorce from the Pirates of the Caribbean actor. Days later, in 2016, Heard was granted a temporary restraining order against Depp after an incident in which Heard claimed Depp physically attacked her. Depp has since denied this.
After six weeks of courtroom drama, the jury reached its verdict on June 1. It awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. Heard received $2 million in damages in her countersuit.
Why Dakota Johnson didn’t want to be swept up in the courtroom drama
In a Vanity Fair interview, Johnson opened up about a now-viral clip that resurfaced during the Depp v. Heard trial. In the clip, she notices Depp’s bandaged finger while doing press for their 2015 film, Black Mass.
In response to the video’s popularity, Johnson revealed she was “confused” at some social media users connecting her to the legal story. Many Depp supporters viewed Johnson’s seemingly concerned expression in the clip as “proof” that she was aware of the behind-the-scenes feud between Depp and his former wife.
“I was like, ‘For the love of God, why? Why am I involved in this?’” Johnson told Vanity Fair. “I don’t remember that at all, but please, take me out of this. Don’t let this go further. Can you imagine, oh, my God, if I was called to the witness stand?”
The actor then went on to express her bewilderment at the way the trial was watched “like a show.” The case was streamed live across the internet.
Johnson continued, “I can’t believe that people are watching [the trial] like it’s a show. It’s like it’s a courtroom drama and my heart breaks. It’s so, so, so crazy. Humans are so f***ing weird. The internet is a wild, wild place.”
Other celebrities caught up in Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s case
Johnson was far from the only public figure who inadvertently found themselves involved in the case.
During the trial, Depp’s legal team alluded to a romantic relationship between Heard and her Pineapple Express co-star James Franco. According to Insider, lawyers played a video of Heard and Franco in her apartment elevator one day before she filed for divorce from Depp.
“He was my friend and he lived next door, quite literally next door,” Heard testified during the trial. “And I quite literally exhausted my support network with my usual friends, and I was happy to welcome as much friendship at that time as I could possibly get.”
Actor and Depp’s longtime friend Paul Bettany‘s name also came up during the trial. Texts between Bettany and Depp were read in court. They included graphic descriptions of violence that Depp allegedly would have liked to have done to his ex-wife. Depp said the texts were taken out of context and that he and Bettany were quoting Monty Python movies.
Several of Depp’s exes — including Kate Moss, Winona Ryder, and Vanessa Paradis — also found themselves entangled in the trial. Moss even appeared via video stream to say Depp was never violent with her throughout their five-year relationship.
Other celebrities who found themselves caught up in the trail were Depp’s controversial friend Marilyn Manson, Heard’s former fling Elon Musk, and Depp’s ex-girlfriend Ellen Barkin.
