In a rare interview, actress Amber Heard has finally spoken out about the aftermath of her 2022 defamation trial loss against ex-husband Johnny Depp.
Heard recently returned to the spotlight for the first time in years, appearing in new documentary Silenced and attending its premiere at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
Documentary summary
The documentary, directed by Selina Miles and international human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson, explores men’s weaponisation of defamation lawsuits to silence women who accuse them of abuse and highlights the backlash to the #MeToo movement.
While Heard’s story is referenced in the film, it centres other women’s experiences, such as a political staff member and a journalist who faced their own defamation lawsuits.
Silenced is Heard’s first appearance in a film since 2023’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which was filmed pre-trial.
The 39-year-old agreed to participate in Silenced but made her intentions clear for doing so.
“This is not about me,” she said in the film according to a report from Variety.
“I have lost my ability to speak. I am not here to tell my story. I don’t want to tell my story. In fact, I don’t want to use my voice any more. That’s the problem.”
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Defamation lawsuit
In 2018, Heard wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post in which she alleged domestic abuse by Depp.
Following this, Depp lost a libel case in the UK against The Sun for referring to him as a “wife beater” in their reportage in 2020, and the actor was subsequently dropped from the Fantastic Beasts franchise.
However, Depp later won a 2022 defamation case against Heard in the US, being awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5m in punitive damages.
The jury found that Heard’s statements about her marriage were “false” and that she acted with “actual malice”.
Throughout this period, Depp has denied all the accusations made against him.
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Speaking out
Heard further stated in the interview: “When I first met [Robinson], I immediately got the sense that she got the bigger picture.
“What has happened to me is an amplified version of what a lot of women live through.
“It gives me strength seeing other people take on the fight – women brave enough to address the imbalance of power.
“Looking at my daughter’s face as she grows up and slowly starts to walk into this world … I believe it can be better.”
The documentary is currently seeking cinema distribution, while Depp is planning a return to Hollywood this year following retirement rumours.
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Liam McLaughlan 
Paolo Castro