Celebrity News June 30, 2023
Amber Heard Attends Film Fest in ‘Unforgettable’ First Outing Since Johnny Depp Trial
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Amber Heard has made her return to the public eye.
On Friday, the actress posted an Instagram photo of herself onstage last weekend at the 69th Taormina Film Festival in Italy — her first social media post not connected to the high-profile defamation trial she went through with ex-husband Johnny Depp.
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Amber Heard Pays $1-Million Settlement to Johnny Depp — He Will Donate It to Charity
View Story“Thank you for such an incredibly warm reception at the Taormina Film festival for my latest movie In the Fire. It was an unforgettable weekend. #InTheFire,” Heard wrote on Instagram.
It was her first public appearance since the trial ended on June 1, 2022, after a seven-person jury found that she defamed Depp in her Washington Post op-ed about domestic violence and awarded him more than $10 million in damages.
Amber had initially filed to appeal the verdict, then announced in December 2022 that she had reached a settlement with Depp.
“It’s important for me to say that I never chose this,” Heard wrote in a statement at the time. “I defended my truth and in doing so my life as I knew it was destroyed. The vilification I have faced on social media is an amplified version of the ways women are re-victimized when they come forward.”
She continued, “Now I finally have an opportunity to emancipate myself from something I attempted to leave over six years ago and on terms I can agree to. I have made no admission. This is not an act of concession. There are no restrictions or gags with respect to my voice moving forward.”
She added, “I cannot afford to risk an impossible bill — one that is not just financial, but also psychological, physical, and emotional. Women shouldn’t have to face abuse or bankruptcy for speaking her truth, but unfortunately, it is not uncommon.
“I will not be threatened, disheartened, or dissuaded by what happened from speaking the truth. No one can and no one will take that from me. My voice forever remains the most valuable asset I have.”
In June 2023, Amber paid a $1 million settlement to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” actor.
At the time, a source close to Depp told People magazine that the actor will divide up the payments among five charities of his choosing, “with $200,000 going to each.” The nonprofit organizations receiving the donations are the Painted Turtle, Red Feather, Tetiaroa Society, the Amazônia Fund Alliance, and the Make a Film Foundation.
