Depp’s agent calls Heard op-ed piece on abuse ‘catastrophic’

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP) — Johnny Depp’s agent says that ex-wife Amber Heard’s 2018 op-ed piece in The Washington Post describing herself as a victim of domestic abuse was “catastrophic” to Depp’s career and coincided with the loss of a $23 million deal for a “Pirates of the Caribbean” sequel. During cross-examination Monday, Heard’s lawyers pushed back aggressively on agent Jack Whigham’s assertions. Heard’s lawyers suggested the Post article was inconsequential amid a stream of bad publicity for Depp brought on by his own bad behavior. Depp is suing Heard for libel in a Virginia court, saying her article defamed him when she described herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.”