Besides social media users taking sides, tweets claimed that Heard’s statement in court was allegedly borrowed verbatim from the film ‘The Talented Mr Ripley‘. Social media users spread rumours that Heard was “acting” during her testimony and claimed that she stole lines from movies and passed them off as her own.
One popular claim stated that Heard stole lines nearly word-for-word from the 1999 movie. The viral tweet shared a screenshot of the dialogues between the characters and claimed that Heard repeated the same to describe her alleged traumatic situation with Johnny.
OMFG. Check this out. Amber Heard on the stand yesterday and what she said compared to the lines in The Talented Mr… https://t.co/41fz580KO1
— Ranty (@AuditTheAbsurd) 1651741695000
However, snopes.com ran a fact check on the viral post and declared them to be ‘false’. According to the report, Heard did not say these words during the trial, nor did she make an ‘opening statement’, as claimed in the tweets.
None of the tweets shared a video of the actress making the statement in court, nor posted transcripts of the same on any media portal. The tweets raised suspicion as videos of the trial is publicly available.
‘We watched Heard’s testimony and did not hear her utter the alleged passage from ‘The Talented Mr Ripley” read the report on the fact-checking site.
Amber Heard: “When I was around Johnny I felt like the most beautiful person in the world—then he would disappear”… https://t.co/jInSkXCOg1
— Alana Mastrangelo (@ARmastrangelo) 1651779758000
Some other Twitter users went a step further and made videos of Amber’s testimony in court and added the scene from the movie featuring Gwyneth Paltrow and Matt Damon and asked viewers “Watch the clips side by side.”
Depp, testified earlier in the trial that he never hit Heard and argued that she was the one who was the abuser.
The star of the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ films is suing Heard, 36, for $50 million, saying she defamed him when she claimed she was a victim of domestic abuse. Heard has counter-sued for $100 million, arguing Depp smeared her by calling her a liar.
The legal case hinges on a December 2018 opinion piece Heard authored in the Washington Post. The article never mentioned Depp by name, but his lawyer told jurors it was clear Heard was referencing him. The couple’s divorce was finalized in 2017 after less than two years of marriage.
Depp, once among Hollywood’s biggest stars, said Heard’s allegations cost him “everything.” A new “Pirates” movie was put on hold, and Depp was replaced in the “Fantastic Beasts” film franchise, a “Harry Potter” spinoff.
Heard’s attorneys have argued that she told the truth and that her opinion was protected free speech under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment.
A state court judge in Virginia’s Fairfax County is overseeing the trial, which is in recess until May 16. Closing arguments are scheduled for May 27.
Less than two years ago, Depp lost a libel case against the Sun, a British tabloid that labelled him a “wife beater.” A London High Court judge ruled he had repeatedly assaulted Heard.
Depp’s lawyers have said they filed the U.S. case in Fairfax County because the Washington Post is printed there. The newspaper is not a defendant.
