Johnny Depp’s daughter joined his ex-wife and a former partner to defend his reputation on Sunday, praising him as “loving” and “wonderful” in the face of domestic violence accusations from Amber Heard.
After Heard, who has filed for divorce, claimed to have been assaulted by Depp, other women in the actor’s life came to his defence.
“In all the years I have known Johnny, he has never been physically abusive with me, and this looks nothing like the man I lived with for 14 wonderful years,” said Vanessa Paradis, who has a son and a daughter with Depp. Paradis, 43, added: “I believe with all my heart that these recent allegations being made are outrageous.”
Her words of praise came in a handwritten letter from Paradis, dated May 27, 2016, sent to the celebrity news site TMZ.
Her 17-year-old daughter with Depp, Lily-Rose, echoed her message. “My dad is the sweetest most loving person I know, he’s been nothing but a wonderful father to my little brother and I, and everyone who knows him would say the same,” she said in the caption of a childhood picture posted on Instagram.
Depp’s ex-wife, Lori Anne Allison, also chose to speak out. The actor was a “soft person” who had never once shouted during their two-year marriage in the 1980s, she said. Allison and Depp are said to remain friends. They were reported to have spoken after Betty Sue Palmer, the actor’s mother, died last week at the age of 81.
A judge issued a restraining order against Depp last week after Heard, 30, claimed he had repeatedly assaulted her. Heard, who had a bruise on her cheek when she appeared in an Los Angeles court to file for divorce, alleged that Depp had thrown an iPhone into her face. The actor had an “exceptionally scary temper”, said Heard, and she had sometimes felt that her life was threatened.
Depp’s representatives have claimed that Heard’s allegations of violence are a fabricated attempt to achieve a “quick financial settlement” in the divorce.
“Given the brevity of this marriage and the most recent and tragic loss of his mother, Johnny will not respond to any of the salacious false stories, gossip, misinformation and lies about his personal life,” said a statement. Depp met Heard on the set of The Rum Diary in 2009 and they began dating in 2012. The couple were married in a civil ceremony in February 2015. Heard is believed to be seeking spousal support from the actor amounting to tens of thousands of pounds a month. Depp has an estimated total fortune of £270 million (Dh1.5 billion).
