Amber Heard doesn’t blame fans siding with Johnny Depp in her first sit-down interview after losing defamation case

Amber Heard says she doesn’t blame the fans for siding with Johnny Depp through their recently concluded defamation trial, calling her ex-husband a ‘beloved character’ during her first sit-down interview.

The Hollywood actress, during an interview with Savannah Guthrie of NBC’s ‘Today’ show, also spoke about the vitriol that had been directed at her all through the trail, while also understanding why the seven-member Virginia jury favoured Depp in their verdict.

“I don’t blame them,” Heard told Guthrie in a video clip that has been released. “I actually understand. He’s a beloved character and people feel they know him. He’s a fantastic actor.”

However, the actress did take objection to the treatment that she was subjected to on social media and fan clubs through the six-week saga. “I don’t care what one thinks about me or what judgements you want to make about what happened in the privacy of my home, in my marriage, behind closed doors,” Heard says in the clip. “I don’t presume the average person should know those things. And so I don’t take it personally.

“But even somebody who is sure I’m deserving of all this hate and vitriol, even if you think that I’m lying, you still couldn’t look me in the eye and tell me that you think on social media there’s been a fair representation. You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair.”

Last month, the seven-person jury in Virginia ruled that Heard defamed the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star through an editorial she wrote for ‘The Washington Post’ and awarded him $10.35 million (Dh38 million) in damages. The jury also determined that Heard was defamed, awarding her $2 million.

The 2018 op-ed that was published under Heard’s byline saw the ‘Aquaman’ star speak about being a victim of domestic abuse, without naming Depp. However, the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ star responded saying it was implied that she was pointing a finger at him and filed a defamation lawsuit in the state of Virginia.

Depp had previously lost a similar case in the UK after he battled The Sun over an article which called him a ‘wifebeater’. In that case a judge ruled there was sufficient evidence to back up the allegation.

Heard plans on appealing the jury’s decision according to her attorneys.

Meanwhile, the full interview with Heard will air on the network on June 15.