The legal battle lives on. Earlier this year, former lovers Johnny Depp and Amber Heard took their issues to the courtroom following allegations of domestic abuse that had persisted for years. Depp had sued Heard specifically for a Washington Post op-ed she wrote in 2018 describing herself as a survivor of domestic abuse, arguing that the insinuation that he’d abused her ruined his career. The Edward Scissorhands star also claimed he’d been the one who was abused, which includes an incident that resulted in Depp having his fingertip severed. Heard countersued, insisting she was being truthful.

Ultimately, the jury sided mostly with Depp, agreeing that Heard had fabricated the allegations that Depp had been physically abusive. She was ordered to pay $15 million in damages, though the amount was later reduced to $10.35 million. However, the jury also awarded Heard $2 million on one of her three counterclaims of defamation. This was due to comments Depp’s former lawyer, Adam Waldman, had made about Heard.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

“Amber and her friends spilled a little wine and roughed the place up, got their stories straight under the direction of a lawyer and publicist, and then placed a second call to 911,” Waldman said at the time.

Per TMZ, Depp’s team formally filed an appeal of the $2 million judgment on Wednesday. The appeal argues that Depp should not be held responsible for comments that his former lawyer made, and, therefore, he shouldn’t have to pay out. Depp’s lawyers also claim that Heard’s team failed to prove that Waldman had made those comments with malice, which is necessary with a defamation suit. They’re asking the judge to toss that single count of the verdict while obviously maintaining the $10.35 million judgment against Heard.

Depp v Heard Continues

     Law & Crime Network

Depp’s lawyers did announce their plans to appeal back in July, though it was just recently formally filed. That came just days after Heard first stated her intentions to appeal the judgment against her. A statement from Depp’s team at the time insinuated that they were appealing mostly in response to Heard’s appeal.

“The verdict speaks for itself, and Mr. Depp believes that this a time for both parties to move on with their lives and heal,” the statement read. “But if Ms. Heard is determined to pursue further litigation by appealing the verdict, Mr. Depp is filing a concurrent appeal to ensure that the full record and all legal issues are considered by the Court of Appeal.”

Meanwhile, Depp has been getting his career in show business back on track, having since appeared at the MTV Video Music Awards. He will also reportedly appear in Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty Show Vol. 4 on Prime Video on Nov. 9. As for Heard, she can be seen in the upcoming sequel Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. There have also been reports that she is penning a tell-all book that will include more information about her tumultuous relationship with Depp.