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Johnny Depp has lost his court case against British newspaper The Sun, following his high-stakes libel action after the media outlet described him as a “wife beater,” referring to his ex-wife Amber Heard.
The high court acknowledged that the evidence and allegations against the actor “have had a negative effect” on his career as an actor and activist, however his claim for compensation was ultimately dismissed.
In what was said to be “one of the most widely followed libel trials of the century,” the judge specified that Depp did not succeed in his action for libel because the defendants, The Sun and News Group Newspapers, published a description of the actor that was “substantially true.”
The legal team for the actor stated that the conclusion made by the high court was a “perverse and bewildering decision.”
The judge also said that after examining in detail all the “14 incidents on which the defendants rely as well” and the circumstances, the verdict was finally made official, adding that the characterization made by Depp of his ex-wife was not acceptable.
Referring to his description of Amber being “a gold-digger,” it was concluded that even though there were a series of elements involved in the divorce settlement, the fact that the actress made a $7 million donation to charity was “hardly the act one would expect of a gold-digger.”
The long-awaited decision was published online, almost three months from the high court hearing in July, in which Depp sued the publishing company for the headline that read “How can JK Rowling be ‘genuinely happy’ casting wife beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?”