Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard defamation lawsuit: Who won, total damages, final verdict and more revealed

The Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard lawsuit was truly a case that was heard around the world. Many people watched the Fairfax, Virginia courtroom for almost the entirety of the six-week long case. Both Depp and Heard are high-profile actors with huge fan followings, so it was not a surprise that millions were tuning in every day.

Depp is well known for his role as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, while Amber Heard played Mera in the Aquaman franchise. The two were briefly married before and the details of their marriage were laid bare within the four walls of the courtroom.

It was clear from the beginning that case would be important, and have lasting effects on both their careers, the industry, and domestic violence cases going forward. Here's everything you need to know about the verdict delivered by the jury.

---

Jury finally delivers verdict in Depp v. Heard lawsuit

At 3.00 pm EST on Wednesday, June 1, the jury returned to the courtroom after deliberating on and off for a total of nearly 13 hours. However, the judge had to send the verdict to the deliberation room before delivering it. Despite reaching a unanimous verdict on all counts prior to their return at 3.00 pm EST, they had forgotten to indicate the monetary value to be won by either party. They reconvened and the verdict came back shortly thereafter with the missing information filled in.

Johnny Depp can be considered the winner of this case. In his defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard, the jury agreed with him on all counts. They agreed that the op-ed Heard wrote was based on false statements, and that it caused damage to Depp's career. Most importantly, they ruled that Heard exhibited actual malice. This means that the jury believes that Heard knew her claims were false but went ahead with publishing them anyway, solely to hurt Depp's career and his image.

Actual malice is difficult to prove in defamation lawsuits, but Depp and his legal team, featuring Camille Vasquez and Ben Chew, among others did an excellent job.

Depp was awarded a total of $15 million in damages to be paid by Heard, a debilitating amount for anyone to part with including a high-profile actress. Heard recently claimed that she is losing roles and having current roles significantly reduced due to her legal battle with Depp, so this verdict might hit her even harder.

However, despite losing everything on the front end, Heard does not walk away with empty hands. The jury agreed with her on a few counts in the countersuit, and she was awarded $2 million as a result.

Ultimately, the jury felt that Depp was defamed and that he had lost his reputation and career opportunities as a result, but they stopped short of calling him totally innocent. In fact, they felt that his claims were defamatory in nature and had harmed Heard's career as well.

Heard in Aquaman (Image via Warner Bros.)

The lawsuit is officially over, but its impact on the cultural landscape is just beginning to take shape. There is no doubt that both actors' careers will be affected by the lawsuit and its verdict. It may even become a landmark case for high-profile defamation cases and domestic abuse lawsuits.

For now, Johnny Depp has won the case and Amber Heard is on the losing side.