Johnny Depp’s security guard Travis McGivern has spoken out about the actor’s shock when Amber Heard punched him in the face during a fight while testifying at the former couple’s libel trial.
The defamation trial between Mr. Depp and Ms. Heard began on Monday, April 11, in Fairfax, Virginia, following Mr. Depp’s lawsuit against his ex-wife in March 2019. Mr. Depp argues that she defamed in a December 2018 op-ed published on washington post titled “I spoke out against sexual violence — and faced the wrath of our culture. That has to change.”
McGivern, appearing via video link from Los Angeles, said the fight took place on March 23, 2015. Heard left during an argument and returned to her sister Whitney. The bodyguard testified that he felt it was time to remove Depp from the situation.
He said he “heard and saw a clenched fist touch Mr. Depp on the left side of his face”, noting that it was Ms. Heard’s fist.
“The initial look” on Mr. Depp’s face was one of “shock,” the guard said, adding that he moved him and told him they were leaving.
“It was no longer up to him,” she said, adding that it was “my time to do my job.”
He said that Depp was not happy with him and that the actor lowered his glasses, pointed to the left side of his face and said “that’s your fault”. McGivern said that he agreed and that there was “a nice glow” on Depp’s face. He said that he wasn’t black and blue “yet”, but that he was “swollen and red”.
McGivern said he met Heard in the summer of 2013. He had started working for Depp in March of that year.
The guard testified that the relationship became more “volatile” as time went on. He said that he noticed a change in March 2015 when the couple returned from their trip to Australia, something that was much discussed during the trial.
McGivern said the discussions would take place “every other night…several times a week.” He said that he would receive a text message from Mr. Depp asking Mr. McGivern to come to the penthouse and that he would stand by the door or in the kitchen.
He said the arguments were “just verbal…screaming” at the time and that Depp wanted to “get out of there.”
The guard said there was “a lot of name calling” and “f-bombs.”
In her 2018 opinion piece, Ms. Heard wrote that “like many women, she had been sexually harassed and assaulted when she was college age. But I kept quiet, I did not expect to file complaints to do justice. And I didn’t see myself as a victim.”
“Then two years ago I became a public figure representing domestic abuse and felt the full force of our culture’s anger at women speaking out,” she added at the time.
While Mr. Depp is not mentioned in the article, his legal team argues that it contains a “clear implication that Mr. Depp is a domestic abuser”, which they say is “categorically and demonstrably false”. Mr. Depp is seeking compensation of “not less than $50 million”.
Ms. Heard has filed a $100 million counterclaim against Mr. Depp for nuisance and immunity from his allegations.
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