Is James Franco Getting Dragged Into Johnny Depp’s Defamation Lawsuit Against Amber Heard?
James Franco is reportedly getting involved in Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s legal battle.
According to The Blast, Depp’s legal team has issued a subpoena to the “127 Hours” actor after he was caught on surveillance video with Heard in the elevator at Depp’s Los Angeles apartment following the alleged fight on May 21, 2016, that ended the couple’s marriage. In the footage, Franco and Heard can be seen standing close to the “Aquaman” actress as they both appear to conceal their faces from the camera.
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Depp’s team reportedly wants Franco to testify in his defamation lawsuit against Heard. His lawyer, Adam Waldman, told The Blast, “We are interested in James Franco and Elon Musk as fact witnesses because we have evidence they are men who saw Amber Heard’s face in the days and nights between when she claimed Mr. Depp smashed her face in on May 21 and when she went to court with painted on ‘bruises’ to obtain a temporary restraining order on May 27.”
The “Pirates of the Caribbean” star filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife in March, claiming her previous allegations of domestic abuse are “an elaborate hoax.”
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In December 2018, Heard wrote an op-ed for The Washington Post, in which she referred to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” Even though Heard never mentioned Depp’s name in the piece, the lawsuit claims the article “depends on the central premise that Ms. Heard was a domestic abuse victim.” Depp has denied all allegations of abuse.
In a statement to Access, Heard’s attorney Eric M. George previously told Access, “The frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced. Mr. Depp’s actions prove he is unable to accept the truth of his ongoing abusive behavior. But while he appears hell-bent on achieving self-destruction, we will prevail in defeating this groundless lawsuit and ending this vile harassment of my client by Mr. Depp and his legal team.”
Heard filed for divorce from Depp in May 2016 after 15 months of marriage, and they later finalized their divorce in January 2017.