Johnny Depp 'completely destroyed' house during 'drug-fuelled rage'
9 July 2020, 20:52
Johnny Depp completely destroyed a home in Australia during a drink and drug-fuelled binge, it has been alleged.
The Edward Scissorhands star was accused by lawyers for News Group Newspapers (NGN) of destroying the house in a drink and drug-fuelled rage during a visit to the country in March 2015.
According to one estimate, there was between 100,000 to 150,000 dollars-worth of damage to the property, the High Court was told.
Mr Depp is suing NGN, which publishes The Sun newspaper, over an April 2018 article which labelled him a "wife-beater".
The actor is alleged to have assaulted his ex-wife Amber Heard during the trip to Australia.
The visit is one of 14 alleged incidents of domestic violence, all denied by Mr Depp, relied on by NGN in their defence against the actor's libel claim.
Sasha Wass QC, for NGN, said that, on the last day the couple were in Australia, Ms Heard "came downstairs in the morning ... and the house was completely destroyed".
She said: "Everything was broken and shattered, the television, the window, there was paint everywhere and it was clear at that stage that you had very seriously damaged your finger.
Mr Depp said his finger was "bleeding profusely", prompting Ms Wass to ask why he waited "hours and hours before you called for any help".
The actor denied that was true.
Ms Wass continued: "You had written on a mirror. You had written in paint but you had used your finger, your injured finger, in place of a paintbrush so you had dipped your injured finger in the paint and then used your finger to do the graffiti."
Mr Depp said: "At first, I had used my blood."
Ms Wass said: "This painting exercise of yours was going on all over the house."
She added: "Somebody who was sober and not under the influence of drugs would have realised or would have felt considerable pain."
Mr Depp said: "Yes, ma'am, I did feel considerable pain."
Ms Wass said: "You didn't know what you were doing at this stage."
Mr Depp said: "That's not true, I knew exactly what I was doing."
He added: "For me, at that time, it was the end.
"I was convinced it was never going to get any better, only worse, and worse was death. So this (the painting) is a message to her, 'good luck and be careful at the top', in reference to her ambition to be a big star."
The barrister had earlier suggested Mr Depp had broken a window, which he denied, and had "repeatedly" smashed a telephone against a wall.
The star said this was "possible" adding he remembered "ripping the phone off the wall".
Mr Depp said his relationship with ex-wife Amber Heard was "a crime scene waiting to happen".
The barrister said: "It appears Mr Judge is saying that if they hadn't come along when they did, either you would be dead or Ms Heard would be dead.
"That would be an odd thing to say if it was Ms Heard who was the only violent party - do you agree or not?"
Mr Depp replied: "There are several times when I have spoken to Ms Heard and said, 'listen, we are a crime scene waiting to happen'."
Earlier, Ms Wass had said Ms Heard alleges there was a "three-day ordeal of assaults" in Australia, "during which you were under the influence of drugs including MDMA and you were violent"
Mr Depp said: "I vehemently deny it and would go so far as to say it is pedestrian fiction."
The actor's case against NGN and Mr Wootton arises out of the publication of an article on The Sun's website on April 27 2018 with the headline "Gone Potty: How can JK Rowling be 'genuinely happy' casting wife-beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?".
NGN is defending the article as true and says Mr Depp was "controlling and verbally and physically abusive towards Ms Heard, particularly when he was under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs" between early 2013 and May 2016, when the couple split.
The pair met in 2011 and began living together in 2012 before marrying in Los Angeles in February 2015.
