Amber Heard had fired her PR team ahead of her highly anticipated testimony in ex-husband Johnny Depp's defamation case against her.
Earlier this year she retained the services of Precision Strategies, but abruptly cut ties with the East Coast firm on Thursday and enlisted the help of the Management Group, a Beverly Hills, California-based organization with Hollywood experience, according to NBC News. CEO David Shane confirmed the news to the outlet.
Sources familiar with the situation revealed to the New York Post that Heard opted to drop Precision Strategies after expressing frustration at not having her story "told effectively" in coverage of the defamation case that may have favored Depp.
Depp is seeking $50 million from Heard after allegedly hurting his film career by accusing him of domestic abuse. The lawsuit came after Heard published an opinion editorial for The Washington Post in December 2018 in which she discussed being a victim of domestic violence.
She did not name Depp, whom she married in 2015, but days later Disney dropped Depp from his role in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise. He has since claimed that the article damaged his career. Heard's lawyers argue that Depp abused the actress physically and sexually. She is countersuing for $100 million.
Over the last three weeks, the spotlight has been on Depp, who made allegations in court that Heard picked fights with him and had previously slapped, shoved, or thrown objects at him. The trial in Fairfax County, Virginia, is expected to take six weeks and Heard's team is expected to take the legal stage Tuesday, after Depp's team wraps up.
In a similar lawsuit that Depp lost in 2020, he sued The Sun's publisher for libel over a headline calling him a "wife-beater" — allegations he strongly denies — The New York Times reported at the time. A London High Court judge ruled he had repeatedly assaulted Heard and put her in fear for her life.
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Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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