Amber Heard's attorney has claimed Johnny Depp punched, kicked and dragged her by the hair.
The allegations come amid Depp's $50 million (£38m) defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife, centred on a 2018 Washington Post op-ed in which Heard claimed she had become 'a public figure representing domestic abuse'.
Depp's attorneys have accused Heard of orchestrating an elaborate 'hoax' with the 'clear implication' he was an abuser. In 2020, the Pirates of the Caribbean star lost his libel case against The Sun because the judge ruled claims he was a 'wife-beater' to be 'substantially true'.
Depp's case kicked off in Virginia this week. During opening statements, Depp's team accused Heard of being physically abusive and heard how he'd lock himself in the bathroom in order to get away from her, BuzzFeed News reports.
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Heard's team alleged a number of occasions where Depp got drunk and high before physically and sexually assaulting her.
Elaine Bredehoft, Heard's attorney, also cited on alleged instance where the couple threw punches at one another after Heard confronted Depp for cheating.
Bredehoft told the court: "She loved the side of Johnny that we see in the movies, the charismatic one, the charming one, the generous one, that’s the man she fell in love with.
"But sadly, the monster came in the way. And that monster would come out when he was drinking and when he would take the drugs."
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Elsewhere, the court heard how Depp would have another hotel room booked for him when the pair travelled together, so he would have somewhere to go when Heard became 'enraged'.
Bredehoft also mentioned an incident where Depp allegedly pulled Heard's hair, dragged her up the stairs and hit her during a three-day blackout in Australia.
Lawyers for Depp told the jury that he will 'go to his grave knowing that whatever he does there will always be people who believe he abused a woman', and that Heard 'took on the role of a lifetime and couldn't back down'.
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In his opening statement, Depp's attorney Benjamin Chew said: "For nearly 30 years, Mr. Depp built a reputation as one of the most talented actors in Hollywood, a respected artist whose name was associated with success at the box office.
"Today, his name is associated with a lie, a false statement uttered by his former wife."
Ahead of the trial, a spokesperson for Depp told BuzzFeed that his lawsuit 'follows a pattern of her elaborate, erroneous claims which have continued to change and evolve over time for the purpose of Hollywood shock value of which Amber has mastered and used to exploit a serious social movement'.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, please know that you are not alone. You can talk in confidence 24 hours a day to the national domestic violence helpline Refuge on 0808 2000 247
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Topics: Amber Heard, Entertainment, Film and TV, Johnny Depp, Celebrity
