Johnny Depp's defamation trial against Amber Heard continues to spill a lot of ugly details about their feud. That includes Heard allegedly pooping on Depp's bed. Aside from that bizarre event, fans were also surprised when the Pirates of the Caribbean star and his sister had to testify about their traumatic childhood. The siblings were asked all sorts of questions about their family that seemed unrelated to the case. But at some point, fans realized that it influenced Depp to stay in his turbulent marriage with the Aquaman actress. Here's why.
Inside Johnny Depp's Tragic Childhood
During his defamation trial against Heard, Depp relived his journey from being an abused Kentucky boy to a big Hollywood star. From the stand, he spoke of his memories growing up with his three siblings under the supervision of their violent mother. "In our house we were never exposed to any type of safety or security, the only thing to do was stay out of the line of fire," he said. "My mother was quite unpredictable. She had the ability to be as cruel as anyone can be with all of us." He added that their family moved a lot due to his mom. When he was seven, they moved to Florida and lived in a motel for about a year.
"My mom, her feet were on fire, and she had to move, so we moved constantly. So you were always the new kid, and that wasn't ever particularly pleasant," he said, adding that his father wasn't spared from his mother's unpredictable behavior. "Physical violence, physical abuse. That was a constant. We were all somewhat shell-shocked. She'd walked past, you'd shield yourself because you didn't know what would happen," he continued. "She could become quite violent, and she was quite violent, and she was quite cruel. There was physical abuse, certainly, which could be in the form of an ashtray being flung at you, or you'd get beat with a high-heeled shoe, or a telephone or whatever's handy."
Amber Heard Admitted To Hitting Johnny Depp
During the trial, Depp's camp presented an audio recording of Heard admitting to hitting the Edward Scissorhands star. "I'm sorry that I didn't, uh, uh, hit you across the face in a proper slap, but I was hitting you, it was not punching you. Babe, you're not punched," the actress said, trying to downplay her violent fit the night before. "I don't know what the motion of my actual hand was, but you're fine, I did not hurt you, I did not punch you, I was hitting you." The domestic violence advocate also told Depp that no one would believe him if he said he was a victim of domestic abuse. "You are such a baby. Grow the f--k up Johnny," said Heard.
The disturbing audio also revealed that Depp pleaded for his ex-wife to control her physical outbursts. "I left last night. Honestly, I swear to you because I just couldn't take the idea of more physicality, more physical abuse on each other," he told her. "Because had we continued it, it would have gotten bad. And baby, I told you this once. I'm scared to death we are a crime scene right now." The actress seemed unfazed, replying, "I can't promise you I won't get physical again. God, I sometimes get so mad I lose it."
Johnny Depp Said His Bad Childhood Made Him Stay With Amber Heard
Depp confessed during the trial that he stayed in his marriage with Heard, despite the alleged abuse, because "he wanted to try to make it work." For a time, he dealt with the actress' "constant" habit of "striking out" at him in "her frustration and in her rage," but soon realized it was too much. "It could begin with a slap, it could begin with a shove, it could begin with throwing a TV remote at my head...," he said on the stand. "There was no need for it. Too many lines were crossed; you couldn't see the lines anymore." When his lawyer asked why he stayed, he said it was because "my father stayed" in his abusive marriage.
"Why did I stay? I suppose because my father stayed [in his abusive marriage]. ... And I didn't want to fail. I wanted to try to make it work. I thought maybe I could help her," Depp said of the influence of his upbringing on his marital decisions. "I thought maybe I could bring her around. Because the Amber Heard that I knew for the first year, year and a half was not this, suddenly this opponent. It wasn't my girl, she had become my opponent."
The actor described his father as this "very kind" and "quiet" guy who didn't fight back when his wife would attack him. "And when Betty Sue, my mother, would go off on a tangent toward my father — and of course, in front of the kids, it [didn't] matter to her," Depp recalled of his father. "He, amazingly, remained very stoic and never, as she was rationing him with horrible things, he stood there and just looked at her while she delivered the pain, and he swallowed it. He took it."
