Amber Heard says the disappointment she feels is "beyond words" after a jury ruled she defamed ex-husband Johnny Depp.
The actress broke her silence in a statement posted on Twitter, after a jury awarded Depp US$15 million (NZ$23m) from Heard. Depp, the 58-year-old Pirates of the Caribbean star, sued Heard for US$50m and argued she defamed him when she called herself "a public figure representing domestic abuse" in a newspaper opinion piece.
"I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence was still not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence and sway of my ex-husband," Heard said in her statement following the verdict. "I'm even more disappointed what this verdict means for other women.
"It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated."
The 36-year-old said she believed Depp's lawyers "succeeded in getting the jury to overlook" freedom of speech.
"I'm sad I lost this case," Heard said. "But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American - to speak freely and openly."
The defamation trial was a widely-watched six-week court case that featured explicit and graphic evidence and testimony detailing the former Hollywood couple's soured relationship.
In 2018, a year after their divorce, Heard wrote an opinion column in the Washington Post in which she made the statement about domestic abuse. The article did not mention Depp by name but his lawyer told jurors it was clear Heard was referring to him.
Speaking in court, Heard's lawyers argued she told the truth and her comments were covered as free speech under the US Constitution's First Amendment.
Heard had also countersued Depp for US$100m. The jury ruled in favour of some aspects of her counter-suit and she was awarded US$2m in damages.
Reuters / Newshub.
