Amber Heard Responds to Fantastic Beasts & Johnny Depp Controversy

Amber Heard, ex-wife of Johnny Depp, responds to the controversy surrounding Depp’s role in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Last year, Warner Bros. kicked off a Harry Potter prequel film series with Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. From director David Yates and Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, the movie introduced fans to a new group of magical heroes, as well as the villain they’d be battling over the five-film Fantastic Beasts series. At the end of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Johnny Depp made his debut as Gellert Grindelwald, the most infamous dark wizard of the Harry Potter world prior to Voldemort.

Depp’s casting in the sequel was announced shortly before Fantastic Beasts hit theaters, and ever since, fans have called on Warner Bros, Yates, and Rowling to consider recasting. Among the reasons cited to potentially recast Depp are his dwindling box office appeal and his acting abilities, but more often, the allegations of domestic abuse against him that surfaced during his divorce from Amber Heard. Since the studio kicked off the promotional push for The Crimes of Grindelwald, these concerns have resurfaced, especially since Depp is poised to have a much bigger role in the followup to Fantastic Beasts. Recently, Yates defended Depp’s casting, and Rowling released her own statement.

However, it was Warner Bros’ statement regarding Depp’s casting that prompted Heard to respond. The studio referenced Heard and Depp’s joint statement that they released when they settled their divorce and the domestic violence case last year. The studio specifically included this line: “There was never any intent of physical or emotional harm.” In response, Heard tweeted the full statement she and her ex-husband released last year:

Of course, we can’t know exactly what Heard meant to get across to her Twitter followers in tweeting the statement. However, it seems likely she wanted to highlight the sentence that immediately precedes the line Warner Bros. referenced in their statement on Fantastic Beasts, which states, “Neither party has made false accusations for financial gains.” Many have taken this line to mean Depp admitted to the abuse Heard alleged, while others argue it’s too vague to know for sure.

Still, this marks Heard’s first time chiming in on the conversation surrounding this particular issue. The debate resurfaced and grew in recent weeks as Warner Bros. ramped up marketing for The Crimes of Grindelwald. Rowling’s statement on Depp’s casting in Fantastic Beasts revealed she, Yates, and Warner Bros. considered recasting the role of Grindelwald, but decided against it. Considering fans continue to protest Depp having a major role in the Harry Potter franchise however, it doesn’t seem this issue will be resolved simply by Rowling’s and the studio’s statements.

Now that Heard has responded to the conversation, fans will no doubt continue to voice their concerns about Depp’s involvement in the Fantastic Beasts series. With little less than a year until The Crimes of Grindelwald releases – and three more Fantastic Beasts movies set to premiere in the coming years – it remains to be seen if fans will continue to criticize Depp’s casting. But, at this point, it doesn’t seem they’ll drop the issue until Depp is recast or otherwise removed from the franchise.