Celebrities named in the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard trial, from Zendaya to Elon Musk

As the defamation trial Johnny Depp has brought against his ex-wife Amber Heard continues, more and more famous names have cropped up, either during evidence or in exhibit lists.

Depp is suing Heard over an article she wrote for The Washington Post in which she claimed she was the victim of domestic abuse, and Heard is countersuing for defamation.

As well as numerous mentions of Depp’s actress daughter Lily-Rose, many other famous names have been mentioned in court, including Heard’s former co-star, actor James Franco; Harry Potter author J K Rowling; and Depp’s former girlfriend, supermodel Kate Moss.

Here are all the celebrities who have so far been named in the trial and the reasons why they are involved.

Ana de Armas

The No Time To Die actress, who has become a major breakout star in Hollywood over the past few years, found her name being brought up in court during the Depp-Heard trial.

The Cuban actress was mentioned by entertainment industry consultant Kathryn Arnold, a paid expert for Amber Heard's team, who testified that Heard might have enjoyed the same success achieved by Armas had she not been the subject of a “smear campaign” against her.

Zendaya

The youngest actress to win an Emmy was also brought up at the trial by Heard team expert Arnold.

Alongside naming Ana de Armas and Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot, Arnold said: “When you look at the time frame of when the Waldman statements came out, and you look at what was going on with Ms Heard's career prior to the statement and what happened after the statement, it's very clear to make that correlation.”

She also said: “It would have been very reasonable to believe her career would have been on an upward trajectory of those other actors if not for the hoax allegations.”

The “hoax allegations” mentioned by Arnold refer to comments made by Depp’s lawyer Adam Waldman who, in an interview with the Daily Mail in 2020, accused Heard of orchestrating an "abuse hoax".

Gal Gadot

Gadot was brought up again during cross-examination by Depp’s legal team who questioned whether Heard’s career could be compared to that of the Red Notice star.

While Arnold testified that Heard’s career trajectory could be compared to Gadot’s, Depp’s legal team argued that the Israeli star was already considered an A-list actress before she won the part of Wonder Woman because of her recurring role as Gisele in the Fast & Furious franchise.

Chris Pine

Speaking about the negative response Heard had suffered from Hollywood studios in the wake of her essay in The Washington Post, Arnold also mentioned Star Trek actor Chris Pine.

Pine, 41, was used as an example of an actor who had enjoyed the kind of fame Heard was allegedly headed for before her career became “silent in terms of opportunities”.

Winona Ryder

Depp’s former fiancee Winona Ryder, whom he dated from 1989 to 1993, was brought up in the trial by a former friend of both Depp and Heard, iO Tillett Wright.

The activist testified that Depp had spoken to him in the past about his relationship with the Stranger Things actress.

“He experienced great bouts of jealousy in relationships that had also led to a lot of drinking and a lot of rage activities,” Wright said. “He told me that that happened with Winona. He told me that that happened with Kate. Sorry with Winona Ryder and Kate Moss. He told me that that happened with Vanessa Paradis.”

Vanessa Paradis

Depp’s former partner, French actress and singer Vanessa Paradis, was mentioned by Wright alongside Winona Ryder and Kate Moss.

Depp and Paradis were together for 14 years from 1998 to 2012 and have two children, actress Lily-Rose and son Jack.

During Depp’s 2020 defamation trial against The Sun newspaper, Paradis denied that she had ever experienced domestic abuse in her relationship with him.

Eddie Redmayne

The British Oscar-winner’s name was mentioned by Heard when she testified in court.

Speaking about Depp’s concerns over her relationships with other men while she was filming 2015’s The Danish Girl, Heard said: “I got the sense that he thought I was sleeping with the director [Tom Hooper], and then it was with the actor [Eddie Redmayne] I was filming with.”

Marilyn Manson

The shock rocker is a long-time friend of Depp’s. The Pirates of the Caribbean actor talked about the singer when questioned by Heard’s lawyer about his history of drinking and drug-taking with the musician.

“We drank together, we've had cocaine together, maybe a couple of times,” Depp said. “I once gave Marilyn Manson a pill so he would stop talking so much.”

Billy Bob Thornton

After working with Thornton on the 2013 movie London Fields, Heard claimed in court that Depp accused her of cheating on him with the Oscar-winner.

Thornton’s name had previously come up in relation to Depp and Heard’s relationship back when the tip of Depp's finger had been cut off in March 2015.

Depp is said to have dipped his damaged finger in blue paint to write the words “Starring”, “Billy Bob”, and “Easy Amber” on a mirror. A photo of the mirror was used as evidence in 2016 when Heard filed for divorce and a temporary restraining order from Depp, alleging the actor had physically abused her.

Ellen Barkin

The Ocean’s Thirteen actress has been called as a witness in the trial, testifying on behalf of Amber Heard. Barkin dated Depp after the pair starred together in the 1998 film, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

The 68-year-old became involved in the trial because she was mentioned in a statement during Depp’s 2020 High Court libel case against UK newspaper The Sun’s publisher, News Group Newspapers.

In a statement read out by Heard’s lawyer Sasha Wass, during The Sun libel case, Barkin testified that Depp had once thrown a bottle of wine across a hotel room in her direction, and that the actor had been jealous and angry.

Depp said Barkin’s claims were “untrue” and accused her of holding a grudge against him because he hadn’t wanted a “proper relationship”.

Kate Moss

The British supermodel’s name has been brought up during the trial because of her relationship with Depp in the '90s. The pair dated from 1994 to 1997 and were considered an “It” couple of the decade. Heard talked about Moss while mentioning an alleged incident between Depp and Heard’s sister Whitney Henriquez.

Heard told the court her sister was near a staircase during a fight between the married couple and was “in the line of fire… trying to get Johnny to stop”.

“[Whitney's] back was to the staircase, and Johnny swings at her," the actress said. “I don't hesitate, I don't wait — I just, in my head, instantly think of Kate Moss and stairs.”

Heard was reiterating what she had said about Moss during her evidence at Depp's UK defamation trial, during which she said: “I remembered information I had heard [that] he pushed a former girlfriend — I believe it was Kate Moss — down the stairs.”

She also said: "I had heard this rumour from two people and it was fresh in my mind.”

Jason Momoa

While not expected to testify, Heard’s Aquaman co-star Jason Momoa has been named in the trial. Heard’s exhibit list for the trial includes emails and text messages between Momoa and the actress, which will be read out.

Heard and Momoa appeared to share a friendly relationship on set, with the actress telling the American television host Jimmy Fallon: “Jason’s allergic to being ignored. He can’t sit still, so no matter what, he will push, prod, nudge, shove you, anything to get your attention. Especially if you enjoy a quieter activity like reading.”

J K Rowling

The Harry Potter author’s name was brought up in court because the Scottish author bought Depp’s yacht back in January 2016.

The vessel, named the Vajoliroja, was purchased by the British author, a sale which Heard testified saw Depp descend into a drunken rage during a farewell trip aboard the yacht with herself and Depp’s children, Lily-Rose and Jack.

“Johnny was upset that he had to sell the boat and he was off the wagon again, but he didn't want to tell his kids so he was hiding it from them. He was putting it in coffee cups and drinking,” Heard said.

James Franco

Heard alleged that Depp would become angry with her in the mistaken belief that she was seeing Spider-Man actor James Franco behind his back.

The actress told the court that Depp “hated” Franco, with whom she had starred in two films, Pineapple Express and The Adderall Diaries.

Heard alleged that Depp’s jealousy of Franco led to an argument between the married couple on a plane, which resulted in Depp kicking her in the back so she fell to the ground.

Jack White

The White Stripes guitarist has also been named in the trial. The musician is mentioned in court dockets pertaining to emails between himself Depp, making White a witness. It is not yet known if he will be called on to give evidence.

Elon Musk

The Tesla chief executive has been named in the trial owing to the relationship he had with Heard. During the court hearing on May 16, Heard said she became acquainted with Musk after Depp “stood me up” at the 2016 Met Gala.

“He seemed like a real gentleman,” the actress said of the billionaire. “He was really nice. He sat at a nearby table and we got to speaking that night and eventually became friends.”

Paul Bettany

British actor Bettany’s friendship with Depp has been put under the microscope during the actor's 2020 defamation trial and his current defamation suit.

The two actors met on the set of 2010’s The Tourist, and went on to work together on 2014’s Transcendence and Mortdecai the following year.

Text messages between the pair have been read out during the trial. In one dated June 2013, Depp writes: “Let's burn Amber!!!” Bettany replies: “I'm not sure we should burn Amber. She is delightful company and pleasing on the eye. We could, of course, do the English course of action and perform a drowning test. Thoughts? You have a swimming pool.”

Depp told the court: “Ms Heard despised Mr Bettany, mainly because we had become such close friends and for her, he was a threat and would take me away from her, with regard to if Paul Bettany was getting the attention from me, that was a show-stopper. It would cause all kinds of unpleasantries.”