Johnny Depp sues ex-wife Amber Heard for $50m over 'hoax' domestic abuse claims

He claims Heard’s accusations were made in an attempt to ‘advance her career’

Johnny Depp is suing his ex-wife Amber Heard for $50m (£38m) over what he claims are “hoax” abuse claims.

Heard accused Depp of domestic violence in May 2016 before settling the case for $7m (£5.3m), which the Aquaman star donated to charity.

The new suit says: “Mr Depp never abused Ms Heard. Her allegations against him were false when they were made in 2016. They were part of an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity for Ms Heard and advance her career.”

Heard responded via her attorney, Eric M George, who told Deadline: “This frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced.”

The statement continues: “Mr Depp’s actions prove he is unable to accept the truth of his ongoing abusive behaviour. But while he appears hell-bent on achieving self destruction, we will prevail in defeating this groundless lawsuit and ending the continued vile harassment of my client by Mr Depp and his legal team.”

Last year, Depp – who has been dropped from the forthcoming Invisible Man reboot – settled a $25m (£19m) lawsuit with his former business managers, alleging “gross misconduct” and “fraudulent” self-activity.

Also in 2018, the location manager for film City of Lies filed a lawsuit against Depp alleging he was punched twice in the ribs by the actor.

In an op-ed for The Washington Post, Heard claimed that after accusing Depp of violence she lost out on a number of roles ​as she felt “the full force of our culture’s wrath for women [who speak out]”.