From hardcore Johnny Depp fans with flowers to jurors’ inappropriate texts: At the courthouse in Virginia

One carried a sign that read ‘Justice for Johnny’. One brought a bouquet

Depp sits in court on 13 April (via Reuters)

Fame has ways of making itself known, even in the sobering environment of an American courtroom. If you’re Johnny Depp, women will show up at your hearings. They will arrive early in the morning bearing signs and gifts. They will wait for a chance to see you, hope for an opportunity to press fresh flowers into your hands. If such an opportunity fails to arise on the first day, they will try again on the second day. And the third day. And many days after that.

The Fairfax County Courthouse in suburban Virginia — where I spent the past week — has been no exception to this dynamic. As the defamation dispute between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard continues on, fans only keep showing up. Depp sued Heard in March 2019 over an op-ed she wrote in 2018 for The Washington Post, titled: “I spoke up against sexual violence – and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.” Depp alleged that the piece, in which Heard describes herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse”, defames his character. He has asked for $50m (£38.2m) in damages. Heard, in turn, counter-sued her ex-husband, accusing him of orchestrating a “smear campaign” against her and describing his own lawsuit as a continuation of “abuse and harassment.” She has asked for $100m in damages and immunity against Depp’s claims.

The trial opened on Monday 11 April with jury selection. Depp’s supporters arrived bright and early, competing with members of the press to acquire one of 100 paper wristbands guaranteeing access to the proceedings. (The colour of the wristbands changes every day, and the wristband must be worn, intact, around the wrist, all presumably to avoid the proliferation of a wristband black market.) One carried a sign that read “Justice for Johnny”. One brought a bouquet of pink, red, and yellow flowers. There were a few Heard supporters, too, carrying a placard with the words “Save a life” and “Amber Heard” among more messages.

Judge Penney Azcarate, who is in charge of the trial, has taken some measures to keep it from becoming a complete media circus. Depp and Heard were told not to pose for photographs or to sign autographs. They used a separate entrance, so fans and onlookers couldn’t line up inside the courtroom to await their arrival.

Despite these precautions, it was impossible to fully erase the fact of the parties’ fame. This was apparent from the first moments of jury selection: the idea is for plaintiffs in the US to be judged by a jury of their peers, but how helpful is that concept when the parties in question are Hollywood celebrities suing each other for more money than most people will ever have in their lifetimes? One potential juror pointed out that the amounts at stake are entirely disconnected from any level of wealth she could personally relate to. It was a valid point to raise, but it had to be mostly shrugged off, since there’s no real solution to address it. (Convening a jury composed only of superstars would presumably solve that issue but create a million more.)

There was the problem, too, of having to find people still neutral enough to make their opinion of the case impartially. Potential jurors were asked how many of Depp’s films they had seen, or whether they had any positive or negative opinion of him. (A potentially awkward line of questioning for anyone sitting feet away from the actual Johnny Depp.) Several acknowledged they had read about the case before realising they’d be part of the potential jury pool, or that they had discussed it with their loved ones. One man was asked to read out a text exchange between him and his wife in which she shared a strongly worded opinion regarding one of the parties.

There was something fascinating about this excavation of celebrity culture – people being put in a position to admit they’ve been chatting about celebrities, sometimes in less than hospitable terms, while in the same room as those celebrities. Stars, they’re just like us! But also not really. And yet they are still people. Courtrooms have a way of bringing out celebrities’ humanity while also highlighting the many ways in which their lives vary from ours – the smattering of high-powered lawyers, the good suits, the bevy of faithful fans who will devote a significant chunk of their time to simply being there as a show of support.

Perhaps there is no better encapsulation of celebrity culture in 2022 than the image of a young woman holding flowers for a man accused of violence by another woman. It’s a complicated picture, and one that has stayed with me since the first few moments of the trial. I will keep thinking about those flowers, and the placards, and the iron-clad loyalty of fans rising with the sun to cheer on their fallen idol, for a long time.