The bitter legal battle between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard has brought to light many details of the former couple’s private life, as each has accused the other of physical and emotional abuse during their tumultuous relationship. Depp seemed to sway a majority of the public opinion onto his side with the help of audio recordings of Heard allegedly admitting to “hitting” him. Heard has maintained that she has only ever struck Depp in self defense.

Taking the stand at their defamation trial, Heard described her side of the story relating to an incident where she admits to striking Depp. The Aquaman star claims that Depp had lunged toward her at the top of a staircase when her sister intervened by standing in between them. According to Heard, she thought back to a “rumor” she had heard that Depp allegedly pushed then-girlfriend Kate Moss down a staircase in the 1990s. Heard alleges that she then struck Depp in the heat of the moment, strictly to stop him from harming her sister.

“She threw herself in the line of fire. She was trying to get Johnny to stop. Her back was to the staircase, and Johnny swings at her … I don’t hesitate and wait, I instantly think of Kate Moss and stairs. I, for the first time, hit him, square in the face… And he didn’t push my sister down the stairs. Up to that point in our relationship, I hadn’t even landed one on Johnny… I reacted in defense of my sister. I had for years been Johnny’s punch bag but for years I never hit him. It was the first time after all these years that I struck him back.”

The rumor that Depp attacked Moss in the 1990s will come as a surprise for many. Not only has she has not commented on the trial or getting name-dropped by Heard, Moss has never publicly accused Depp of misconduct or domestic abuse. There was an incident in 1994 where Depp reportedly trashed a hotel room with Moss present, and though police say Depp showed signs of intoxication, they also observed Moss was “uninjured.” Depp paid about $10,000 for the damages to the room.

Depp and Moss dated in the mid-1990s, from 1994 to 1997, before Depp would meet future-wife Vanessa Paradis on the set of The Ninth Gate in 1998. The couple would have two children together and have since split with Depp pursuing a relationship with Heard following his relationship with Paradis.

Related: Amber Heard’s Team Blasts ‘Pitiful’ Johnny Depp in New Statement

Johnny Depp’s Exes Have Defended Him Amid Amber Heard Feud

Kate Moss does not seem to want to get involved with this trial, for better or for worse. For her part, Vanessa Paradis has previously refuted Heard’s claims that Depp is abusive. After a 14-year relationship with Depp, Paradis released a statement noting that the allegations were not in line with the person she had spent so many years with, even if their relationship ended up not working out. As Paradis’ statement reads:

“I have known Johnny for more than 25 years. We’ve been partners for 14 years and we raised our two children together. Through all these years I’ve known Johnny to be a kind, attentive, generous and non-violent person and father. On movie sets the actors, directors and entire crews adore him because he is humble and respectful to everyone, as well as being one of the best actors we’ve seen.

I am aware of the allegations which Amber Heard has publicly accused Johnny of for more than four years now. This is nothing like the true Johnny I have known, and from my personal experience of many years, I can say he was never violent or abusive to me. I have seen that these outrageous statements have been really distressing, and also caused damage to his career because unfortunately people have gone on believing these false facts. This is so upsetting as he has helped so many persons in his personal and professional life, with kindness and generosity.”

Winona Ryder, whom Depp had also dated in the early 90s, has similarly defended the embattled actor. She had released her own statement that stopped short of calling Heard a liar while expressing how hard it was to believe the allegations, especially as someone who’d been in a close, intimate relationship with Depp. As Ryder explained:

“I understand that it is very important that I speak from my own experience, as I obviously was not there during his marriage to Amber, but, from my experience, which was so wildly different, I was absolutely shocked, confused and upset when I heard the accusations against him. The idea that he is an incredibly violent person is the farthest thing from the Johnny I knew and loved. I cannot wrap my head around these accusations. He was never, never violent towards me. He was never, never abusive at all towards me. He has never been violent or abusive towards anybody I have seen.

I truly and honestly only know him as a really good man – an incredibly loving, extremely caring guy who was so very protective of me and the people that he loves, and I felt so very, very safe with him. I do not want to call anyone a liar but from my experience of Johnny, it is impossible to believe that such horrific allegations are true. I find it extremely upsetting, knowing him as I do.”

It’s up to Amber Heard to convince the jury in her defamation trial that her experience with Depp was quite different than the relationships he’d had with Paradis and Ryder.

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