Post verdict, what's next for Johnny Depp and Amber Heard ?

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's defamation case had the world's attention. For six weeks, the former couple's troubled marriage was discussed and dissected in great detail in court and in the media. On Thursday, Depp won the defamation case on most accounts and the jury stated that Heard had indeed defamed him. 

Heard and Depp had accused each other of domestic violence in the multimillion lawsuit and the actress will now have to pay $15 million to her former husband. 

Prior to this Depp had lost a libel case in the UK against a tabloid that had called him a 'wife beater'. Following the judgement, Depp was removed from Warner Bros 'Fantastic Beats 3' film where he played one of the key characters- Grindelwald. Even the production of the sixth part of 'Pirates Of The Caribbean' was halted - a film that made Depp one of the biggest stars of Hollywood in the last decade. 

Now that the US court has given its verdict mostly in favour of Johnny Depp, what will be the actor's next project? Here's a look at what's next for the two stars post the verdict. 

Johnny Depp

For the last one week or so Depp has been making surprise appearances on stage in England and playing alongside rocker Jeff Beck. Depp has played in multiple locations with Beck including London's Royal Albert Hall. Depp, who earlier had his band, had admitted that music was his first love. He is also part of the band Hollywood Vampires with Alice Cooper and Joe Perry.

Depp has voiced a cartoon puffin named Johnny Puff on an international animated series called 'Puffins Impossible'. He will play King Louis XV in the french film 'Jeanne du Barry', directed by his costar Maïwenn. He is yet to start filming for the project which was introduced at Cannes last month. 

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His future with the Pirates franchise still remains uncertain. During the trial, both Depp and his talent agent had testified that Heard's claims had damaged his career. The actor had claimed he lost a $22.5 million payday for being in a scrapped sixth 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie. The movie along with Depp's character has been put on hold for the time. However, Depp's former longtime agent said that the makers decided to not include Depp owing to his unprofessional behaviour which included reporting late to sets. 

Depp is father to actress Lily-Rose, and son Jack whom he shares with his ex, French singer Vanessa Paradis.
During his testimony, Depp explained that his "goal is the truth" in the court case, adding that he hopes to "clear the record" of the allegations made against him by Heard. Referring to Heard's claims, Depp said, "Since I knew there was no truth to it whatsoever, I felt it my responsibility to stand up not only for myself in that instance but stand up for my children, who at the time were 14 and 16."

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Amber Heard

The actress won on one account and has been awarded $2 million in the jury. Heard has two movies in her kitty- both of which have already been shot. Amber Heard will return to play Mera in 'Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom' - a sequel to the 2018 blockbuster 'Aquaman'. The film stars Jason Momoa in the lead role. The film is set to release in May 2023. 

During her testimony, Heard had accused Depp of cutting her role in 'Aquaman 2' and alleged that she had to fight hard to keep her role in the film. However, DC Films President Walter Hamada testified that her part was never intended to be central to the sequel, describing it as a "buddy-comedy" between Momoa and Patrick Wilson.

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The actress also finished work on an independent movie titled In the 'Fire' right before the trial began in April. "That's a wrap!" she wrote on Instagram in March this year, sharing a photo of herself leaping on a mountainside in her 19th-century costume for the thriller.

Heard stated during the trial that she now lives in Yucca Valley, California, a desert town near Joshua Tree National Park. She's mom to 1-year-old daughter Oonagh Paige. 

During the trial, Heard had said she wanted to move on. "I am harassed, humiliated, threatened every single day. Even just walking into this courtroom, sitting here in front of the world, having the worst parts of my life, things that I've lived through, used to humiliate me. People want to kill me, and they tell me so every day. People want to put my baby in the microwave, and they tell me that," said Heard.

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"Perhaps it's easy to forget that, but I'm a human being," she said, adding, "I just want Johnny to leave me alone. I don't deserve this. I want to move on."