A US jury found Johnny Depp and Amber Heard defamed each other, but sided far more strongly with the Pirates of the Caribbean star following an intense libel trial involving bitterly contested allegations of sexual violence and domestic abuse.
Mr Depp, who lost a libel case in London in 2020 against The Sun for calling him a "wife-beater," celebrated the split verdict as a victory and said the jury "gave me my life back."
The five-man, two-woman jury, after deliberating over three days, found that Ms Heard had defamed her ex-husband in an op-ed piece, and awarded him $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages.
At the same time, the jury found that the 58-year-old actor had made defamatory claims against his 36-year-old former wife and also awarded her compensatory damages - but a much lower amount of $2 million.
Ms Heard, her eyes downcast throughout, listened impassively, as the verdict was read out in Fairfax County Circuit Court near the US capital - later declaring herself "heartbroken" by the outcome.
She has been sued by Mr Depp for $50 million over a Washington Post article, titled: "I spoke up against sexual violence - and faced our culture's wrath. That has to change."
The article did not mention Mr Depp by name, yet his lawyers said it falsely implied he physically and sexually abused Ms Heard while they were together.
Ms Heard countersued for $100m over the comments to the Daily Mail.
Following six weeks of evidence and roughly 13 hours of deliberation, jurors returned their verdicts on Wednesday.
In a statement after the verdict, Mr Depp said: "Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed."
Ms Heard said in her statement: "The disappointment I feel today is beyond words.
"I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband."
Ms Heard was present for the verdict today but Mr Depp, who has been in England for the past few days, was not.
Dozens of witnesses testified during the trial, including bodyguards, Hollywood executives, agents, entertainment industry experts, doctors, friends and relatives.
Mr Depp and Ms Heard each spent days on the witness stand during the televised trial, which was attended by hundreds of fans of the Pirates star and accompanied by a #JusticeForJohnnyDepp campaign on social media.
Video and audio recordings of heated, profanity-laced arguments between the couple were played for the jury, which was also shown photographs of injuries allegedly suffered by Ms Heard during their volatile relationship.
Hours of testimony were devoted to a grisly finger injury that Mr Depp suffered while filming an installment of Pirates in Australia in March 2015.
Mr Depp, a three-time Oscar nominee, claimed the tip of a finger was severed when Ms Heard threw a vodka bottle at him. She said she did not know how the injury occurred.
Both agreed that Mr Depp went on to scrawl messages on walls, lampshades and mirrors using the bloody digit.
Ms Heard, who was married to Mr Depp from 2015 to 2017, obtained a restraining order against him in May 2016, citing domestic violence.
Both sides claimed damage to their Hollywood careers.
Source: PA, AFP
