Amber Heard Hasn’t Given US$3.5 Million From Johnny Depp Divorce Settlement She Pledged To Charity

Amber Heard has given the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) just half of the promised US$3.5 million (S$4.8 mil) donation she pledged following her divorce.

The Aquaman star, 36, had vowed to give her US$7 million settlement from ex-husband Johnny Depp to charity, with half set to go to the organisation and the other half earmarked for the Children's Hospital Los Angeles, but in testimony revealed in court as part of the former couple's defamation trial on Thursday (Apr 27), it was revealed she has yet to honour her promise in full.

ACLU chief operating officer Terence Dougherty, in a pre-recorded deposition — filmed in December 2021 — broadcast to the jury, explained Heard was put forward as an ACLU ambassador following her pledge to provide the large donation, but noted it hadn't fully been sent by the time of the deposition.

ACLU had received four payments, with US$350,000 being paid directly by the Danish Girl actress, US$100,000 came from Depp, and two payments of US$500,000 and US$350,000 were submitted via donor-advised funds.

Dougherty said the ACLU believes the US$500,000 payment came from a fund set up by Elon Musk, who Amber dated following the end of her marriage, and the SpaceX CEO had sent an e-mail to advise the full US$3.5 million would be paid over a 10-year period, though it was never confirmed.

He added: “We didn’t receive any amounts in 2019 and on."

Asked what efforts they have made to get the rest of the money, Dougherty replied: "We reached out to Ms Heard starting in 2019 for the next instalment of her giving and we learned that she was having financial difficulties."

The COO was asked about Heard's position as an ambassador for ACLU.

He said: “Ms Heard spoke with such clarity and expertise on issues of gender-based violence, that [ACLU representatives] decided she would be an appropriate person to ask to become an ACLU ambassador."

This was the point where the idea came up for her to write the op-ed for the Washington Post, which led to the Pirates of the Caribbean actor taking legal action for defamation, as he argued although the piece doesn't name him, it contains a “clear implication that Mr Depp is a domestic abuser".

While he is seeking damages of "not less than US$50 million", Heard has filed a US$100 million counterclaim for nuisance and immunity from his allegations. — BANG SHOWBIZ

Photo: TPG News/Click Photos