Johnny Depp Praised by Cannes Audience in First Movie Premiere Since Shocking Court Win Against Amber Heard
Depp reportedly blames Heard for leaving him 'resentful' and 'paranoid' toward dating.
May 16 2023, Published 4:53 p.m. ET
Johnny Depp was met with a standing ovation as he arrived for the premiere of his first film since being blackballed from Hollywood, RadarOnline.com has learned.
In a surprising development to come nearly one year after Depp won his $15 million defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, the 59-year-old actor arrived at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday to attend the premiere of Jeanne du Barry.
But while the Cannes audience and Depp’s fans appeared delighted to witness the actor’s official return to Hollywood after his defamation trial against Heard last year, the Pirates of the Caribbean star came under fresh fire from a number of individuals protesting his attendance at the film festival.
“The film you are about to see – Maïwenn’s Jeanne du Barry – contains scenes featuring Johnny Depp, who is involved in proven acts of violence against his former wife Amber Heard,” a number of flyers being handed out at the festival allegedly read, according to Page Six.
Meanwhile, Heard’s close friend Eve Barlow launched a campaign on Instagram ahead of Depp’s premiere on Tuesday in which she slammed the French film festival for “supporting” the Blow actor and other embattled actors and directors.
“Cannes seem proud of their history supporting rapists and abusers,” Barlow wrote in one Instagram post. “Plus ça change.”
“If you support Cannes you support predators,” read a second post. Two more read: “Jeanne du Barry Representing Abusers at Cannes” and “Cannes Film Festival: Celebrating Abusers for 76 Years.”
Cannes Director Thierry Fremaux defended the decision to launch this year’s festival with the film in which Depp portrays Louis XV, saying that Depp is “extraordinary” in the picture and he paid “no attention” to the Fantastic Beats actor’s defamation trial against Heard in May and June 2022.
“To tell you the truth, in my life, I only have one rule, it’s the freedom of thinking, the freedom of speech and the freedom to act within a legal framework,” Fremaux said on Monday.
“If Johnny Depp had been banned from acting in a film, or the film was banned we wouldn’t be here talking about it,” the Cannes director continued. “If there’s one person in this world who didn’t find the least interest in this very publicized trial, it’s me.”
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Depp was ultimately awarded $15 million in damages last year after a jury found that Heard defamed the actor with a Washing Post op-ed column in 2018.
Depp’s attendance at Cannes this week marked his first time back at the festival since his appearance in 2011 for the premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
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While Jeanne du Barry marks Depp’s return to Hollywood after being let go from a number of projects due to Heard’s allegations, the actor reportedly refuses to refer to his return as a “comeback.”
“Johnny doesn’t like the term ‘comeback,’” one source close to Depp said. “He’s been working.”
