The actor Emily Hampshire, who won an Emmy for playing Stevie Budd during all six seasons of the comedy series “Schitt’s Creek,” has apologized for dressing up as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard on Halloween with a friend.
Hampshire caused a stir on social media when it uploaded and later removed pictures of the costumes. The actor, portraying Johnny Depp, looked to be wearing a suit that was similar to the one the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star wore during his widely reported 2022 libel trial against Heard. He also had phony tattoos on his body.
“I want to address what is one of the most thoughtless, insensitive, and ignorant things I’ve ever done,” Hampshire wrote in an apology post. “For Halloween, I stupidly thought it would be funny to dress as Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. I am deeply sorry and ashamed for putting something that awful out in the universe.”
“Domestic abuse is never, ever funny,” Hampshire added. “These are real issues with real people and I REALLY regret my actions. In the future I will do better. I’m so sorry.”
As the Depp-Heard trial revolved around multiple claimed instances of abuse that occurred throughout the two actors’ relationship, Hampshire’s outfit choice drew criticism for trivializing abuse.
A Virginia jury concluded that Heard had indeed defamed Johnny Depp when she alluded to her prior allegations of domestic abuse in a 2018 Washington Post opinion piece. The jury did discover, however, that Depp had, in defending himself against Heard’s accusations, defamed her through his lawyer. In addition to $5 million in punitive damages, which the judge lowered to $350,000 in compliance with the state’s statutory cap, the jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages. Heard’s counterclaim was granted $2 million in compensatory damages by the jury.
Following the decision, Depp released a statement claiming that Heard’s fabrications had “a seismic impact on my life and my career.” And the jury returned my life six years later. I feel so humbled.
Depp added that he “overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and the colossal support and kindness from around the world,” and that the verdict left him “at peace.”
With the conclusion of the libel trial in June 2022, Heard has mainly avoided the public eye. When he attended the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, Depp, on the other hand, made a widely reported comeback.
See the link below for Hampshire’s complete apologies.
