--- title: "Lawyer Accuses Johnny Depp of Being “Obsessed” With Elon Musk" description: "During opening statements, Amber Heard's lawyer claimed that \"Johnny Depp is obsessed with Elon Musk\" — which drew a visible smirk out of the actor." date: "2022-04-13" modified: "2022-04-13" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/lawyer-johnny-depp-obsessed-elon-musk" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "johnny depp" - "the digest" --- # Lawyer Accuses Johnny Depp of Being “Obsessed” With Elon Musk ![During opening statements, Amber Heard's lawyer claimed that "Johnny Depp is obsessed with Elon Musk" — which drew a visible smirk out of the actor.]() *\Image: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images\* ## Messy Divorce Hollywood star Johnny Depp's lawsuit accusing ex-wife Amber Heard of defamation is off to a wild start — including a wild crossover with the world of SpaceX and Tesla. During opening statements inside a Virginia courtroom on Monday, Heard's lawyer claimed that "Johnny Depp is obsessed with Elon Musk," which drew a visible smirk out of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor, the [*Independent* reports](). It's a peculiar intersection of some very different types of celebrities. Though, to be fair, Musk has certainly seldom been immune to getting pulled into [various court proceedings](). ## Bizarre Love Triangle During a 2020 hearing, Depp's lawyer claimed Heard had an affair with the Tesla CEO "[one month]()" into their 2015 marriage. Heard filed for divorce from Depp on May 23, 2016. "Elon and Amber didn’t start seeing each other until May 2016, and even then it was infrequent," a representative for Musk [told *Vanity Fair*]() last month. "Their relationship didn’t become romantic until some time later." Musk was also reportedly referenced in some [chilling and vile texts]() sent by Depp that date back to around the time Heard was dating Musk. Depp hasn't exactly made much headway. In 2020, he [lost a high-profile libel case]() with a UK court siding with *The Sun*, one of the UK's most infamous tabloids, which had labelled him as a "wife beater." ## Obsessed Ex But now Musk, alongside other A-lister celebrities including James Franco and Paul Bettany, are [rumored to be listed]() as possible witnesses by Heard. Another of Heard's lawyers went on to describe Depp as "an obsessed ex-husband hellbent on revenge," according to the *Independent*. Heard is also accusing Depp of sexual assault during this trial, making new claims public for the very first time. It's probably as messy as a highly publicized divorce can get — and it's also a terrible time for Musk [to be in "goblin mode."]() Whether Musk will even get called to the stand remains to be seen. But it's certainly not out of the question. **READ MORE:** [Johnny Depp smirks as court hears he’s obsessed with Elon Musk]() \[*The* *Independent*\] **More on Musk:** *[Elon Musk Gets Sued Over Twitter Shenanigans]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()