Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in 'Pirates of the Caribbean'. Image Source: The Hollywood Reporter 

Johnny Depp acknowledged during the defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard that her essay for The Washington Post, written in 2018, had caused him a lot of career setbacks, including Disney dropping the actor from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.

Johnny Depp mentioned that after the essay and her accusations of him being a drunken, cocaine-addicted person who beat his wife were made public, it might not have taken Disney a lot of thought before dropping him. The actor who played Captain Jack Sparrow in the movie shared that he got to know about the production house dropping him via an article that was published.

According to Johnny Depp, the film has not yet been produced and is currently in a dangle mode. When Ben Rottenborn asked Johnny Depp about an article that was published, he said that it was the first time that he was made aware that he had been dropped, but that decision did not surprise him much because he explained that almost two years had gone by with the talk of him beating his wife, and he added that Disney was trying to cut ties with him to be safe.

Johnny Depp went on to say that the producers did not remove his character from attractions at theme parks throughout the world, nor did they stop selling Captain Jack Sparrow dolls, but they simply did not want them to be able to find something trailing behind him.

Johnny Depp stated that he would not return to play Jack Sparrow even if Disney wants him back. Image Source: Daily Express 

Ben Rottenborn also cross-examined Johnny Depp, asking if he would work again as Captain Jack Sparrow if Disney offered him the sixth installment of the film, to which he replied that he would NOT. Ben asked him again if he would return to working with Disney on the "Pirates of the Caribbean" film if he were offered $300 million and a million aplaces, and Johnny Depp responded that he would not.

In his opening statement, when Johnny Depp took the stand, he mentioned that the essay Amber Heard wrote had caused him a lot of trouble because as soon as the allegations were made public, the media started to talk about it and he was portrayed as a man who beat his wife, which was not true, but it was over for him. He added that no matter what the result of the lawsuit was going to be, the minute the allegations were out, he just knew that it was over for him and that was the pain he’d carry for the rest of his life. In court, Johnny Depp stated that he was suing her for defamation and for the various lies that she used to bring his life and career to an end. He was questioned about the essay, which does not mention his name, to which he said there is always a sneaky way of pointing fingers at someone without actually doing that.

The first time Amber Heard accused Johnny Depp of domestic abuse was in 2016 when she obtained a restraining order against him, but that was later resolved when their divorce was finalized in 2017. Johnny Depp paid her $7 million, which Amber Heard donated to a charity. The actor has shared various incidents in the courtroom where he had explained that in their relationship, it was Amber Heard who was the more aggressive one and he stood firm with his stand that he had not struck her or any woman in his life. 

Johnny Depp's character Captain Jack Sparrow in 'Pirates of the Caribbean' is one of the most loved characters of the actor and fans have expressed their huge disappointment with Disney dropping him out on the basis of a mere essay that Amber Heard wrote and now Johnny Depp stating that he would never return as Jack Sparrow. 

Amber Heard is going to take a stand, probably next week when the trial resumes.The trial which started on April 11th is expected to last six weeks.