Johnny Depp's 2022 defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard was done primarily so that the
actor could "protect his children."
So what do Lily-Rose and Jack Depp really think about their former stepmom?
If you're curious, keep watching.
For Johnny Depp, having children wasn't just life changing — they gave his life new meaning.
In a 2006 interview with ABC12, Depp had this to say about his children:
"[They provide me with a] real foundation, a real strong place to stand in life, in work,
in everything."
For the actor, his booming career and his financial success meant nothing compared to
becoming a father.
When Lily-Rose Depp was born, Johnny told the Daily Mail:
"[Lily's birth] was not only the greatest thing that's ever happened — it's the only
thing that's ever happened to me.
[...] Suddenly, you meet your reason to live, meet the future.
[...] It was like my birth in a way.
I was born that day."
His history with addiction and substance abuse has come up frequently over his career and
garnered considerable interest in the court proceedings between himself and Amber Heard.
So welcoming Lily-Rose and Jack Depp into the world also functioned as a motivation
to get sober for the actor.
Johnny admitted to the Daily Mail that he had a problem with alcohol and couldn't stop
drinking.
Depp said to the outlet:
"I would just keep going until a black screen came down, where you can't see anything any
more.
[...] Now I have a solid foundation to stand on."
Lily-Rose Depp was born in May 1999, while her younger brother, Jack Depp, was welcomed
into the world in April 2002 — and from the sound of it, their childhoods were pretty
idyllic.
Dad Johnny Depp explained how having children around brought joy back to the simple things.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Depp said this about his kids:
"They make me happy.
Simple, fun things, me and my son zooming around in little cars or making up absurd
stories about Barbie dolls who get obsessed about peanut butter."
Lily-Rose has followed both of her parents' career paths.
She got her first acting part in the 2014 film Tusk and has since gone on to take on
more prominent roles in The King and Voyagers.
Her mother, Vanessa Paradis, the French singer and model, was a long-time ambassador for
Chanel and starred in some of the brand's iconic films.
Not unlike her mother, Lily-Rose has also become the feature face for Chanel.
In 2022, she starred in a short film by Chanel.
So what does Paradis think of her daughter's global fame?
Paradis told Vogue:
"I would rather it hadn't happened so quickly, but I'm in no position to stop it.
She is made for this."
Meanwhile, Jack has remained extremely private.
With two famous parents, it's no wonder that the Depp children were sought-after subjects
for persistent paparazzi.
In fact, some of Johnny Depp's more litigious altercations from his past had to do with
protecting his privacy and that of his family.
There was a famous incident in 1999, for example, when he was dining in London with Vanessa
Paradis at the iconic Mirabelle restaurant.
She was visibly pregnant with their first child, and therefore even more of an appealing
subject for paparazzi — but Depp wasn't having it.
Depp later said to the Daily Mail
"I told them: 'I know the photograph you want and you're not going to get it!
I don't want to be a novelty tonight.'"
The actor went on to note that the photographers were rude and pushy, even after his request
for privacy.
The photographers were even trying to pull the door open after Vanessa got in the car.
So, in response, he picked up a block of wood and hit the paparazzi's hand to stop him from
opening the door.
Police took Depp into custody, and he was released roughly four hours later.
The kerfuffle made headlines all over the world, but Depp's publicist explained the
actor's actions in a statement made to the Chicago Tribune, writing,
"Johnny Depp is a person who guards his privacy.
He had asked photographers to abstain from photographing him.
Unfortunately, they persisted and intentionally provoked him."
Clearly, there's no getting past this movie star when he wants to protect his family.
"Vanessa and my kids gave me life."
Johnny Depp's childhood appeared to be anything but idyllic when he opened up about his abusive
rearing during court proceedings in the 2022 defamation case against Amber Heard.
Depp testified that his mother, Betty Sue Palmer, was allegedly both physically and
emotionally abusive toward Depp and his siblings when they were kids.
Depp said during the trial,
"She could become quite violent…" "... and she was quite cruel."
The rage was often unprompted, Depp said, admitting that he'd flinch instinctively when
she'd walk by.
Depp also told the court about Palmer's suicide attempt when he was young.
The actor revealed that his uncle was able to contact paramedics during the attempt,
so Palmer ultimately recovered.
However, the experience clearly left a deep impression on Depp, enough so that it came
up as a significant detail in the trial decades later.
Depp's tragic childhood informed the way that he was a father, meaning he chose to give
his children the opposite experience from the one he had.
Depp told Rolling Stone in 2013:
"I didn't have a real handle on what life was supposed to mean or be or anything like
that.
But as long as you have the opportunity to breathe, breathe.
As long as you have the opportunity to make your kid smile and laugh, and move it forward."
Johnny Depp first donned the pirate costume of Captain Jack Sparrow in 2003 and kicked
off a highly lucrative venture in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
Depp got creative with his inspiration and said he fashioned Sparrow off of the Rolling
Stones legend Keith Richards, telling IGN:
"I sort of thought that pirates would be the rock and roll stars of the 18th century, you
know?
Then, when you think of rock and roll stars, the greatest rock and roll star of all time,
the coolest rock and roll star of all time, in my opinion, is Keith Richards.
Hands down."
Any fan of the Disney series can tell that Depp had fun fleshing out Sparrow's character,
and he made major money while he was at it, with an estimated $55 million banked for the
third film alone, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
But the biggest motivation of all in doing Pirates was his children, as Depp told Vanity
Fair that the films were, quote, "all for the kiddies."
But Lily-Rose and Jack Depp have apparently motivated him through his entire career.
In a 2009 interview with the Daily Telegraph, Depp had this to say:
"I'm just an actor, and if I can leave something behind that my kids will be proud of, then
that's what I want.
[...] I don't want my kids to be embarrassed by anything I've done."
After 14 years together and welcoming their two children, Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis
split up in 2012.
Part of the reason for their breakup was Depp's rigorous filming schedule and how much it
required him to be away from Paradis and their kids.
He told Rolling Stone in 2013,
"Relationships are very difficult.
Especially in the racket that I'm in because you're con­stantly away or they're away and
so it's hard.
[...] It wasn't easy on her.
It wasn't easy on me.
It wasn't easy on the kids."
The star also stressed to Rolling Stone that they kept their children as the top priority
in their split.
Depp later spoke with CBS This Morning on the challenges of navigating a breakup when
kids are involved, saying,
"When you have children, there is no room for lies, no room for anything but the truth.
Anything other than that is a bad example, I believe."
Depp went on to share his and Paradis' strategy as co-parents, which came down to nothing
more than being honest with their two kids, saying,
"I was extremely proud of them, you know, the way they dealt with it."
When Johnny Depp started dating Amber Heard after splitting from Vanessa Paradis, his
kids initially navigated the new relationship easily.
In 2013, the new couple went to Tokyo with Lily-Rose and Jack Depp, in what looked like
a relaxing family vacation.
However, as her relationship with Johnny progressed, it appeared that Heard's relationship with
his children deteriorated, especially with Lily-Rose.
When they married in 2015 on his island in the Bahamas, Lily-Rose was conspicuously absent.
Years later, when Johnny was in court for his defamation lawsuit against Heard, he brought
up Lily-Rose's decision to opt out of attending the nuptials.
Depp told the court:
"My daughter, Lily-Rose, did not come to the wedding.
She and Ms. Heard were not on particularly great terms, for several reasons."
When Heard's allegations of abuse initially aired, Lily-Rose jumped on Instagram to defend
her father and posted a throwback photo of the two of them, writing,
"My dad is the sweetest most loving person I know, he's been nothing but a wonderful
father to my little brother and I, and everyone who knows him would say the same."
Johnny Depp testified in court that Lily-Rose and Jack apparently disliked Heard much earlier
than when their father saw problems in the relationship, saying,
"My kids are far more intelligent than I am.
They refused to be around her."
During the 2022 defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, Depp's drinking came
up.
Heard spoke about an alleged incident on Johnny's island in the Bahamas, in which he was apparently
angry about selling his yacht to Harry Potter author J.K.
Rowling, and was secretly drinking because Lily-Rose and Jack Depp were there.
Heard claimed:
"He was upset, he was emotional, and he just… you know, that's how he dealt with it — just
drink."
Alleging that her ex couldn't stop drinking once he started, she said that he then proceeded
to get drunk in front of his children, before jumping off the boat in an erratic way.
Heard explained what allegedly happened next:
"It looked a little scary, the way his body fell into the water and Lily-Rose started
to cry and then [...] Johnny comes in and within a few seconds I realized he kind of
shifted his attention on me and he seemed very angry."
She claimed that Johnny was upset with her because he thought she was talking about his
drunken behavior with his children, which allegedly led to a violent altercation between
the couple.
But this apparently wasn't the only time that Johnny Depp's children came up during their
arguments, as his security guard, Travis McGivern, alleged in court that Heard once called Johnny
a, quote, "deadbeat dad."
After Amber Heard wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post — which was presumably about her alleged
experience of domestic abuse with Johnny Depp, though she never directly stated his name
— he sued her for $50 million in a defamation lawsuit.
Meanwhile, Heard countersued for $100 million.
While claiming that there was no truth to Heard's allegations of abuse, Depp told the
court during his 2022 testimony,
"It was my responsibility to not only clear my name.
[...] I wanted to clear my children of this horrid thing they had to read about their
father, that was untrue.
[...] I don't deserve this, neither my children nor the people who have loved me for all these
years."
His children came up several times during the court case and, in one instance, Heard
spoke about how fond she was of Lily-Rose and Jack Depp.
Heard said while testifying:
"I found them [to be] these beautiful, wildly intelligent little weirdos in the best way.
You know?
They were ... I was falling in love with them."
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National
Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233.
You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.