Kate Moss and Johnny Depp stairs incident explored as Amber Heard's claim during testimony goes viral

Amber Heard mentioned Johnny Depp's past relationship with Kate Moss while testifying during their ongoing defamation trial.

The actress took the stand on Thursday and spoke about one of her fights with Depp in March 2015. She shared that she “instantly” thought of "Kate Moss and stairs” during the altercation with Depp involving her sister Whitney.

Heard said she struck Depp with a can of Red Bull and yelled at him, which prompted him to become enraged. She then claimed that Depp followed her up a staircase and grabbed her when her sister Whitney intervened in the fight.

The Aquaman star also alleged that Depp swung at Whitney, which led her to think about the Kate Moss stairs incident:

"She threw herself in the line of fire. She was trying to get Johnny to stop. Her back was to the staircase, and Johnny swings at her... I don’t hesitate and wait; I instantly think of Kate Moss and stairs."

Heard stated that the then situation forced her to hit Depp for the first time during their relationship:

"I, for the first time, hit him, square in the face. And he didn’t push my sister down the stairs. Up to that point in our relationship, I hadn’t even landed one on Johnny."

She further claimed that Depp "looked stunned," "laughed," and allegedly "lunged" towards her again before being stopped by security staff.

Amber Heard's latest testimony went viral online, with several people debating her statement. Meanwhile, a video of Johnny Depp's lawyer Ben Chew punching the air in excitement during the testimony also surfaced on social media.

Netizens pointed out that Chew's move may presumably mean that Heard opened the door for the lawyers to speak about past relationships, which could be a disadvantage for the actress as she was previously arrested for domestic violence against her partner in 2009.

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A look into Johnny Depp and Kate Moss' staircase incident

During the 2020 UK libel trial between Johnny Depp and The Sun, Amber Heard claimed that she heard rumors about the actor pushing Kate Moss down the stairs while they were dating in the 1990s:

"He pushed Kate Moss down the stairs, I heard this from two people, and this was fresh in my mind."

Heard said that the rumored incident prompted her to hit Depp to defend her sister Whitney while they were engaged in a staircase fight in 2015:

"I reacted in defense of my sister. I had for years been Johnny's punchbag, but for years, I never hit him. It was the first time after all these years that I struck him back."

Depp's lawyer Eleanor Laws countered Heard's statement at the time:

"You have added the detail about Kate Moss. It's not contained in any document. You did not mention anything about Kate Moss being in your mind. You are just making this up as you go along. This is the first time that you have mentioned it."

While Kate Moss never addressed the rumor and did not share information about Depp's behavior during their relationship, the actor's former partner Vanessa Paradis dismissed claims of Depp being abusive while they were together.

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What did Kate Moss and Johnny Depp say about their relationship?

Johnny Depp and Kate Moss broke up in 1998 after years of whirlwind romance (Image via Getty Images)

Johnny Depp and Kate Moss met in 1994. The duo was reportedly introduced by their mutual friend columnist George Wayne at a cafe in New York before beginning a highly publicized relationship.

Moss once shared that the couple had a spark right from the moment they met each other. However, the actress revealed that the relationship lost its charm before they broke up in 1998.

During a 2012 interview with Vanity Fair, Moss said her separation from Depp was a "nightmare":

"There's nobody that's ever really been able to take care of me. Johnny did for a bit. I believed what he said. Like if I said, 'What do I do?' he'd tell me. And that's what I missed when I left. I really lost that gauge of somebody I could trust. Nightmare. Years and years of crying. Oh, the tears!"

Depp took responsibility for his split with Moss while speaking on their relationship to Hello!Magazine:

"I have never got that emotional over a woman before. I have been so stupid because we had so much going for our relationship. I'm the one who has to take responsibility for what happened—I was difficult to get on with, I let my work get in the way, and I didn't give her the attention I should have."

Prior to their break-up, Johnny Depp was once arrested for trashing a hotel room with Kate Moss inside in 1994. At the time, the pair was also photographed screaming at each other in public.

However, Moss was not hurt during the incident, and a criminal court eventually dismissed the charges after Depp paid the hotel a sum of $9,767 in compensation. Depp and Moss officially called it quits in 1998.