On April 20, during Johnny Depp’s defamation court case against Amber Heard, the actor spoke about the tattoo he got to commemorate former fiance Winona Ryder. Depp had famously altered his “Winona Forever” tattoo to read “Wino Forever” after the pair split. While on the stand, the “Public Enemies” star explained that he humorously changed the tattoo as a way of coping with the heartache.
Even though Ryder’s name had been altered, Heard supposedly felt jealous that her name was not also tattooed on Depp, so he eventually appeased his then-wife by getting ink in her honor. “And ironically it wasn’t long after that that everything started going sideways,” Depp claimed during his testimony, per CNN. According to Depp, getting his wife’s name and likeness tattooed on his body was only one of the ways he tried to cheer her up. “I would try to wake her up with laughter, singing stupid songs in her ear. I generally just tried to keep bringing her mood up,” he said.
In an earlier court case — in July 2020 — Depp was accused by Heard of slapping her because she mocked the “Wino Forever” tattoo. Although Depp denied the claims when questioned by a lawyer. “I don’t recall any argument about any of my tattoos,” he said at the time, per Deadline. Depp once again denied the claim on April 20. “Why would I take such great offense to someone making fun of a tattoo on my body?” he said, according to ABC News.
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.
