Johnny Depp Asks To Postpone Amber Heard Trial Due To Conflicts With ‘Fantastic Beasts’ Filming

Actor Johnny Depp is asking to move the date for his defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard so that it doesn’t conflict with filming the next installment of the Fantastic Beasts movie franchise.

Depp, 57, filed a suit against Heard, 34, after the latter proclaimed herself a victim of abuse and implying Depp was the abuser in a Washington Post column.

Depp’s legal team is currently trying to postpone the trial, originally set for Jan. 11, to sometime between March and June 2021. Though the court date didn’t conflict with Depp’s filming schedule at first, the legal team argues that conflicts arose after the COVID-19 pandemic forced Warner Bros to push back filming on the Harry Potter spinoff, in which Depp plays the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald.

According to Glenn Eckerle, senior vice president of legal affairs at Warner Bros, the motion to postpone was filed two days after Depp’s manager received a letter reminding Depp that he was contractually obligated to report to filming in London on an exclusive basis. The filming was set to start in early October 2020 and run until the middle of February 2021.

Depp’s legal team states that the actor could face a breach of contract if he doesn’t comply with the filming schedule. “Though Mr. Depp is eager to proceed to trial, he faces an untenable situation over which he has no control,” they said. “Good cause therefore exists to continue the trial date.”