Johnny Depp Appeals U.K. Court Loss In Slander Case Over ‘Wife Beater’ Article

Johnny Depp has applied to the U.K. Court of Appeals after losing a libel case against U.K. tabloid The Sun in the High Court.

Depp filed a libel case against News Group Newspapers, publisher of The Sun, and the tabloids editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article claiming he was a “wife beater.” Judge Andrew Niccol ruled against Depp in this case. Niccol decided that 12 out of the 14 incidents of alleged domestic violence committed against Depp’s ex-wife, Aquaman actor Amber Heard, did take place.

In November Niccol denied Depp the right to appeal. “The findings of fact by a first instance tribunal (particularly one, such as myself, who has heard oral evidence) are rarely open to challenge on appeal,” the judge wrote at the time.

“In any event, I do not consider that the proposed grounds of appeal have a reasonable prospect of success (and that is also the case so far as the grounds of appeal suggest that I erred in principle or in law) and there is not some other compelling reason why permission to appeal should be granted.”

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It is not clear what Depp’s grounds of appeal are, or when a decision will be made.

After the decision, Depp was forced to quit the Fantastic Beasts franchise. “I wish to let you know that I have been asked to resign by Warner Bros. from my role as Grindelwald in ‘Fantastic Beasts’ and I have respected and agreed to that request,” he wrote Friday on Instagram.

It was announced in November that Mads Mikkelsen will be replacing Depp as Gellert Grindelwald in Fantastic Beasts 3.